Die on Mars

The clock beat second by second, and time passed slowly in oppressive silence.

Tang Yue walked around in the main hall of Kunlun Station, occasionally standing close to the bulkhead for a while, and then walking around again, like a bear that had been locked in a cage for a long time and showed stereotyped behavior. He kneaded it uneasily. Holding the joints of his hands, the anxiety in his heart was clearly revealed.

"Wind speed?"

"Forty-three meters per second." Tang Yue glanced at the anemometer.

The old cat nodded. It looked calmer than Tang Yue, staring at the computer screen expressionlessly. Of course, this may also be because the robot's facial expressions are not rich.

"Lower the initial phase angle...lower the phase angle again! There is still room for improvement in the accuracy of orbit insertion...there is still room for improvement!" The old cat gritted his teeth as he tested the accuracy of the Eagle spacecraft's entry into orbit over and over again on the computer. Every step, "Wind speed?"

"Forty-three meters per second."

"The cumulative error of pure inertial navigation exceeds seven meters, which is unreliable, not reliable at all...wind speed?"

"Forty-three meters per second."

It had asked about the wind speed countless times, but the old cat finally revealed its anxiety and nervousness. Although it did not show it on its face, it was also worried about the damn weather and subconsciously asked about the wind speed over and over again.

The man and cat in Kunlun Station have tried their best, but their strength is too weak. Standing opposite Tang Yue's old cat is the vast and majestic universe.

Reality is the cruelest thing in the world. It is neither a story nor a fairy tale. At the critical moment of life and death, there will be no savior falling from the sky, no hidden master suddenly appearing to turn the tide, and nothing has been written. The perfect ending, how many tons of propellant can push the lander into a high orbit, even one meter higher is impossible.

Old Cat hit the Enter key on the keyboard and simulated the process of the Eagle spacecraft entering orbit again.

"The wind speed in the ascending section is forty-three meters per second. The initial orbit measurement...phase adjustment and waiting...failed."

"The wind speed during the ascending stage was forty-three meters per second. It entered the initial orbit, adjusted the phase angle, and started to transfer the orbit... failed."

"The wind speed was forty-three meters per second during the ascending stage. We entered the initial orbit, adjusted the phase angle, started to transfer the orbit, and entered the parking orbit...Failed!"

"fail!"

"fail!"

The old cat has lost count of how many times it has failed. It has a billiard cue in its hand. It has to hit a billiard ball into a hole a thousand meters away, and it only fails when it is blindfolded and exposed to a storm. This is normal.

There is chaos theory in physics. This theory shows that a complex whole with too many influencing factors cannot accurately predict the result, such as the weather. The butterfly effect is one of the very famous concepts. "A butterfly flaps its wings in South America, and two "It is possible to cause a tornado in North America in a few weeks." Small deviations in initial conditions, through systematic amplification, may lead to huge differences in results.

Therefore, no one can hit the hole with this billiard ball. There are too many influencing factors on this billiard table, from the cue to the billiard ball to the wind speed to the smoothness of the table. If there is a slight difference, it will be a thousand miles away.

But the old cat still insists on looking for the glimmer of hope for success. It does not hesitate to fight against chaos theory, physical laws, and calculation results. It insists on believing that among the vast and complex parameters, there must be a group that can successfully offset all errors and allow The Eagle spacecraft successfully docked with the Joint Space Station.

For a robot born out of logic, fighting against mathematics and physics is probably the most fearless and courageous thing, and the most tragic thing is to live toward death.

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"This is the United Space Station. The 512th call is to Kunlun Station. Mr. Tang Yue, Mr. Cat, please answer when you receive it..."

Maidong called Kunlun Station softly.

There was no response in the communication channel. The radio waves emitted from the space station probably did not pass through the sandstorm below, and the Kunlun station could not receive it at all.

The core cabin of the Crystal was filled with various mechanical noises. The girl was wearing blue overalls and headphones, suspended in the air, connected to the bulkhead by an earphone cable. After the sun rose, the temperature inside the space station increased. So Ophiopogon japonicus slightly reduces the power of the insulation system.

"This is the United Space Station. The 513th call is to Kunlun Station. Mr. Tang Yue, Mr. Cat, please answer if you hear me."

"This is the United Space Station. The 514th call is to Kunlun Station. Mr. Tang Yue, Mr. Cat, please answer if you hear me..."

Maidong reached out and twisted the knob to increase the volume slightly.

"This is Kunlun Station! This is Kunlun Station... Ophiopogon japonicus? Ophiopogon japonicus... can you hear it?"

"Mr. Tang Yue?" Maidong recognized that it was Tang Yue's voice. She held down the earphones in surprise and stepped forward to turn the volume to the maximum. Tang Yue's voice was unclear in the noise.

"Ophiopogon japonicus... Ophiopogon japonicus, can you hear me... This is Kunlun Station..."

"I can receive it!" Maidong replied, "Mr. Tang Yue, how is the situation over there? How is Mr. Cat?"

"Old Cat is working hard to adjust the Eagle spacecraft, and I am contacting you in the strong wind! The wind is a bit strong here..."

Tang Yue held the communication antenna and shouted loudly, trying to drown out the noisy noise. He felt like a CCTV reporter who stayed on the front line of reporting during the typhoon, and like a reporter who was holding on to the telephone pole during the flood. Disaster victims.

"Comrade Maidong! I want to tell you good news...that is, the Eagle spacecraft is ready! It can be launched at any time...! Your supplies will arrive soon! Your supplies will arrive soon." It’s in stock!”

"I know, Mr. Cat has already told me."

"Then... I will... emphasize it to you again!" Tang Yue shouted, his voice intermittent in the channel, "You must... stand firm and wait for help with confidence! The party and the people will not give up on you. Yes! I won’t give up…fuck!”

Maidong was stunned. There was a click in the earphones, and the contact was interrupted.

"Mr. Tang Yue? Mr. Tang Yue, what's wrong with you?"

Maidong panicked. She didn't know what was happening underneath, and Tang Yue suddenly cut off contact.

Kunlun Station.

Lao Mao was typing on the keyboard and turned around to glance outside. He saw Tang Yue slowly getting up. The latter had just lost his balance and fell down. He and the antenna were all gone away. Fortunately, he was safe. The rope is pulled, otherwise I don't know if I can get it back.

Panting, Tang Yue set up the antenna, reconnected the loose data cable socket, and began to adjust the angle of the antenna. However, no matter how he adjusted it, he could not find the original signal. There was only endless current noise in the channel.

Whether Kunlun Station can contact the space station depends entirely on luck. After all, the sandstorm overhead is moving. When the conditions are better, radio waves may be able to break through the interference, but as soon as the sandstorm becomes more active, the connection will be interrupted.

Tang Yue anxiously adjusted the knob of the antenna, but his frozen gloves kept slipping, and he couldn't adjust it to the angle he wanted no matter how much he turned it. Damn it... He still had something to say, so why did it suddenly stop?

Tang Yue, wearing a heavy Mingguang armor, staggered around the antenna, being tossed around by the storm. The old cat looked at him, his back as clumsy as a bear reaching for bananas with its paws.

It’s really painful to think about, why are things in the world so difficult?

You see it is like a fragile weed swaying in the storm, but it stands there stubbornly and refuses to fall down no matter what.