Origin: New York City stages 9/11 drone tribute

A drone show lit up New York Harbor ahead of the 25th anniversary of 9/11. It used 2,977 individual lights, each representing a victim, assembling into a towering outline of the Twin Towers meant to match their original proportions. The formation rose over Lower Manhattan above the harbor.

The installation, titled “2977 Lights Over New York Harbor” and sponsored by the New York Foundation for the Arts, ran while the Tribute in Light beams glowed near Ground Zero, creating two simultaneous memorials. Spectators watched from Liberty State Park in Jersey City as the outline appeared against the skyline near One World Trade Center. Other small aircraft were kept out of the area for several hours during the drone operation.

AI-synthesized from multiple reported sources