The rise of nanometers

June 17, 2015.

The first test of the super-heavy launch vehicle Chang 13 failed. After the launch vehicle was launched, it disintegrated and exploded in the air about 27 seconds ago.

This super-heavy launch vehicle, which has been modified several times, has a total weight of 2,686 tons after being filled with fuel, and a payload of 172 tons in low-Earth orbit, with a payload ratio of close to 6.5%.

Huang Xiuyuan used the stand-in robot to arrive at the final assembly factory in Wenchang Aerospace City. Academician Wang, the chief engineer in charge of the Chang-13 project, and a group of researchers, engineers, and designers were all busy.

After reading the preliminary accident investigation report, Huang Xiuyuan roughly understood the possible cause of the accident.

Academician Wang on the side said distressedly: "The disadvantages of parallel engines are indeed very difficult to deal with."

"As expected." Huang Xiuyuan was not surprised.

Because from the design ideas of the Chang 13, Huang Xiuyuan knew that this project would definitely not go smoothly. In order to obtain sufficient power, the Chang 13 launch vehicle connected six large rocket engines in parallel and used solid fuel - N20/6.

The disadvantage of parallel engines is that they easily interfere with each other, which greatly tests the coordination and control between the engines. Once any of the engines has a problem, it can easily cause the overall loss of control.

This test launch was due to the fact that the output power of one of the engines was about 0.61% greater, which destroyed the original flight trajectory.

Moreover, the Chang 13 had other problems, which led to the failure of this launch.

Academician Wang said helplessly: "It is estimated that the problem will need to be eliminated, and the next round may not be test-fired until September."

"It doesn't matter. Failure is also an experience. It's better than having problems in actual operation."

Academician Wang also looked distressed about this: "The time is just too tight. If we could extend it for one or two years, we would definitely not have such a serious problem."

The aerospace system does not know about controllable nuclear fusion. While it is excited about launching a large number of aerospace projects in such a hurry, it is also deeply aware of the pressure involved.

There is no way around this. Controlled nuclear fusion technology is too sensitive and will lead to the complete disintegration of the fragile strategic balance.

Coupled with the possible early onset of the Little Glacier climate, it is very likely to intensify the gap between Greater China and other regions. Taken together, these conditions will increase the possibility of some forces taking desperate measures.

Therefore, fully promoting the aerospace industry and establishing a lunar city have become top priorities.

The failure of the first test of the Chang 13 launch vehicle has cast a shadow on the aerospace science and industry, but Huang Xiuyuan is not too worried. After all, the maximum payload of the Chang 13 launch vehicle is only 172 tons in low-Earth orbit, 105 tons in geostationary orbit, and 105 tons in synchronous orbit. Track 70 tons.

The Chang 11 launch vehicle, which uses Golden Wing Dapeng to replace the core stage, can currently achieve 243 tons in low-Earth orbit, 171 tons in synchronous orbit, and 92 tons in lunar orbit.

This is a very amazing payload. The Golden Wing Dapeng is used to launch the very mature Chang-11 carrier rocket, which is also the current main means of entering outer space.

As for why we continued to develop the Chang 13 after having the Golden Wing Dapeng, it was mainly to cooperate with another project.

The current overall performance of the Chang 13 is obviously not as good as the Golden Wing Dapeng + Chang 11, but this project must continue to be developed.

Because in addition to being launched into the atmosphere, the Chang 13 is also planned to be assembled in stages in outer space, that is, after being assembled on the space station, it will be used as a super-heavy spacecraft to and from the moon.

According to the plans of China Aerospace Science and Industry and Eagle Aerospace, the Chang 13 will be broken down into five parts, launched to the Tiangong Space Station via the Golden Wing Dapeng, and then the five modules will be assembled.

For the low-Earth orbit assembly type Chang 13, the synchronous orbit payload will be increased to 1,880 tons, and the lunar orbit payload can reach 940 tons.

If it is used as a means of transportation between low-Earth orbit and lunar orbit, it will change the current problem of too small return payload for lunar spacecraft.

At present, if the lunar spacecraft wants to return to Blue Star, its fuel must be carefully calculated. The maximum payload returned to low-Earth orbit, minus the various systems of the spacecraft itself, can bring back only about 1.5 to 3.2 tons of additional weight to low-Earth orbit.

This is still an unmanned transport spacecraft. If it is a manned spacecraft, the additional load is only about 0.6 to 1.7 tons.

If the spacecraft has more than five people on board, the payload will drop further.

Obviously this does not meet the strategic needs of aerospace development. The lunar spacecraft must be allowed to carry a larger load and return to Blue Star's low-Earth orbit.

Chang 13 shoulders this important task.

Regardless of the mediocre overall performance of this launch vehicle in the atmosphere, if it is assembled in low-Earth orbit, it can carry 10 lunar spacecraft with a length of 11.

This kind of spacecraft assembled on a low-Earth orbit space station is an important means to achieve rapid construction of lunar bases and lunar cities.

Huang Xiuyuan also knew that the project time was too tight, but he had no choice.

Now the Noah Society is also very crazy. Since this year, the other party has launched 5 new Saturn Vs, 2 of which exploded, 3 of which were successful. They have initially established a small unmanned base of about 24 tons on the moon, and 5 a lunar satellite.

In addition, Musk’s Space Exploration Company, Boeing, Blue Origin and other companies are also starting to rebuild a new space station, the Noah’s Ark Space Station, stimulated by NASA’s huge funds.

As for the Western Continent Alliance and Lucia, they are patching things up with the International Space Station. As for the moon, they have only launched one exploration satellite in several years.

This all-out space race has stunned the small forces. They don't even have the courage to try, let alone catch up.

Blue Star's international structure has also gradually formed three major camps under the impact of this big wave, namely, the Chinese and American Federation (Noah Society), and the New Western Continent Alliance (Western Continent Alliance + Lucia).

As for the other little shrimps, they are either puppets of the three major forces, buffer zones, or gaming zones.

The world's hot spots have shifted from the Asia-Pacific region to the Ceylon Ocean region, especially the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea in the northwest region of the Ceylon Ocean, which have become a mess.

The three major forces are intertwined in the region, and several proxy wars have broken out.

While looking up at the stars, the overt and covert fighting on the ground has not stopped at all. In order to snatch resources, some actions have become more open and fierce.

Greater China is better off. After all, it has a variety of new materials and efficient element refining technologies, and its demand for external resources is not large.

The means of grabbing resources at the end were relatively mild and concealed, and the more purpose was actually to prevent Noah from obtaining more resources.

The Noah Society's methods are much more brutal, directly tearing apart the hypocrisy it has always had, and frantically plundering all kinds of rare resources.

Resources in many places have been exploited by Noah in destructive ways.

Especially in the coastal areas around the Atlantic Ocean, Noah will deploy all five aircraft carrier fleets in the Atlantic Ocean.

These plundered resources were invested in the aerospace and military industries. Under tremendous pressure, the strength of the Noah Society was also expanding crazily.

The whole world has fallen into a kind of madness and depression, and the social atmosphere of the first Cold War era has reappeared.

And many smart people have already seen that the decisive factor in this Cold War lies in space.

If any force cannot keep up with the times in the space field, it can only become a loser, and this time the competition is more cruel than before, and may even determine the future of civilization.

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