Nagashima Spa Land announced Steel Dragon 2000 in November 1999, and the great Morgan machine opened to the public on August 1, 2000. Its name looked to the dragon year, giving the new millennium a suitably ceremonial standard-bearer in Mie Prefecture. en.wikipedia.org· nagashima-onsen.co.jp

At its debut, Steel Dragon 2000 was built on a scale meant to be counted in records: 97 metres high, 153 km/h at full speed, and 2,479 metres of running rail. Coasterpedia records that it became the tallest and fastest full-circuit roller coaster in the world when it opened, and also surpassed Daidarasaurus as the world’s longest roller coaster. nagashima-onsen.co.jp· coasterpedia.net

Japan asked sturdiness of this splendid structure as well as grandeur. Contemporary summaries note that the coaster used additional steel for earthquake protection, a major reason its construction cost was about $61.6 million in 2000 U.S. dollars. en.wikipedia.org

The line has known seasons of attention and renewal. Kiddle records a 2003 wheel-loss incident that injured two people and kept the ride closed until 2006; later, the park renewed the vehicles in March 2013, giving the long Dragon a fresh carriage for its journey across Nagashima. kids.kiddle.co· nagashima-onsen.co.jp