Sky Costanera

This guide to Sky Costanera in Santiago follows architect César Pelli, designer of Kuala Lumpur's Petronas Towers, and his insistence that South America's tallest tower should defer to the Andes rather than compete with them. It traces the building's 2010 test, when an 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck while cranes still worked above the unfinished frame. Listen for how the faceted glass walls crease down the middle, tapering the tower toward an obelisk.