The Bowl is a large, existing landform roughly circular in shape that forms the heart of the memorial and park.

The Bowl’s outline commemorates the collective acts of courage by the 40 passengers and crew of Flight 93 with 40 groves of Red and Sugar Maple trees, referred to as the 40 Memorial Groves, in curving embrace of the Bowl’s open space as it descends to the Sacred Ground.

The memorial design expresses the union of the land’s beauty and power with the strength and sacrifice of the heroes of Flight 93 by marking the Flight Path as it breaks the circular continuity of the Bowl edge at the Entry Portal and the Sacred Ground, where the crash occurred. The location of the temporary memorial will be recognized. Visitors will be allowed to leave tributes in niches in the sloped walls of the new Sacred Ground plaza and written comments at the visitor center.