Times Square Ball

A ball that tells time

A time ball is a signal that drops at a set moment so that people can see the hour. Ports and cities once used them, and the ball above One Times Square follows that idea. It hangs on a pole built for it and slides down during the last minute of the year. The first version, in 1907, measured five feet across, was made from wood and iron, and was lit by a hundred bulbs. Six redesigns followed as lighting changed. The ball that appeared for 2025-26 is twelve and a half feet across, and its face carries thousands of crystal panels with a new theme each year.

Origins and history

The first New Year's Eve party in Times Square was held in 1904, when the newspaper publisher Adolph Ochs marked the opening of his paper's new headquarters with fireworks. About 200,000 people came, and the gathering drew crowds away from older celebrations at Trinity Church. When the city stopped fireworks from being set off over the crowd, Ochs wanted something bigger. The paper's chief electrician, Walter F. Palmer, had seen a time ball on the Western Union Telegraph Building and suggested one. The sign company Artkraft Strauss built the first ball, and the drop took place on 31 December 1907. It has run every year since, apart from 1942 and 1943, when wartime blackouts kept the city dark.

Guests and the mayor

Since 1996, the ceremonial button that starts the drop has often been pressed by guests invited for their community work or public standing. They usually share the stage with the mayor of New York City. Guests over the years have included athletes, actors, musicians, journalists, teachers, students, service members and officials of the United Nations. Because a new mayor's term begins at midnight on 1 January, the ceremony has sometimes served as a mayor's final public act. Two mayors, Michael Bloomberg in 2002 and Eric Adams in 2022, took their oath of office on the Times Square stage just after the ball came down.

Confetti and cleanup

At midnight, more than a ton of confetti falls over the square. A balloon artist named Treb Heining has directed it since 1992, working with about a hundred volunteers placed on the roofs of eight buildings. Heining shaped the event's look with larger pieces that hold up in outdoor air, an effect described as a blizzard. Since 2007-08, some pieces have carried handwritten wishes, sent in through a public Wishing Wall in the square and through the event's website. Crews then work through the night to clear the paper and other litter. After the 2013-14 event, the city sanitation department said it removed more than fifty tons of rubbish in eight hours.

Today and change

The ball stays on its pole above One Times Square for nearly the whole year, not only in December, and has done so since 2009. A renovation of the building opened the ball to visitors in November 2025 through a new observation deck, where it is lowered several times a day for viewing and retired crystals are kept as mementoes. Other American cities have taken up the idea, some dropping a ball and others dropping an object that stands for local history or culture. The ball has also come down at hours other than midnight, including over 3 and 4 July 2026 for Independence Day.

How Times Square Ball is kept

On 31 December, Times Square is closed to traffic from the late afternoon. Arrivals pass through security checks and are sent one group at a time into fenced viewing areas called pens. Backpacks and alcohol are not allowed. At six in the evening the ball is raised in an opening ceremony, and party hats, balloons and other small gifts are handed out. Music and other acts fill the hours to midnight, with a televised concert from the square. At 11:59 the ball begins to descend, and a guest and the mayor press a ceremonial button. When it reaches the bottom, the year's numeral lights up, fireworks launch, and confetti falls.

When and where

The drop happens once a year on New Year's Eve, 31 December, running into the first minutes of 1 January. Times Square closes in the late afternoon, the ball is raised at six in the evening, and the descent begins at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time, timed to a national clock signal received by satellite.

The celebration belongs to New York City and is centred on Times Square, with the ball mounted above One Times Square. Crowds gather in the square itself, and the event is carried on television across the United States. The idea has travelled: many American towns and cities now stage their own drops on New Year's Eve.

What Times Square Ball means

The ball carries two ideas at once. It is a timekeeping device, a signal that a set moment has arrived, and it is a public countdown that a crowd shares. People watch it to stand together at the turn of the year, with wishes for what comes next written on slips of confetti. For viewers at home, the scene has become a familiar picture of the American new year.

Days Times Square Ball is marked

Questions people ask about Times Square Ball

See also

HanukkahAn eight-day Jewish festival marking the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem and the miracle of a single day'Christmas EveThe evening before Christmas, marked by church services, family meals, and gift preparations across Christian cultures.JulebukkingA Scandinavian Christmas custom where masked visitors go door to door for songs and treats.Rockefeller Center Christmas TreeA towering spruce lit annually in New York City to mark the start of the holiday season.

Good reading and sources

• Times Square braces for one of coldest New YearThe Guardian, Article
• Times Square braces for one of coldest New YearThe Guardian, Article

• Times Square Ball on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos and video
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-05.