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Scientists lock 15 people in a cave for 40 days — no clocks, no sunlight

NCT ID NCT05603780

Knowledge-focused Sponsor: University Hospital, Caen Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

This study's is highlighted.

Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed This study
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This study placed 15 healthy volunteers in a natural cave with no access to time cues for 40 days. Researchers measured how their sense of time, sleep cycles, stress levels, and group coordination changed. The goal was to understand how humans adapt to extreme isolation and time distortion, which could help prepare for long space missions or other isolated environments.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

What this could lead to
If successful, this could help scientists understand how humans adapt to extreme isolation and time distortion, which may inform future space missions or disaster scenarios.
What could go wrong
This is a small, observational study with only 15 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. It does not test any treatment or intervention.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

15 people

The number who actually took part.

Started

Mar 2021

Finished

Mar 2022

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

25 to 50 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Accepted

You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: Strictly right-handed Good health without any medical and psychiatric diseases No contraindications to MRI French or European nationality Not to be included in another biomedical protocol Exclusion Criteria: Being pregnant Minor, under guardianship or curatorship

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

cognitive disorder Cognitive Dysfunction sleep disorder

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Cognitive dysfunction Physiological stress Sleep

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • CHU CAEN

    Caen, France

More trials for these conditions

Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.