Virtual tour

Take a few moments to enjoy a virtual tour of the HADES underground research laboratory! If you would like to find out more about the experiments conducted there, be sure to arrange a visit or take a look at the experiments page.

Virtual tour 1

The second shaft gives access to the HADES underground research laboratory (URL). The lift takes you from the surface to a depth of 225 metres in just one minute.

Virtual tour 2

When you get out of the lift at the bottom, you immediately have a good view of the most recent section of the 150 m long main gallery, which connects the first and second shafts.

Virtual tour 3

Here you're standing in front of the 45 m long PRACLAY gallery, which lies perpendicular to the main gallery. The PRACLAY gallery will be used for a large-scale heater experiment that simulates the heat produced by high level waste in a repository.

Virtual tour 4

Halfway along the main gallery, you can see the interface between the new and the old section of the laboratory. The shield of the tunnelling machine is still there.

Virtual tour 5

Here you're passing through the old section of the main gallery, which was built in 1987. In the distance you can see the lift cage of the first access shaft.

Virtual tour 6

Near the lift cage in the first shaft, the gallery narrows slightly. Past the first shaft lies the oldest section of the laboratory.

Virtual tour 7

In the oldest section of the laboratory, several experiments were initiated in the 1980s and are still being monitored to this day. This is the only section where the gallery is lined with cast iron segments.

Virtual tour 8

Right at the far end of the laboratory, you can look down into a small shaft that was dug to test a new tunnelling technique. A section of this shaft was then sealed off as part of an experiment.

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