spaceflight manual

Chapter 30 Romance and Crisis at the Departure

At 0900 Earth Standard Time, Wang Ping'an was wearing a space suit and sat on the commander's seat.

Like driving a ship on Earth, the process of entering and leaving the port is the most dangerous part of spaceflight, and accidents are frequent.

Therefore, the crew members on this part of the ship need to wear space suits to stand by.

Angorie also climbed onto the chair next to her, and fixed herself on the chair with a seat belt.

Wang Pingan glanced at the fluorescent light on Angeli's spacesuit, and after confirming that the light was on, he ordered the computer to pump out the air on the bridge.

In fact, the warehouse is already evacuated at this time, and this measure is to reduce the risk of loss of pressure.

But this is not good for transporting living things. There is always air in the container, otherwise the transported things will be suffocated.

Wang Pingan: "Did you know that if we have an accident and the automatic sealant fails after the holes in the containers in the warehouse, those warehouses will turn into big trucks and drive in our warehouses."

Angeli: "Don't scare me."

"... I don't think you look scared, are you really scared?"

"That's something you can't see through the visor of the spacesuit."

Wang Ping'an shrugged, then flipped a button on the operation panel to turn on the spacecraft's communicator.

Immediately, the earphones of the spacesuit heard a conversation between you and me: "PQ11 approach, visual navigation signal."

Wang Ping'an pulled down the handbrake beside him, and all the display screens on Zhou Tian were activated.He and Angeli are like sitting directly in the universe.

Angeli let out an "oh" and exclaimed, "The training ship of our flight school doesn't have this thing, so we can only experience it in virtual reality."

Wang Pingan: "Actually, our school's training ship doesn't have this kind of thing. The old ship we drive should be the first generation to install this ship. That is to say, the school's ship is older than this ship.

"By the way, you should be very familiar with troubleshooting tritium reflex engines, right?"

Through Angeli's helmet, he can be seen opening his mouth in surprise: "You...is this a CALLBACK?"

"No, I'm asking you seriously. The engine of this spaceship is very old. Maybe we have to drill various pipes to repair it."

At this time, a ship entering the port issued a light signal.

Wang Pingan glanced at it, and responded with a signal on the operation panel.

Angeli: "It's not using a computer to type..."

"The computer will leave a record, but the light that directly controls the shell will not."

Angelie: "Who is it?"

"Guys I know, ask how Qin Qiong is doing. Damn, you're almost in Hong Kong to see him by yourself, and it's over."

Angeli: "Usually... do you use this method to chat without occupying the communication frequency band?"

Wang Pingan patted the headphone position of the helmet: "Of course, listen to what is said inside."

At this time, the headset is saying: "4617 approach, I can't see the navigation lights clearly, over."

"4617 Please wait, something went wrong. Over."

Wang Pingan: "Interrupting these conversations may lead to accidents, so we..."

"You don't need to chat." Angeli said preemptively.

Wang Pingan: "Why do you speak like the instructor?"

At this time, someone called in the communication: "PQ51, how is your situation, over."

"PQ51 is ready to sail..."

Just as Wang Pingan finished speaking, a light on the console flickered.

Angeli: "The container is open?"

Wang Pingan: "Didn't you hear the sound of big trucks rampaging in the warehouse?"

At this time the blinking lights went out.Everything looks fine on the console.

Just as Wang Pingan was about to speak, the tower's voice came from the headset again: "PQ51, what happened? It's over."

Wang Ping'an was interrupted by the flashing lights in the middle of his report. At this time, he hurriedly continued to report: "Just now the warning light of the container's airtightness flashed, but it flashed a few times and then went out. It's over."

Tower: "It should be a bad connection, your ship is an old ship. Get ready to leave the port, PQ51. Over."

Wang Pingan: "Preparing to leave Hong Kong, PQ51 understands. Finished."

At this time, the light indicator on the pier in front of the spacecraft has switched from red to green, indicating that it is possible to leave the port.

Wang Pingan repeated while operating: "Cut off the fuel pipeline."

The so-called fuel line is actually filled with water to the water tank.In the past, the engine had to use delicate and unstable liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen, which was very troublesome, but now it is simple.

Angeli performed the duties of the co-pilot and monitored various data of the spacecraft.

Angeli: "Slight pressure changes have been detected in the warehouse."

"Don't talk about approximate numbers, just tell me how much has changed."

"The computer is regarded as an instrument and the error is eliminated."

Wang Pingan: "That should be the error of the instrument, this broken ship. Could it be that someone in the warehouse opened the container and caused the air in the box to leak out?"

