bite the dust

こちらではタワーが建ち、あちらでは壊されました。

Nuclear test tower bites desert dust
Former nuclear testing tower demolished in Nevada desert
By Todd Sperry, CNN Senior Producer
May 24, 2012

It took less than 10 seconds to bring a steel, 345-ton relic of the Cold War era crashing to the ground in the Nevada desert Wednesday. The 1,527-foot-tall BREN tower was the tallest free-standing structure west of the Mississippi River. It was also the tallest structure of its kind ever demolished, according to the National Nuclear Safety Administration.
The tower stood taller than the Empire State Building (1,454 feet) and the Eiffel Tower (1,063 feet). It was also taller than the iconic Stratosphere (1,148 feet) on the Las Vegas strip.
Originally constructed in 1962, the BREN Tower took its name from the nuclear radiation experiment for which it was built: Bare Reactor Experiment - Nevada. BREN Tower was designed to provide a way for scientists to accurately estimate radiation doses received by survivors of the atomic bombs detonated over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II.

http://edition.cnn.com/2012/05/24/us/bren-tower-demolition/index.html?hpt=hp_t3

冷戦時代の遺物というか、私たちにとってはあのおぞましき原爆の影響力研究が行われた場所として記銘されるべき The BREN Tower (theが付きます)がその役目を終えて破壊されました。
赤字の部分 bite the dustは記事自体にはありませんでしたが、CNNのhomepageのリードに使われていた表現です。これは聖書からの表現で、「地上に打ち倒される」という意味です。他にも「負ける、敗北する、屈辱を受ける」などの意味もあります。日本語でいう「砂をかむ」という表現とは違いますね。いずれにしても、時代の流れをここでも感じます。（UG）