2024-01-26 17:29:40
By Sandy Plas
Published yesterday at 6:14 p.m., Updated yesterday at 6:29 p.m.
Scientists work half-days to avoid headaches linked to lack of humidity, which dries out organisms. Sandy Plas
Built in the early 1980s in the Fréjus tunnel, 1700 meters under the rock, this laboratory offers scientists very precise measurement conditions to carry out their research on dark matter.
At first glance, the premises might look like any scientific laboratory. Measuring instruments, computer screens, clean room… But when the gaze lingers on the walls, the crevices of the rock appear, similar to those of a cave. And for good reason: the Modane Underground Laboratory (LSM) is located in the heart of a mountain. It is built at a depth of 1700 m, under the tip of Fréjus, a 2900 m summit which marks the border between France and Italy. It is in this rock setting, which is accessed by taking the Fréjus tunnel, that scientists have been working since 1983 to unravel the mysteries of the composition of the Universe.
But before accessing the laboratory – the deepest in Europe -, the researchers who work here on a daily basis must strictly respect the security protocol. « We note on a board how many people go to the lab, if we ever lose contact »specifies Guillaume Warot, engineer…
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