Rem Koolhaas, the Dutch master of urban innovation and principal of the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA), has unveiled plans to cap the reinvention of a German waterfront with an aquarium and science center. The project in Hamburg’s new HafenCity district aims to elevate street life while addressing the prospect of rising sea levels.

OMA’s design for the Hamburg Science Center calls for a structure composed of 10 modular concrete blocks arranged on a slip to resemble a colossal but motionless wheel—or a life preserver (top). The 253,000-square-foot building will contain 91,500 square feet of aquarium and water-themed exhibitions underground, while much of the above-ground space will be devoted to laboratories (above).