El Condor: a high-altitude scientific expedition
As part of the European DISCO₂STORE project, the El Condor mission was launched at the end of February 2025 in Argentina. Led since 2021 by Alain Zanella, a teacher-researcher in geosciences at the University of Le Mans and at “Laboratoire de Planétologie et Géosciences”, this project focuses on the storage of CO₂ in rocks.
The aim of the El Condor mission is to analyze rock structure and assess the risk of fractures during CO₂ storage. This project, led by the LPG team, is crucial to ensuring the watertightness and safety of storage reservoirs. It seeks to deepen knowledge of discontinuities in rocks – such as fractures and faults – that impact the circulation of fluids like water, hydrocarbons or magma.
To further research the fractures and faults that influence fluid circulation (water, hydrocarbons, magma), a multidisciplinary team will be on site:
Alain Zanella – Teacher-researcher in geosciences, DISCO₂STORE project manager
Régis Mourgues – Teacher-researcher in geosciences, specialist in rock mechanics and fracturing processes
Olivier Galland – Researcher in geological process physics, specialist in magma dynamics
João Paolo Giro – Doctoral student in geosciences on the DISCO₂STORE project
Amélie Leray – Photographer, mission participant
Accompanied by local guides, the researchers will take samples, make observations and carry out analyses to reconstruct the geological history of the site. Weather permitting, drone shots will be taken to model the rock structures in 3D.
A scientific mission to share
One of the aims of the DISCO₂STORE project is to popularize science. For several weeks now, primary and secondary school classes have been following the preparation of the mission:
- Meetings with researchers to understand their work
- Educational workshops on climate, energy and the geography of Argentina
- Live videoconferencing from the expedition site
A photographer accompanies the mission to document this scientific adventure. Her pictures will be presented in an exhibition open to the general public, including a selection of drawings by the students.
Published on March 11th, 2025