How Did They Build That?

How Did They Build That? - Smithsonian Channel

TVG

How-to

An exploration of how some of the world’s biggest man-made structures were built.

Upcoming TV Airings

The airings below are based on a generic national schedule. Times and dates can vary by TV provider.

Wednesday, February 18

Parking & Sparkling

Season 3 • Episode 4

A 1400-foot tapering skyscraper is built right next to New York's Grand Central.

Wednesday, February 18

Sky Gardens & Seismic Stations

Season 1 • Episode 7

A massive sky garden in Singapore, a tower in Brighton, and a railway station in Vesuvius.

Wednesday, February 25

Tricks & Trains

Season 3 • Episode 6

An Olympic and Paralympic museum tests engineers; a curved glass skyscraper battles gravity.

Wednesday, February 25

Steep & Stunning

Season 2 • Episode 7

The world's steepest mountain railway, a remodeled 145-year-old museum and a futuristic condo.

Wednesday, February 25

Summit & Submerge

Season 4 • Episode 7

Building an eco-friendly visitor center in the permafrost on Colorado's Pikes Peak tests the team.

Wednesday, February 25

Elevated & Elegant

Season 2 • Episode 4

Traveling from Canada to Belgium and to the U.S. to examine a school, museum and railway station.

Wednesday, February 25

Skywalks & Suspensions

Season 2 • Episode 5

The design and engineering secrets behind the Grand Canyon Skywalk, Audain Museum and more.

Wednesday, February 25

Arches & Opera Houses

Season 1 • Episode 6

The inside stories behind a horseshoe-shaped complex in Rotterdam and a rock-shaped opera house.

Wednesday, February 25

Facelifts & Scaffolds

Season 4 • Episode 8

A museum building bends 1,100-glass tubes to form a facade and tunnels below the water table.

Wednesday, February 25

Boxes & Birds

Season 3 • Episode 10

The American Museum of Natural History gets a cave-like extension; Boston University gains a tower.

Wednesday, February 25

Supertalls & Firehouses

Season 1 • Episode 5

Alien port authority in Belgium; ultrathin skyscraper in Manhattan; hanging museum in Scotland.

Wednesday, February 25

Curved & Cables

Season 3 • Episode 9

A new performance center with a tent-like glass-and-steel lobby tests engineers in Kansas City.

Wednesday, February 25

Radical & Resplendent

Season 2 • Episode 10

Exploring the design and engineering stories behind D.C.'s Museum of African American History.

Wednesday, March 4

Heights & Balance

Season 3 • Episode 5

A 1.2 million square foot office building balances precariously on a 39-foot wide base in Chicago.

Wednesday, March 4

Heights & Balance

Season 3 • Episode 5

A 1.2 million square foot office building balances precariously on a 39-foot wide base in Chicago.

Wednesday, March 4

Heights & Balance

Season 3 • Episode 5

A 1.2 million square foot office building balances precariously on a 39-foot wide base in Chicago.

Wednesday, March 4

Heights & Balance

Season 3 • Episode 5

A 1.2 million square foot office building balances precariously on a 39-foot wide base in Chicago.

Wednesday, March 4

Heights & Balance

Season 3 • Episode 5

A 1.2 million square foot office building balances precariously on a 39-foot wide base in Chicago.

Wednesday, March 4

Heights & Balance

Season 3 • Episode 5

A 1.2 million square foot office building balances precariously on a 39-foot wide base in Chicago.

Wednesday, March 4

Heights & Balance

Season 3 • Episode 5

A 1.2 million square foot office building balances precariously on a 39-foot wide base in Chicago.

Wednesday, March 4

Heights & Balance

Season 3 • Episode 5

A 1.2 million square foot office building balances precariously on a 39-foot wide base in Chicago.

Wednesday, March 4

Heights & Balance

Season 3 • Episode 5

A 1.2 million square foot office building balances precariously on a 39-foot wide base in Chicago.

Wednesday, March 4

Heights & Balance

Season 3 • Episode 5

A 1.2 million square foot office building balances precariously on a 39-foot wide base in Chicago.

Wednesday, March 4

Heights & Balance

Season 3 • Episode 5

A 1.2 million square foot office building balances precariously on a 39-foot wide base in Chicago.