'We're above civilisation': life in a cosmic ray station – photo essay

Cut off during winter, a former Soviet weapons research facility high up on Mount Aragats, Armenia is now part of a network of sites around the world studying the mysterious particles

The cosmic ray research station on Mount Aragats sits at an altitude of 3,200 metres. The site in Armenia was constructed in 1943 to conduct top-secret research into atomic reactions for the development of nuclear weapons. Now the facility provides insight into thunderstorms and cosmic rays. The only way visitors can reach the base in winter is via a nine-mile (15km) climb through snow.