Blog Post

World's tallest indoor waterfall: Singapore's Jewel Changi Airport

Jun 14, 2019

"The Jewel toroidal inverse dome creates a new kind of spatial experience, a daylight vast landscaped garden, combined with seven levels of shopping and airport facilities."

The Rain Vortex will pour rainwater down a seven-storey drop. The 40-metre-tall Rain Vortex – the world's tallest indoor waterfall – is the centrepiece of Singapore's soon-to-open Jewel Changi Airport, designed by Moshe Safdie's architecture firm. Photo by Peter Walker Partners Landscape

SINGAPORE--The " Rain Vortex ," a waterfall of rain water with a 131-foot drop,at Singapore's new Jewel Changi Airport,designed by Safdie Architects, can channel 10,000 gallons of water per minuteand sits within a five-story greenhouse and sets the new world record for being the World's tallest indoor waterfall .

The glass and steel-domed building, which also has five stories below ground, is connected to several airport terminals.

The $1.26 billion complex, which has three new terminals, is an extension of Singapore's existing 38-year-old airport.

Buro Happold engineered the glass and steel bagel-shaped roof, which spans more than 200 metres at its widest point, while Peter Walker and Partners Landscape Architects created the climate-controlled indoor forest.

"The Jewel toroidal inverse dome creates a new kind of spatial experience, a daylight vast landscaped garden, combined with seven levels of shopping and airport facilities," said head architect Moshe Safdie. "

Light penetrates everywhere, while the roof drains through the dome to create a dramatic waterfall, dropping seven stories to the lowest building level."

Water from rainstorms is collected to irrigate greenhouse plants and supply the waterfall.

Each glass pane has a five-eighths inch gap to absorb the noise of aircraft takeoffs and landings, and was tested to eliminate potentially distracting reflections.

Terraces filled with 200 species of plant surround the waterfall in an area called the Forest Canopy, with trails for visitors to walk along. Five stories of the Jewel Changi Airport building will be filled with shops and restaurants, with an indoor park on the fifth level.

At night the Rain Vortex, which was engineered by design firm WET will have a 360-degree light and sound show projected onto it.