Last episode
Tunnels & Towers
s05e04 · 2026-08-18
Running · US
How Did They Build That?
Smithsonian Channel Documentary Next s05e05 · 2026-08-25
What it is
Across the globe, radical architects, ingenious engineers, and skilled builders are creating structures so outrageous, they defy logic...and often even gravity. From a Manhattan skyscraper that looks like a Jenga tower to a Singapore glass dome big enough to house a mountain to a high rise in Italy with a built-in forest, we examine the world's most extraordinary buildings, bridges, and lifts, reveal their design secrets, and discover the incredible stories of their construction as we try to answer the question: How Did They Build That?
Episode highlights
Next episode
TBA
s05e05 · 2026-08-25
Episode guide
10 this season · 43 totals02e01 Riverparks & Artworks 2022-07-11 00:00
Riverparks & Artworks
Visiting the Hearst Tower in New York City, a 56,000-square-foot private museum named the Audain Museum in Vancouver, and Library Learning Centre in Vienna to learn about how they were built.
s02e02 Swamps & Swagger 2022-07-18 00:00
Swamps & Swagger
Engineers explain the constructions of architect Santiago Calatrava's university building in Florida, architect Frank Gehry's museum in Spain, and cultural center The Shed in New York City.
s02e03 Retrofits & Airport Glitz 2022-07-25 00:00
Retrofits & Airport Glitz
Visiting the Hearst Tower in Manhattan and Jewel Changi Airport in Singapore to understand how they were built; covering how designers and engineers attempt to create a museum worthy of Salvador Dali in Florida.
s02e04 Elevated & Elegant 2022-08-01 00:00
Elevated & Elegant
Travelling from Canada to Belgium to the Southern U.S. to examine an eye-popping school, museum, and railway station as well as revealing how they were all built.
s02e05 Skywalks & Suspensions 2022-08-08 00:00
Skywalks & Suspensions
Uncovering the design and engineering secrets behind the Grand Canyon Skywalk, the award-winning Audain Museum located in Whistler, British Columbia, and more.
s02e06 Upside Down & Under Sea 2022-08-15 00:00
Upside Down & Under Sea
Visiting the Vancouver House, Norway's Under restaurant, and the 11-story glass and steel Seattle Central Library in order to discover how these particular visionary buildings were created.
s02e07 Steep & Stunning 2022-08-22 00:00
Steep & Stunning
Travelling the globe to learn the engineering secrets behind various designs, such as the world's steepest mountain railway, a remodelled 145-year-old museum, and a futuristic condo.
s02e08 Breakthroughs & Bridges 2022-08-29 00:00
Breakthroughs & Bridges
Visiting London's Gherkin, Seattle's Evergreen Point Floating Bridge, and Lyon's Musée des Confluences to uncover how and why they were built.
s02e09 Mirrors & Marble 2022-09-05 00:00
Mirrors & Marble
Visiting Australia's One Central Park, the Oslo Opera House, and the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco to reveal their architectural secrets.
s02e10 Radical & Resplendant 2022-09-05 01:00
Radical & Resplendant
A look at the design and engineering stories behind D.C.'s Museum of African American History, the Montreal Tower which is the tallest inclined structure in the world, and the Equinor building in Oslo.