BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Barcelona’s Sagrada Familia basilica became the world’s tallest church on Thursday after a part of its central tower was lifted into place.
The masterwork of architect Antoni Gaudí now rises to 162.91 meters (534 feet) above the city, the church said in a statement. That barely beats out the tip of the spire of Germany’s Ulmer Münster, which tops out at 161.53 (530 feet) meters.
The Ulmer Münster, a Gothic Lutheran church built between 1543 and 1890, has held the title of the world’s tallest church. That bragging right now gets passed to its Spanish rival. Even though the Sagrada Familia does not claim the title, the numbers are there to compare: it is now just over a meter (3.2 feet) taller than the church in southern Germany.
And the Sagrada Familia is still growing. The central “Tower of Jesus Christ” that is rising from the top of the church will reach 172 meters (564 feet) when it is completed in the coming months.
A crane placed the first part of the tower on top of the nave on Thursday morning.
The first stone of the Sagrada Familia was placed in 1882, but Gaudí never expected it to be completed in his lifetime. Only one of its multiple towers was finished when he died.
Work has sped up over recent decades as the basilica became a major international tourist attraction with people around the world enthralled by Gaudí's unique aesthetic that combines Catholic symbolism and organic forms.
The money from entrance fees is used to fund the ongoing construction. Last year, 4.9 million people paid to visit it, with 15% of those tourists coming from the United States.
Work on the church’s elaborate facades and decorating its interior will continue for several years. It is expected to be completely finished around a decade from now, church officials said earlier this year.
Next year will be the 100th anniversary of the death of Gaudí. The church will hold several events to celebrate his legacy, which includes other stunning buildings in Barcelona and other places in Spain.
A tourist takes photos at the Sagrada Familia basilica, which became the world's tallest church on Thursday after a section of its central tower was lifted into place, in Barcelona, Spain, Oct. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
View of the Sagrada Familia basilica, which became the world's tallest church on Thursday after a section of its central tower was lifted into place, in Barcelona, Spain, Oct. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — An ailing astronaut returned to Earth with three others on Thursday, ending their space station mission more than a month early in NASA’s first medical evacuation.
SpaceX guided the capsule to a middle-of-the-night splashdown in the Pacific near San Diego, less than 11 hours after the astronauts exited the International Space Station.
“It’s so good to be home,” said NASA astronaut Zena Cardman, the capsule commander.
It was an unexpected finish to a mission that began in August and left the orbiting lab with only one American and two Russians on board. NASA and SpaceX said they would try to move up the launch of a fresh crew of four; liftoff is currently targeted for mid-February.
Cardman and NASA’s Mike Fincke were joined on the return by Japan’s Kimiya Yui and Russia’s Oleg Platonov. Officials have refused to identify the astronaut who had the health problem or explain what happened, citing medical privacy.
While the astronaut was stable in orbit, NASA wanted them back on Earth as soon as possible to receive proper care and diagnostic testing. The entry and splashdown required no special changes or accommodations, officials said, and the recovery ship had its usual allotment of medical experts on board. It was not immediately known when the astronauts would fly from California to their home base in Houston. Platonov’s return to Moscow was also unclear.
NASA stressed repeatedly over the past week that this was not an emergency. The astronaut fell sick or was injured on Jan. 7, prompting NASA to call off the next day’s spacewalk by Cardman and Fincke, and ultimately resulting in the early return. It was the first time NASA cut short a spaceflight for medical reasons. The Russians had done so decades ago.
The space station has gotten by with three astronauts before, sometimes even with just two. NASA said it will be unable to perform a spacewalk, even for an emergency, until the arrival of the next crew, which has two Americans, one French and one Russian astronaut.
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
This screengrab from video provided by NASA TV shows the SpaceX Dragon departing from the International Space Station shortly after undocking with four NASA Crew-11 members inside on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (NASA via AP)
This photo provided by NASA shows clockwise from bottom left are, NASA astronaut Mike Fincke, Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, NASA astronaut Zena Cardman, and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui gathering for a crew portrait wearing their Dragon pressure suits during a suit verification check inside the International Space Station’s Kibo laboratory module, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (NASA via AP)
This screengrab from video provided by NASA shows recovery vessels approaching the NASA's SpaceX Crew-11 capsule to evacuate one of the crew members after they re-entered the earth in a middle-of-the-night splashdown near San Diego, Calif., Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (NASA via AP)
This screengrab from video provided by NASA shows the NASA's SpaceX Crew-11 members re entering the earth in a middle-of-the-night splashdown near San Diego, Calif., Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (NASA via AP)
This screengrab from video provided by NASA shows the NASA's SpaceX Crew-11 members re entering the earth in a middle-of-the-night splashdown near San Diego, Calif., Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (NASA via AP)
