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Burj Dubai is officially set to open on Jan. 4, with as much hoopla as Dubai can muster for the world’s tallest man-made structure. Beyond fireworks and riveting speeches, the ceremony should also answer one of the endearing mysteries surrounding construction of the massive structure—exactly how tall is it?

There’s no question it is the world’s tallest building, passing the Taipei 101. In fact, it is the tallest free-standing structure in the world, bypassing various communication towers. Burj will also hold titles for the most stories, highest open observation deck and tallest elevator, among other superlatives.

But Burj Dubai developer Emaar Properties has never confirmed the building’s actual height. After years of coy answers, Emaar simply said the Burj was “more than 800 meters” (2,625 feet), without clarifying how much more than 800 meters.

“It's part of the mystique of the project," one of the architects told Reuters, explaining his refusal to name a height.

We do know the Burj will include 1,044 residential units, which are "pretty much 100 percent sold out," the architect, William Baker, told Reuters. And we know the Burj spire can be seen from 95 kilometers away and there are 57 elevators.

But we still don’t know the actual height of the tower. Perhaps Emaar was scared other developers would quickly add stories to their towers, hoping to beat Burj by a few feet. The fears appear justified, considering the can-you-top-this mentality still percolating around the world. Nakheel, Emaar’s sister Dubai developer, last year trumpeted plans to build a kilometer-tall Nakheel Tower, although that is unlikely to go up any time soon, considering Nakheel well-publicized struggles with its debt load..

But don’t count out Asia. Of the top 10 tallest towers in the world, seven are in Asia and all were built in the past 13 years, according to the Chicago-based Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.

In part in response to the new era represented by the Burj, the Council has reworked its criteria for measuring tall buildings. Under the new rules, buildings will be measured from the “lowest, significant, open-air, pedestrian entrance,” which added 27 feet to the Trump International Tower in Chicago, moving it past the Jin Mao Tower in Shanghai into sixth place on the tallest tower list.

The top 10: