The Fountain

From the Center of a man-made lake, one of the “World’s Highest Fountains” sends a snow-white jet stream of water 560 feet into the blue desert sky. It is the Centerpiece and landmark of Fountain Hills, a community of rolling hills and spectacular mountain views located just east of Scottsdale, Arizona, thirty miles from downtown Phoenix.

The performance of The Fountain exceeds its nearest rivals. At Canberra, Australia, the Captain Cook Memorial Jet attains an operating height of 450 feet, while in Lake Geneva, Switzerland, Le Jet D’Eau has a maximum height of 435 feet, New York City’s Delacourte Fountain Rises 400 feet, and Pittsburg’s new Point Fountain, 500 feet.

At 560 Feet, being one of the “World’s Highest Fountains” it is 5 feet taller than Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. It reaches 110 feet higher than the Great Pyramid of Cheops in Egypt, and is more than 3 times as high as Old Faithful Geyser in Yellowstone Park.

The Nozzle – Heart of The Fountain’s Phenomenal Performance is uniquely engineered and weighs nearly 2,000 pounds. Designed and built in Zurich, Switzerland, at the famed Institute for Hydraulic Research, the nozzle received extensive testing before being placed in its home at Fountain Hills. Its location was selected with full regard for average prevailing wind direction and speed. At full operation, water pressure at the nozzle is 375 pounds per square inch flowing at a rate of 7000 gallons per minute. This gives a velocity of 68.5 feet per second and puts more than 8 tons of water (approx. 2000 gallons) in the air above the nozzle.

The Fountain operates 15 times a day, as weather and wind velocity permit, on a schedule of 10 minutes operation every hour on the hour between 10 a.m. and 9 p.m. seven days a week.

At night The Fountain becomes a jet of gold and white against the starry desert sky when lighted. Golden spotlights situated in the base of the jetspray send glowing illumination up the first 300 feet of the column where it blends with a contrasting silver -white light on the upper portion. This light comes from powerful mercury vapor lamps located along the lakeshore.

The striking effect of lights and spray make The Fountain an inspiring “night sight” to see at Fountain Hills.