Angeli also laughed: "That's right."

But Wang Ping'an suddenly frowned. While continuing to carry out the departure procedure, he called the control tower: "Tower tower, I have a slight abnormality in the reading of the instrument here. I suspect it is a stowaway. Come and scan my cargo warehouse with a ship. It's over."

"Understood, immediately contact the cruiser on duty. Over."

Angelie: "What does that mean?"

"Be careful sailing for thousands of years. If it is really a stowaway, maybe there is a weapon, and we will find out after sailing, and we will have to use the weapons on the ship to fight them inside the ship."

As he spoke, Wang Pingan pointed to the eye-catching red weapon cabinet behind him.

At this time, a cruiser adjusted its posture to control the engine and appeared next to PQ51.

The main engine of the cruiser is not fired, and the movement of the engine is completely controlled by attitude, but for the torch cruiser, this is enough.

The cruiser's scanning antenna was fully deployed and aimed at the cargo bay of PQ51.

The cruiser’s communications officer’s voice came over the radio: “You’re pulling a whole load of live animals. There are too many signals scanned, so we can only hand them over to the computer for analysis. We will identify you one by one, so don’t leave the port. complete."

A moment later the cruiser reported: "No adult targets, no suspected weapons detected. That's what the computer says. Over."

Wang Pingan: "Has the computer found any humans in the cargo hold? Over."

"Wait a minute, the condition is that humans... input. No. But you have transported a lot of monkeys, over."

Wang Ping'an: "For the zoo on Mars. Over."

"It might have been a monkey just now..."

"Don't chat! This is the control tower, PQ51 continues to leave the port. Over."

Wang Pingan: "PQ51 understands. It's over."

Then he initiated the final step of the departure procedure, loosening the ship's rigid connection to the dock.

Now the PQ51 transport ship is completely floating in parallel with the dock of the space station.

The cruiser's attitude controls the short jet of the engine, allowing the cruiser to leave the PQ51.

Wang Pingan first controlled the engine with attitude to keep the spacecraft away from the dock, and when he reached a safe position, he pressed the ignition button of the main engine.

The two men on the bridge leaned back in their chairs at the same time.

However, because the spacecraft is loaded with more than 2 tons of containers, the engine can only give an acceleration of tens of milligals, so the feeling of back thrust is not too strong.

Angeli: "Can this boat run like this?"

"Of course it's more than that. It can run for a while if it's in a hurry. But that's too much water. Our kind of ship goes to Mars, it just takes a long time, shaking and shaking to Grandma Bridge..."

At this time, the control tower said: "PQ51, safe journey, over."

"PQ51, I wish you a good mood today, tower, over."

After finishing the call with the control tower, Wang Pingan switched to the public address.

So the soothing music flowed into his ears through the earphones.

It is "Night at the Military Port".

After listening for a few seconds, Angeli suddenly said, "Is this Lu Yingying?"

"Yes, I recognize her singing ability." Wang Pingan said softly.

In the singing, the spacecraft gradually accelerated along the route planned by the computer.

Wang Pingan looked at the precision mechanical clock on the console and said, "It just happened to start at the launch window, and I feel that this journey will be very smooth. Smooth and boring."

Angeli: "Why a mechanical clock?"

"Because even if there is no air, a special mechanical clock can run for a while even if it is thrown into space. But when it comes to that time, it doesn't help if a clock works. It's more like a... a talisman? Like In the past, the boatmen ate fish and were not allowed to turn over the fish."

"Do materialists believe this too?"

"Materialists think that this kind of thing can give them some comfort in their hearts and have positive meanings. Even if we don't have this thing, we will be fine."

While the two were talking, Angeli's eyes were suddenly drawn to the outside of the window - to be precise, the scene outside the window displayed on the monitor.

A comet was surrounded by several warships, slowly flying towards this side.

Sunlight shot from behind Wang Ping'an and the others and shone on the comet, pressing out a long tail of the comet.

The engine jet installed on the comet is mixed in the tail of the comet, which seems to add a "backbone" to the tail of the comet.

In this way, the comet's tail looks like a feather in space.

Angeli was dumbfounded.

Wang Pingan said suddenly: "Computer, activate the spectroscopic mode."

The computer immediately cut the spherical display into a spectroscopic state, so the comet tail was coated with a layer of colorful light.

Angeli exclaimed, "It's so beautiful."

"Yes." Wang Pingan echoed softly.

The comet-capturing flotilla appears to pass by PQ51.The leading cruiser signaled with lights: "Bon voyage."

Angelie: "They captured the comet...to get the ice on it, right?"

