Japan's brand-new Akashi Kaikyo Bridge is more than two miles long. That makes it the longest suspension bridge in the world! The roadway of a suspension bridge hangs from many vertical cables attached to two or more thicker main cables. Two towers hold up the Japanese bridge's two main cables.

The $7.7 billion bridge opened this month. It connects the city of Kobe to Awaji Island, across the Akashi Strait. The bridge can withstand high winds and even powerful earthquakes, like the one that devastated Kobe in 1995. The two towers that hold up the span are as tall as a 90-story building.

So much steel cable was used to make the bridge that it could circle the globe seven times!

Daily News from TIME for Kids

April 24, 1998 World Report