CHINA’S first astronaut cave-training mission has been completed in Chongqing Municipality, with 28 astronauts having taken part.

Organized and led by the China Astronaut Research and Training Center (CARTC), the nearly month-long training mission covered more than 10 subjects, including environmental monitoring, cave mapping, simulated space-to-ground communications and team-focused psychological training.

The astronauts were divided into four teams, each spending six days and five nights in a natural cave where the average temperature hovered at 8 degrees Celsius and humidity reached 99%. They were required to conduct cave exploration, scientific research, logistics management and life-support operations. Along the way they squeezed through ultra-narrow passages, rappelled down sheer walls, endured prolonged cold and dampness, and pushed their physical limits.

Additionally, they had to conquer the mental pressure stemming from absolute darkness and sensory deprivation.

“The training was designed to sharpen astronauts’ capabilities in hazard response, autonomous operation, teamwork, emergency decision making and scientific survey, as well as to improve physical endurance and mental toughness in extreme environments,” said Wu Bin from the CARTC. “It was also a comprehensive evaluation for them.”

For astronaut instructor Jiang Yuan, mental toughness is a critical quality needed for spaceflights. “A cave is the typical extreme of confinement and isolation,” she said. “It creates psychological stress such as sensory deprivation, uncertain risk and the social constriction of being cut off.”

The training offers high scientific value for studying and intervening in astronauts’ psychological responses under truly extreme conditions.

To find a venue that replicates the extremes of space, researchers of the CARTC since 2016 have scouted more than 10 caves across seven provincial-level regions, including Guangxi, Guizhou, Hunan, Anhui and Chongqing. Rating each based on the training challenge, geological stability and basic life-safety, they selected the cave deep in the mountains of Chongqing.

The CARTC will run the same cave-training mission for astronauts who have not yet taken part, as well as for all new recruits.(Xinhua)