Out-of-this-World Views

by Jonathan McGaha | July 4, 2016 12:00 am

Zinc helps amateur astronomer’s observatory connect to its surroundings

How does a small architectural firm in Cambridge, Mass., end up designing an observatory in southern New Hampshire? If you’re Anmahian Winton Architects[1], an amateur astronomer knocks on your door after Googling the firm and expresses his desire to build a private observatory.

Mazen Sakr, associate at Anmahian Winton, says after getting to know the client and his vision, their collaboration came up with a unique architectural form for the Gemma Observatory. Completed in November 2015, the 1,200-square-foot project has been awarded the Grand Award and Natural Metals category winner for the 2016 Metal Architecture Design Awards.

 

Asymmetrical Forms

The observatory is located at the center of a 3-mile radius of dark landscape with very little light pollution for optimal astronomical viewing. The observatory is sited at the end of a steep, 1/2-mile gravel road on a remote summit, is characterized by granite bedrock outcroppings.

In addition to finding a space that was secluded and really dark at night, the client wanted an architectural piece for the observatory, not just a shed. Therefore, the design eschews the traditional observatory dome in favor of a synthesized architectural form expressed as an extension of the site’s geological context.

According to Sakr, arriving at the final design for the observatory was a process. “We started with investigating normal, sort of spherical, dome-like spaces,” he explains. “The client wanted something that was contextual and unique, so we borrowed from the site. We borrowed from the language of the granite and the rock-like formations up on the hill, and that informed our design and how we approached it.”

Not having any light near the site, Sakr says they had to minimize the openings in the building by not having extensive, big openings, but small ones as needed. And, similar to larger observatories, the project uses red LED lights, which doesn’t affect the eyes, to illuminate the interior at night.

Since viewing the night sky is especially good in winter when there’s less atmospheric interference, the client wanted the observatory to have a warming room, which is the area in the building that is the most insulated. To accommodate a warming space, exterior deck and dome, Sakr says they had to shift the programmatic areas around. “As we started shifting things around, while still trying to have as small a footprint as we could, the form started taking shape,” he says. “This is where we borrowed from the language of the rocks and other materials on the site to inform the shape. We wanted to synthesize the extensions of the geological context of the site.”

“We were basically wrapping these three spaces into one form,” Sakr adds. “[The client] wanted something that expresses a unique look, not something that you can find anywhere else. We didn’t want to do something too outrageous, so we had to balance the two and come up with something that was unique and functional for him.”

 

Wrapped in Zinc

In borrowing from the surrounding landscape, the observatory has a continuous facet as it rises up to the dome. To wrap the exterior cladding around the building, the architects used 3,500 square feet of 1-mm-thick VMZ Flat Lock panels in Quartz-Zinc from Umicore Building Products USA Inc.[2], Raleigh, N.C., installed in a rainscreen system. The long zinc panels wrap the observatory in an unconventional pattern that responds to both the irregular site topography and the building’s geometry, connecting its form and design to its surroundings.

In going through a number of iterations to come up with the design for the cladding, Sakr says they created a set of parameters to follow. For example, he says, each panel couldn’t be less than 7 inches or more than 11 inches, or else it wouldn’t be an effective use of the zinc roll. “There were all these variables that we had to work with,” he says, ” and then we used parametric modeling software to optimize the panels around the building, around the openings and around the facets. And we looked at all of the iterations, and decided which one to go with.”

Dave Crocker, co-owner of Crocker Architectural Sheet Metal Co. Inc.[3], North Oxford, Mass., the metal installer, says the company worked with the architects from the beginning to come up with the final design details while keeping the budget down. “We had a bunch of different designs that we worked through and then we finally came up with the one that is on the building,” he adds. “We tried to keep the cost down because it could of gotten a little crazy with all of the different shapes.”

Crocker Architectural used the digital files from the architects to cut the zinc panels. “We laid everything out for each elevation with ARCAD files and then transformed them into shop tickets so the panels could be fabricated and then given to the field crew for installation,” Crocker says.

Additionally, the panels’ Quartz-Zinc color has a contextual relationship to the site. “Within five years, [the zinc] patinas and darkens and looks similar to its surroundings,” Sakr says. “That was one way, in coming back to the idea of the granite, that we were borrowing from the site’s language again, by using zinc.”

Another advantage of using zinc is its ability to
transfer heat. “The zinc dissipates heat quickly once the sun goes down,” explains Sakr, who notes that using zinc was not only aesthetic, but also functional. “Any disturbance that arises from a heat transfer between the metal and the atmosphere would go away quickly, allowing the client to have a clear view of the night sky.”

 

A Warm Haven

To balance the zinc exterior, the inside of the observatory is lined with fir plywood, creating a haven of refuge and warmth from the harsh surroundings. Sakr says fir was a functional choice for a space that will be used often. “It’s very industrial,” he says. “You line it up, seal it and it looks great.”

Inside the observatory, a helical stair of plywood and steel pauses at a fissure in the cladding that opens onto the exterior observation deck. Continuing, the stair rises to the observatory’s primary astronomical viewing platform inside a faceted turret, which is characterized by high ceilings and an oversized, sliding hatch that opens the telescope to the sky. Additionally, a rift in the cladding creates an aperture at the corner of the turret, which frames Polaris when the turret is at rest in the southern cardinal position.

In a normal dome structure, Sakr says conventional pieces are used that might last a few years and need to be maintained regularly. “We went with high-precision trucks and rails,” he explains, “to first hold up the weight-especially in that we have zinc, structural panels and steel-to get a very high precision of movement in the unusual dome.”

Additionally, Sakr says they used laser-cut pieces of steel to make the dial that works with the dome as it rotates, and registers the four cardinals and degrees with the skies.

Even though the whole project was a challenge because of its unique layout, Crocker says it was a fun, once-in-a-lifetime project they had a good time completing.

 

Gemma Observatory, Southern New Hampshire
Completed: November 2015
Total square footage: 1,200 square feet
Architect: Anmahian Winton Architects, Cambridge, Mass., aw-arch.com[4]
General contractor: Patriot Painters & Builders, Chestnut Hill, Mass., (781) 874-2828
Metal installer: Crocker Architectural Sheet Metal Co. Inc., North Oxford, Mass., www.crockerarchitectural.com[5]
Metal wall panels: Umicore Building Products USA Inc., Raleigh, N.C., www.vmzinc-us.com[6]
Structurally insulated panels: Foard Panel Inc., West Chesterfield, N.H.,
www.foardpanel.com[7]

Source URL: https://www.metalarchitecture.com/articles/out-of-this-world-views/

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