The world’s largest tent, the Khan Shatyr has debuted in Kazakhstan’s capital city, Astana.

The 150m-high (500ft) dome was designed by UK architectural firm Foster and Partners, who are known in implementing new sustainable techniques in their other creations such as the Virgin Galactic Spaceport and the Queen Alia Airport.

Since the final shape of the structure was unveiled by Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev in 2006, Khan Shatyr became a tourist destination with over one million square feet of space. It also locates a variety of restaurants, shopping mall, a movie complex, a water park and garden.

The structure was supported by a 492-foot tripod column that runs up the center of the tent. It then supports a web of cables attached to the ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (EFTE) fabric skin, stretching out to a radius of over 650 feet.  This kind of material has three translucent layers and acts to regulate the temperature of the structure since the region of Astana is subject to drastic shifts in temperature. In the winter, this exterior channels light and warm air to prevent condensation. In the summer, the cool air displaces the hot air which is vented through the top.

The Khan Shatyr was erected in December 2008 after a series of delays and the whole complex was completed and opened for the public on July 5, 2010, on the occasion of Nazarbayev’s 70^th birthday.

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