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Picture of the Reliant Astrodome

It opened in 1965 and was nicknamed the "Eighth Wonder of the World". (A team owner is quoted as saying that the "rent for the Astrodome was the ninth".) The stadium was originally called Harris County Domed Stadium in 1965. Reliant Energy purchased naming rights to the building in 2000.

When the Astrodome opened it utilized a natural grass playing surface. The dome's ceiling was made of clear plastic panes. Players quickly complained that glare coming off of the panes made it impossible for them to track fly balls. Subsequently all of the panes were painted over, which solved the glare problem but caused the grass to die from lack of sunlight. For a time the Astros played on dirt painted green. The permanent solution was to install a new type of artificial grass on the field, which became known as Astroturf.

In 1968Events Undated Booker Prize for Fiction is established by Booker plc. 1968 is known as the year of the Prague Spring and also the year of the Paris riots. The ASCII character code is standardized as ANSI Standard X3. Nauru adopt his national anthem of the, the American footballAmerican football known in the United States simply as football is a competitive team sport that rewards players' speed, agility, skill, tactics, and brute strength as they run and throw a ball, and block, tackle, and outrun each other, trying to force th team Houston Oilers moved into the Dome. Over the years, college basketball and football games, soccer matches, religious gatherings, and music concerts have been held at the stadium. The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, one of the city's biggest annual events, was held at the Dome from 1965 till 20022002 is a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). 2002 was the first palindromic year since 1991 and the last until 2112. 2002 was also designated: International Year of Ecotourism and Mountains National Science Year in the United Kingdom.

The Astrodome was well-known for a four-story tall scoreboard, comprised of thousands of lightbulbs, that featured animations until its removal in the late 1980sMillennia: 1st millennium 2nd millennium 3rd millennium Centuries: 19th century 20th century 21st century Decades: 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s 2030s Years: 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 Events and trends. This loss was brought about by threats from Oilers owner Bud AdamsBud" Adams, Jr. born 1923) is a Houston, Texas businessman who owns Tennessee Titans franchise in the National Football League. He was a charter owner in the former American Football League with the Titans' predecessor franchise, the Houston Oilers. Adams to move his football team unless stadium seating capacity was expanded. The city buckled to his demands, and the scoreboard was removed and approximately 15,000 new seats installed to bring total capacity over 60,000.

The United States Republican Party held their 1992 convention at the Astrodome. The Astros accommodated the politicians by taking a month-long road trip.

The Astrodome began to show its age by the 1990s. Oilers owner Adams issued a new set of demands, this time for a completely new stadium, but the city of Houston refused to fund such a venture. After years of threats, Adams moved the team to Tennessee in 1996. Around that time the Astros also threatened to leave the city unless a new ballpark was built. Houstonians acquiesced this time, and a retractable-roofed Minute Maid Park was erected in downtown Houston in 2000.

The Astrodome was joined by a new neighbor in 2002, the retractable-roofed Reliant Stadium, which was built to house Houston's new NFL franchise, the Texans. When the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo moved to the new venue in 2003, the Astrodome was left without any major tenants. The historic facility now hosts only the occasional concert and high school football, and its future remains uncertain.