"There are also liquid alkanes. When the comet is finished, I am afraid that the water in L2 will be replenished by the water launched by the earth."

When Wang Ping'an was talking, Angeli turned off the beam splitter mode.

So he asked suspiciously: "Why, don't you want to watch it?"

"My eyes are a bit blurry, take care of my myopia! But you are quite romantic, I thought you were trying to be funny when you wanted to switch."

"How could it be?" Wang Pingan replied, "I'm a master at pleasing girls!"

"Eh~ yes~ is that so?"

Just as Wang Pingan was about to answer, he saw the comet that was about to pass by the spaceship crack.

Wang Ping'an opened his mouth into an O shape and exclaimed: "I'm so stupid, the idiot who installed the engine measured the data of the comet's nucleus wrong!"

Half of the split comet nucleus rushed towards Wang Ping'an's spaceship!

Wang Pingan: "Sit still!"

Then he directly turned the engine power to the highest level.

1.2 Gal's acceleration pushed him and Angeli onto the backrest.

Wang Pingan didn't do any other operations, just pushed the valve of the engine firmly.

The computer activated the light warning of the disintegration warning, and at the same time, the alarm sound played by the computer also sounded in the earphones.

The acceleration of 1.2 gal has exceeded the maximum design speed of the cargo ship, and the cargo ship itself is fully loaded, so it may disintegrate at any time!

Suddenly, the flash of the disintegration warning was mixed with the flash of loose containers in the warehouse, indicating that at least one container had been displaced——

Originally all the containers should have been fixed on the shelves.

Angeli: "It's going to disintegrate!"

The moment she yelled, Wang Ping'an let go of the gate.

All of a sudden the acceleration is gone.

Wang Ping turned around and saw that half of the comet was not far away from him, and a cruiser was chasing it.

At this time, the tower asked: "PQ51, how is your situation?"

"We don't have any major issues, the comet... well, I don't know..." Wang Pingan only had time to check the flight records on the computer at this time, and then saw the orbit of the comet passing behind the flight path of his spacecraft.

As long as the acceleration is a little slower, or there is a little hesitation when accelerating, and the valve is released a little earlier, it will hit.

Wang Pingan: "I'm stupid."

Tower: "Report the situation, PQ51, do you still have enough deltas to go to Mars?"

Wang Pingan looked at the route planning of the spacecraft, and replied: "There is still enough delta, and even a little surplus. But... I only have [-] tons of redundant water, and the route has deviated a lot. Repair the route. I still need water when I come back..."

"Conclusion, PQ51, can you still complete the voyage? Over." The control tower interrupted Wang Ping'an.

Wang Ping'an: "It's a bit of a mystery. There are too few deltas left, and we will not be able to cope with emergencies."

Control Tower: "Just now is the most urgent situation you can deal with. The Aviation Management Committee has already adjusted the flight plan for you, continue to implement it."

Wang Pingan: "I protest! This is no joke!"

"Lieutenant Wang Ping'an, think about your evaluation."

Wang Pingan shut up.

But he didn't answer "Okay" either, so he was deadlocked.

A different person spoke at the control tower: "I am Colonel Yang on duty today. The computer of the Aviation Management Committee judged that the voyage is very safe. We will arrange a water replenishment for you in Mars orbit, so that you will have enough delta when you enter the port. avoid."

Wang Pingan sighed: "Okay, I get it. I promise to complete the task, over."

Then Wang Ping cut off the communication directly.

Angeli: "Why don't you rehydrate us here?"

"Didn't you see the comet just now? It's because of a mistake in capturing it that we only have fifty tons of redundancy. Looking at the state of the comet, do you think L2 can give us water right away?"

Angeli was speechless: "Is there often a shortage of water and oxygen in space?"

"No, there is not much shortage of domestic water, because the space station will circulate internally. All that will be consumed is the water used as propellant." Wang Pingan set up the parameters of the orbit change while talking, and handed over the control of the spacecraft to the computer.

"Computer, pressurize the cabin of the spacecraft."

As soon as the voice fell, the air circulation system hummed.

Wang Ping'an: "Okay, the most dangerous part of leaving the port has been completed."

"It's really dangerous. I've seen it in practice." Angeli nodded.

Wang Pingan: "I'll go to the warehouse to see which container just slipped."

"Do we need to pay for this kind of loss in transportation?"

"Of course not, the insurance company will pay for it." Wang Pingan said while checking the indoor pressure gauge, and took off his helmet after seeing that the pressure was normal.

"I'll take a look at the back, are you coming with me?"

"Let's go, I have nothing to do anyway, so it's an internship."

(End of this chapter)