Expert: taikonaut cave training focuses on fostering team cohesion and strengthening psychological preparation for missions to Moon

Distinguished Test Cosmonautics Engineer and specialist in cosmonaut training Maksim Zaitsev, exclusively for TV BRICS, commented on reports of China’s first-ever taikonaut cave training. The programme was aimed at developing skills necessary for long-duration flights to a space station and future crewed missions to the Moon planned for 2030.

According to the expert, the conduct of such training confirms the seriousness of China’s approach to crew preparation, while the technical details of the programme remain undisclosed. He explained that cave training primarily addresses psychological objectives.

“It is impossible to convince the psyche that a person is in life-threatening conditions. And, in particular, simulation and isolation experiments are precisely aimed at this. [...] Day after day, a person must repeat certain routine operations. All this is compounded by conditions that are not entirely comfortable. [...] What a person may mask with their psyche under normal conditions begins to surface in such circumstances. An important factor is, of course, the danger that hangs over you 24 hours a day,” the specialist added.

Responding to a question about the significance of a possible taikonaut landing on the Moon, the expert stated that there is currently no pragmatic objective in this; however, the political component for Beijing is evident.

“There is no specific technical goal at present. In essence, there is nothing for us as a [human] species to do on the Moon, and even more so on Mars, for now, and robots are successfully coping with this. But if we approach this issue from a political perspective, such achievements are a hallmark of a space power. [...] The People’s Republic of China is a state that can independently send a human into space. [...] From a political point of view, this is extremely valuable,” Zaitsev concluded.

Earlier, the Astronaut Center of China reported the completion of the country’s first-ever taikonaut cave training. In conditions simulating space – isolation, confinement and high risk – the taikonauts carried out tasks involving cave exploration, scientific research, resource management and life-support provision.

China is also actively conducting scientific research in the space sector. Based on samples delivered by the Chang’e-6 mission in 2024, scientists proved that an ancient collision altered the composition of the Moon’s deep rocks, explaining the difference between its two sides. In addition, the country conducted its first experiment in metal 3D printing in space. The technology, developed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, will in the future enable the production and repair of equipment in orbit.