Summary
- EarthCam has released a new commemorative World Trade Center time-lapse marking 25 years since 2001
- The visual archive now exceeds 14.7 million images, up from 13.3 million in 2021
- During the past five years, St.
- Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine and the Perelman Performing Arts Center were completed
- 2 World Trade Center is now under construction and is scheduled for completion in 2031
- EarthCam has also released the new short documentary “We Never Left”
- A camera that remained at Ground Zero for a quarter-century
- From 13.3 to 14.7 million frames
- What changed at the World Trade Center after 2021
- The buildings captured by the cameras
- “We Never Left”: the story behind the cameras
- A photographic archive with historical value
- What we think
- Frequently asked questions
EarthCam compresses 25 years of World Trade Center reconstruction into a historic visual archive that now contains more than 14.7 million images.
EarthCam unveiled a new commemorative edition of its long-running Ground Zero project on September 4, 2026, together with the short documentary “We Never Left,” documenting the site’s evolution from the days following the September 11, 2001 attacks to today’s Lower Manhattan. The company says its archive now contains more than 14.7 million images.
The project’s significance goes far beyond an impressive time-lapse. It is a continuous photographic record of an urban landscape that moved from rescue and recovery to the construction of new skyscrapers, memorials, transportation infrastructure and cultural institutions — and it remains active while the complex’s final major office tower, 2 World Trade Center, is now under construction.
A camera that remained at Ground Zero for a quarter-century
EarthCam’s documentation of the site began on September 21, 2001, when company founder and CEO Brian Cury installed a camera overlooking Ground Zero, initially to support rescue and recovery operations through live-streaming video. As the nature of the work changed, the cameras remained, turning a temporary system into one of the largest long-term visual records of an urban rebuilding project.
According to EarthCam, documentation continued through successive generations of photographic and robotic camera technology and from multiple viewpoints. The company describes the capture rate as approximately one image per minute over the past 25 years, with the complete archive now exceeding 14.7 million frames.
From 13.3 to 14.7 million frames
PTTL previously covered EarthCam’s 20-year World Trade Center time-lapse in 2021. At the time, the archive contained more than 13.3 million images captured over 20 years from more than 100 different viewpoints, while the commemorative film ran for approximately six minutes.
Five years later, the archive has grown by more than 1.4 million images. More importantly, the new edition does not simply extend the earlier film: it adds newly completed chapters in the development of the World Trade Center and reaches the construction work currently underway in 2026.
What changed at the World Trade Center after 2021
Two important projects at the complex were completed after the previous anniversary edition. St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine was completed in 2022, followed by the Perelman Performing Arts Center in 2023, adding two more defining elements to the rebuilt World Trade Center. Both appear in EarthCam’s new retrospective.
The biggest new chapter, however, is still being written. 2 World Trade Center returned to active construction in 2026 and is set to become the new global headquarters of American Express. Designed by Foster + Partners, the building is scheduled for completion in 2031. The Port Authority confirms that initial construction activity for the tower’s vertical development began in March 2026.
This means that even the 25-year edition does not represent the end of the story: EarthCam’s cameras continue to document the final major commercial tower on the campus as it rises.
The buildings captured by the cameras
The new film follows the construction and evolution of many of the landmarks that now define the World Trade Center: 4 World Trade Center, One World Trade Center, The Oculus, 3 World Trade Center, St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine, the Perelman Performing Arts Center and, now, 2 World Trade Center.
Chronologically, 4 World Trade Center was completed in 2013, One World Trade Center in 2014, The Oculus in 2016 and 3 World Trade Center in 2018. The later completion of St. Nicholas in 2022 and the Perelman center in 2023 demonstrates why EarthCam’s project is not simply the documentation of a skyscraper but of the transformation of an entire section of Lower Manhattan.
“We Never Left”: the story behind the cameras
For the 25th anniversary, EarthCam did more than update its time-lapse. The company also released the short documentary “We Never Left,” in which Brian Cury recounts EarthCam’s initial presence at Ground Zero and the decision to keep documenting the site for decades.
The documentary and the time-lapse are dedicated to those who lost their lives in the attacks, as well as the first responders, recovery workers and construction professionals who contributed to the rebuilding effort.
A photographic archive with historical value
The significance of 14.7 million images is not simply their sheer number. The consistency of viewpoints and the extraordinary duration of the project make it possible to observe the transformation of the same location on a scale that a conventional photographic archive can rarely provide.
EarthCam has donated the image archive to the National September 11 Memorial & Museum. The photographs therefore function not only as source material for an anniversary film, but also as a historical record of the physical transformation of the site over a quarter-century.
What we think
The most powerful part of this project is not simply that it contains 14.7 million images, but that the documentation remained active for 25 continuous years while the same place was transformed so radically. Comparing it with the 2021 edition shows why long-term photographic documentation becomes more valuable with time: even after 20 years, major chapters in the history of the World Trade Center had yet to be written. And with 2 World Trade Center now under construction, the archive is still evolving.
Frequently asked questions
How many images are now included in EarthCam’s archive?
EarthCam says its Ground Zero and World Trade Center archive now contains more than 14.7 million images, compared with more than 13.3 million in the 2021 anniversary edition.
When did EarthCam begin documenting Ground Zero?
The company’s continuous visual record began on September 21, 2001, when Brian Cury installed a camera overlooking the site just days after the attacks.
What has been added since the 20-year time-lapse?
Among other developments, the new edition includes the completion of St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine in 2022, the Perelman Performing Arts Center in 2023 and the beginning of active construction on 2 World Trade Center in 2026. EarthCam has also produced the new documentary “We Never Left.”
Has the rebuilding of the World Trade Center now been completed?
No. 2 World Trade Center is currently under construction and is scheduled for completion in 2031, while EarthCam continues to document its progress.
