The Analemma Tower by Clouds Architecture Office. Clouds Architecture Office

Manhattan is packed with towers, but the city still has height restrictions in various neighborhoods.

As a way to get around these mandates, New York firm Clouds Architecture Office has proposed an outlandish skyscraper that would hang from cables attached to an asteroid. Since the tower wouldn't touch the ground, the designers say it would bypass maximum height restrictions. (Regardless, it's doubtful the city has considered zoning laws for a floating building.)

Called the Analemma Tower, it would be the world's tallest building — though, of course, there are no plans to construct it. Ostap Rudakevych tells Business Insider that the firm created the design to imagine what could be possible in the future.

Take a look at the proposal below.