The elevator that takes you to the stars

One of the latest works by Ticino architect Mario Botta has been standing in the hamlet of Uecht, around 13 kilometers south of Bern, since last year: the 'Space Eye' observatory .Botta is an architect of strong forms, for which some praise him and others criticize him. But Botta would not be Botta if he did not design a building for an observatory that translates this function into striking architecture: an eye. However, this can only be seen by those who view the observatory from above - from space, as it were.

Protected from the scattered light of the city of Bern, you can observe space through Switzerland's largest telescope in the 'Space Eye'. The one-metre telescope weighs 1.2 tons and rests on a sturdy concrete leg, the 'stamp'. It is the heart of the observatory, and logically forms the actual iris in the eye directed towards the sky. As the new observatory is also open to the public, the telescope is supplemented with exhibition rooms and an 80-seat planetarium. Little of these additional rooms can be seen: the staircase leading down to the entrance, a ring of round skylights that play around the eye like tears, and the uppermost part of the planetarium sphere.

Around the stamp, which is completely detached from the rest of the construction, a spiral staircase leads from the basement up to the roof terrace to the dome that envelops the telescope. An elevator connects the floors to allow people with limited mobility to view the universe and visit the exhibitions and planetarium.

Although the elevator also leads to the roof terrace, it was not allowed to be visible from the outside. Otherwise it would have destroyed the lenticular shape of the building and looked like a splinter - or rather a beam - in the eye. Lifts that emerge from the ground are familiar from cramped urban situations. They are machines for transporting goods without people on board. They overcome a storey as a platform and disappear into the ground after use. At the observatory, however, this machine has to function as a fully-fledged passenger lift and be able to access a total of four floors. What to do?

The idea from the engineers at Emch Aufzüge: They give the lift the shaft right on the way. When the observatory is in operation, the empty car travels upwards before the event, attaches the parked head of the light shaft on the way and pushes it out of the roof. The shaft is locked there and the additional stop is available. In this way, a new lift grows out of the roof each time, which can be used to transport people without restriction. Now the audience can gather on the roof. When the event is over, the cabin takes the shaft head with the top landing back down with it and parks it so that the shaft cover is flush with the terrace. If you now look down from space - or on Google Maps - and zoom in on Uecht near Bern, you will see Mario Botta's 'Space Eye' in its purest form.

Emch has developed a construction that has never been seen before in this form. The concept is simple and can be easily adapted to other situations. A roof terrace in the old town that does not tolerate permanent structures? No problem! A rooftop restaurant in a prominent location that is only open when the weather is fine? The roof lift makes it possible in a discreet way. Do you have any other suggestions? The engineers at Emch Aufzüge are eager to demonstrate their skills together with you, the architect or client, in unusual locations.