CAVES, an acronym for Cooperative Adventure for Valuing and Exercising human behaviour and performance Skills, is a European Space Agency astronaut training course in which international astronauts train in a space-analogue cave environment.[1] Designed at the European Astronaut Center, the course aims to prepare astronauts for safe and efficient long duration spaceflight operations by means of a realistic scientific and exploration mission within a multicultural, ISS-representative team.
Each training course lasts for approximately three weeks. The first two weeks focus on providing the astronauts with the necessary behavioural patterns, scientific knowledge, and technical skills to work effectively and safely in an underground environment. During this time, trainees visit simple caves to become acquainted with the conditions they will find themselves in during their final expedition, a six-day uninterrupted expedition exploring a complex cave system. The main purpose of the mission is to foster their communication, decision-making, problem-solving, leadership and team dynamics capabilities by means of team activities and a real crew mission performed in a space-like environment.[2][3][4]
- ^ Park, William (November 30, 2016). "Why caves are the best place to train astronauts". BBC. Retrieved 2017-01-30.
- ^ Sauro, Francesco; De Waele, Jo; Payler, Samuel J.; Vattano, Marco; Sauro, Francesco Maria; Turchi, Leonardo; Bessone, Loredana (2021-07-01). "Speleology as an analogue to space exploration: The ESA CAVES training programme". Acta Astronautica. 184: 150–166. Bibcode:2021AcAau.184..150S. doi:10.1016/j.actaastro.2021.04.003. hdl:11585/819077. ISSN 0094-5765. S2CID 234819922.
- ^ Howell, Elisabeth (October 5, 2013). "Astronauts Emerge from Cave After Underground Spaceflight Training". Space.com. Retrieved 2017-01-30.
- ^ Thompson, Amy. "Why NASA Astronauts Just Spent A Week Living In A Cave". Popular Science. Retrieved 2017-01-31.
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