The Leaning Tower of Pisa is standing a little straighter these days, thanks to rescue work done by engineers in the 1990s. In fact, it’s continued to straighten even after the work was completed in 2001.
According to the Pisa University surveillance group that monitors the 850-year-old tower, the 57-metre high tower has straightened by 4 centimeters in that time; during the work that was done between 1993 and 2001, 40 centimeters were shifted off the lean.
During that work, the ground under the tower was stabilized to keep it from eventually falling. The tilt is nothing new: the tower first started leaning away from its base in 1173, while it was being built. When the work began, the tower was 4.5 metres off vertical.
