At home in the desert

The recently-completed ALMA Residencia stands at an altitude of 2900 metres in the Atacama Desert, in the foothills of the Chilean Andes. It serves as accommodation for staff and astronomers visiting to study the Universe with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), which sits on the Chajnantor Plateau 28 kilometres away and over 2000 metres higher. By incorporating local materials such as stone, copper and volcanic rock into the design of the building, the architects ensured that the Residencia would blend in with the colours and topography of the surrounding desert, preserving the natural landscape as much as possible.