Medog Meteorological Observation Station

Location: Tibet, China

Completion Date: 2017

Building Area: 430 sqm

Design Principal: Ping Jiang, FAIA

Design Team: Sean Lu, Tina Fang

Client: Motuo Meteorological Bureau

The Medog Meteorological Observation Station is located in Medog county, Tibet, near the Yarlung Zangbo River. The view is stunning, surrounded by mountains, dense vegetation and rolling hills. Medog is the last county in China that gained highway access. Its remote location posed many challenges to both the design and construction of the project.

Located at the top of a mountain, the meteorological observation station the site opens to the vast, boundless expanse of nature and has good views of the landscape. Therefore, the project embraces an open plan layout. Five staggered buildings are scattered around the site following the mountain topography, forming a settlement. The layout of each block has its own unique position and provides different views of the natural landscape. Privacy and openness is solved by staggering the functional blocks, creating multiple, small courtyards. The overall complex provides a rich spatial experience.  

The project fully respects the region’s ethnic culture in terms of style and building material selection, integrating traditional cultural elements of the Moinba and Lhoba architecture with a modern, architectural language. This contemporary building is therefore sensitive to the local culture and tectonic tradition.