October 17, 2023

Maryam Bala

12th Grade

Brooklyn Technical High School

Have you ever looked at a building and wondered, “How was this even built?” Many New Yorkers (including myself) have stared in awe at a building known as “The Edge” and asked this very question. Despite its world-renowned status and popularity, many have wondered whether it is a sound structure.

Buildings require a great deal of planning and construction. All forms of mathematics, physics, and engineering statistics are used to determine what a building can handle. Architects and civil engineers perform equations and tests that are responsible for not only The Edge but also many other interesting buildings all across the world.

Within Hudson Yards is a building called the 30 Hudson Yards 30 Hudson Yards consists of 103 floors (1300 ft, 2.6 million square miles & 50 elevators), and it’s considered the 6th largest building in NYC!

Created in the year 2019 (opened in 2020), the 100-story tall deck, located on the 30 Hudson Yards building, is considered the highest outdoor observation deck in New York. An observation deck is an elevated sightseeing platform often located on a skyscraper or towers. The Edge is an extremely popular attraction for both tourists and NYC residents! There are two things you can do:

1. Stand atop the Edge and see an astonishing view of NYC. 

2. City Climb: Climbers can scale the building and lean over the very edge of the building. 

While hand-written equations are used to check the work, programs such as AutoCad were most likely used to design the building. Various experiments and programs, such as TDG and Shake Table, were used to simulate earthquakes, storms, and any events that may cause the building to experience trauma (swaying or irregular movements). 

For The Edge (since it’s a non-moving object), the engineers most likely used statics to ensure that it wouldn’t collapse. It appears as if it may tip over, but hundreds of equations have been used to ensure its safety. 

Though we don’t know the specifics of the building, we now know that statics and dynamics are responsible for ensuring the building's safety while also creating a unique and “impossible” design. 

So, next time you see an interesting or unusual building, remember that it didn't take the architects and engineers a magical ritual to make it work; instead, they used the knowledge provided by statistics and dynamics.