Queen Mary Dome

The place

The Queen Mary Dome is a vast geodesic dome erected in 1983 at the port of Long Beach, California, in close proximity to the Queen Mary, the transatlantic liner converted into a tourist attraction. Built by the Wrather Corporation, which then operated the ship, it was touted at its construction as the largest geodesic dome in the world, reaching a height of about 35 meters and a diameter of nearly 120 meters. It was specifically designed to house and display the "Spruce Goose," the massive wooden seaplane by Howard Hughes (the H-4 Hercules), which made only a single flight in 1947. The aircraft was displayed there until 1992, when it was transferred to a museum in McMinnville, Oregon. The dome then had various uses, including as a filming location, before being gradually repurposed from 2001 into a baggage terminal and customs facility serving Carnival Cruise Lines.