POTHOLE ENTRANCE; MLLE. BROBECKER EMERGES; SHE IS GREETED BY MICHEL SIFFRE, ORGANISER OF THE EXPERIMENT; THREE POTHOLERS POSE FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS BEFORE GOING DOWN POTHOLE.




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Background: MLLE. HELENE BROBECKER TODAY EMERGED FROM A POTHOLE IN THE MASSIF DE L'AUDIBERGHE, NORTH OF NICE, AFTER SPENDING A MONTH ALONE 220 FEET (70 METRES) UNDERGROUND. THREE OTHER SPELEOLOGISTS WENT DOWN THE SAME POTHOLE SHORTLY AFTERWARDS TO FIND OUT WHETHER MAN CAN WORK MORE EFFICIENTLY BY ADOPTING A 48-HOUR DAY INSTEAD OF THE NORMAL 24-HOUR TIME CYCLE.

MICHEL SIFFRE, THE FRENCH POTHOLER, WHO ORGANISED THE EXPERIMENT WITH MLLE. BROBECKER SAID TODAY THAT IT HAD BEEN A COMPLETE SUCCESS, SO MUCH SO THAT HE HAD CHOSEN MLLE. BROBECKER TO BE THE FIRST 'SPELEONAUT' IN AN EXPERIMENT HE IS GOING TO ORGANISE LATER THIS YEAR. MLLE. BROBECKER WILL THEN SPEND SIX MONTHS UNDERGROUND.

MLLE. BROBECKER IS A 28-YEAR-OLD SCHOOLTEACHER. SHE SAID SHE HAD READ THE WORKS OF GOETHE AND SOCRATES WHILE UNDERGROUND, AND HAD PRACTISED YOGA TO KEEP HERSELF WARM.

A SHORT TIME AFTER MLLE. BROBECKER EMERGED, THREE OTHER POTHOLERS WENT DOWN THE SAME HOLE, THE OLLIVIER GULF. THE THREE CHOSEN BY MICHEL SIFFRE FOR THIS EXPERIMENT ARE MR. CAPPA, LEADER OF THE EXPEDITION, MR. ENGLANDER AND MR. CHABERT. THEY WILL STAY UNDERGROUND FOR A MONTH, AND WILL IMITATE AS FAR AS POSSIBLE THE KIND OF LIFE LED BY THE APOLLO 8 ASTRONAUTS.