Queen Alia International Airport, Amman, Jordan.
Courtesy Nigel Young | Foster + Partners Queen Alia International Airport, Amman, Jordan.

Hot on the heels of several other notable projects, Foster + Partners announced the opening of the Queen Alia International Airport in Amman, Jordan, last week. This latest airport in the London-based firm’s oeuvre features a modular system of concrete vaults comprising the terminal buildings, and that will allow for future expansion, while serving as thermal massing that will mitigate drastic exterior day-to-night temperature shifts. Daylighting enters the terminal by way of louvers—which are shaded by concrete overhangs—as well as apertures at the vault joints at each column. Two departure bays flank the main arrivals and departures hall; the three volumes are separated by vernacular open-air courtyards and reflecting pools that also bounce daylight indoors.

For more details and images of the Queen Alia International Airport, visit ARCHITECT's Project Gallery.