MegaStructures - Season 1 - Eps 6: Akashi Kaikyo Bridge
In 1955, two ferries sank along the Akashi Strait, Japan, killing 168 children. It led to a 30 year research on designing a bridge that would link the Awaji Island to Kobe; the bridge would also have to be able to withstand severe earthquakes and typhoons, a norm in that area. In 1988, Japan began construction of the world’s longest, highest and most expensive suspension bridge, the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge. The episode presents a stage by stage look at the construction of the suspension bridge, and the obstacles faced in its construction, including the Kobe earthquake in 1995.
About MegaStructures
Title: MegaStructures
First Air Date: 2004-01-01
Last Air Date: 2012-05-24
Status: Returning Series
Rating: 7/10 (from 18 votes)
Language: EN
Seasons: 10
Total Episodes: 158
Network: National Geographic
Genres: Documentary
Production Companies: National Geographic
Synopsis
MegaStructures is a documentary television series appearing on the National Geographic Channel in the United States and the United Kingdom, Channel 5 in the United Kingdom, France 5 in France, and 7mate in Australia. Each episode is an educational look of varying depth into the construction, operation, and staffing of various structures or construction projects, but not ordinary construction products. Generally containing interviews with designers and project managers, it presents the problems of construction and the methodology or techniques used to overcome obstacles. In some cases this involved the development of new materials or products that are now in general use within the construction industry. MegaStructures focuses on constructions that are extreme; in the sense that they are the biggest, tallest, longest, or deepest in the world. Alternatively, a project may appear if it had an element of novelty or are a world first. This type of project is known as a Megaproject.
