New York City kicked off the holiday season with the lighting of the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree on Wednesday night.
This year’s tree is a mighty Norway spruce from Queensbury, N.Y. It stands 82 feet tall, spans 50 feet wide and weights a whopping 14 tons. The specimen is 85 to 90 years old and was donated by the Lebowitz family of Glen Falls.
The tree is covered in over 50,000 lights, wrapped in around five miles of wire and topped with a star made of over three million Swarovski crystals that weighs 900 pounds on its own. Once the holiday season ends, the tree will be turned into timber for Habitat for Humanity.
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The viewing areas at 49th St. and Fifth Ave. and at 51st St. and Sixth Ave. reached full capacity for the show, according to the NYPD.
“We Thank You and Want Everyone To Enjoy Tonight’s Tree Lightning!!! MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!” tweeted NYPD Patrol Borough Manhattan South.
[ PHOTOS: Look back at the iconic Rockefeller Tree through the years! ]
Gwen Stefani, Blake Shelton, The Rockettes, Andrea Bocelli, Mickey Guyton and Alicia Keys were scheduled to perform during the two-hour show.
Following Wednesday’s ceremony, the tree will be lit from 6 a.m. to midnight every day. It will remain lit for all 24 hours on Christmas Day, and the lights will turn off at 9 p.m. on New Year’s Eve.
