Four Chinese Students Spent 200 Days Pretending to Live on the Moon

A group of Chinese student volunteers spent 200 days in a “lunar lab” simulation in Beijing as part of an experiment to test the potential psychological effects humans may experience if they were to take up residence on the Moon. The simulation is part of a program that hopes to advance the concept of Moon colonization.

The 160-square meter living space the volunteers called home was known as “Yuegong-1” or Lunar Palace. For 200 days, the lab was sealed off from the outside world, creating a realistic model of the isolation humans would experience as part of Moon life.

In an interview with Xinhua, the module’s chief designer Liu Hong said the experience “challenged the system as well as the psychological status of the volunteers, but they withstood the test.” This was especially true during the three blackouts experienced by the volunteer crew, which consisted of pairs made up of two men and two women. The first set of students stayed in the module for 60 days, after which time they were relieved by another foursome who stayed on for 200 days. The first group is now expected to return for another 105-day stay.