Die on Mars

"Tang Yue, Mr. Cat, look... the sun is out." Maidong was halfway through putting on his bloated extravehicular suit. He raised his head, and the golden sunlight filtered through the porthole and fell on the girl's pale cheeks. superior.

Looking from the perspective of Ophiopogon japonicus, the sunlight outlines a huge dark arc, which is the edge of Mars. There is a faint dark red in the dark shadow, and the thin atmosphere emits a white glow. The sun is visible to the naked eye. Speeding away from the diamond ring, and then getting into the shadow of the solar panel.

The huge battery panels of the United Space Station are neatly arranged and rotate slowly, like a row of sharp blades, cutting the sunlight into pieces.

Maidong narrowed her eyes, and the light and shadows slid over her face one after another, outlining a round and small nose tip.

"In our eyes, the sun is always in the sky." Tang Yue said.

"I envy you very much." Maidong put on his helmet and fastened the lock. "Whether it is on the earth or on Mars, the world revolves around the sun. It is the center of the world, and everything is full of light. ... But when you stay on the space station, you can see... that the universe is so dark and deep that even a star as bright as the sun cannot illuminate it."

"Sometimes I think that human beings may not be ready to travel far yet." Maidong checked the communication system, and the numbers were reflected on the glass mask. "People always want to find something to rely on. In the past, it was hometown, the earth, and the sun. .Once they step into deep space, people will become spiritually helpless prodigals. Think about it a few years later, if someone really starts an interstellar voyage, those souls who disappeared in the universe will be able to find their way home. ?"

"That's why there are Gagarin, Armstrong, Wang Laotang, and us." Tang Yue said, "Mr. Lu Xun once said that there is no road in this world. If there are more people walking, there will be a road. .”

"What's more, it won't be a few years from now." Old Cat interrupted, "The road you paved will not be walked on by future generations."

Maidong walked through the passage. She left the Crystal cabin and entered the Hub node cabin. Originally, the exit closest to the super arm was the Dawn module, but this cabin was completely destroyed. Maidong could only go to the Hope experimental cabin, where there were also An airlock for astronauts to conduct extravehicular activities.

"The EVA system is normal, there is no problem with the extravehicular suit, and all departments of the space station are normal." Old Mao took control of everything, and the computer screens in front of him all lit up.

Tang Yue quickly flipped through the manuscript paper in his hand and looked at the time. He wanted to make sure there were no mistakes in his actions.

"The MSSRMS system is connected, and the Canadarm70 robotic arm is on standby." Laomao entered the operation interface of the super arm. The way to operate the robotic arm on the space station is different from that on the Kunlun station. Analog control and joysticks can be used for motion capture in the space station, but only a keyboard and mouse can be used in the Kunlun Station. Using the keyboard and mouse to operate a mechanical arm with twelve degrees of freedom is something no one except Lao Mao can do.

The folded super arm slowly opened. This complex and expensive robotic arm is one of the most sophisticated tools on the space station. It once saved Ophiopogon japonicus's life.

"Ophiopogon japonicus, check the tools. Have you brought all the tools?" Tang Yue reminded.

"Bring it all together."

Ophiopogon japonicus is in the airlock room, undergoing air extraction and decompression.

With a beep, the indicator light changed from red to green. Maidong took a deep breath and opened the outer hatch of the airlock.

She was a little dizzy the moment she left the space station. This was not the first time that Maidong had left the space station, but every time she left the space station, it was like stepping into an abyss.

"The current time is 9:15 in the morning, five minutes after the operation started." Tang Yue stood on the side, pressing the earphone to contact Maidong, while staring at the time, "Maidong, are you okay?"

"Don't worry." The girl's voice was calm.

"I'm sending Miss Maidong there." Lao Mao said in a deep voice. The camera on the robotic arm projected the live image on the screen. Lao Mao specially called a monitor to monitor the working status of the robotic arm.

The main camera is installed on the head of Ophiopogon japonicus. What Ophiopogon japonicus sees is what the old cat sees.

The airlock is more than thirty meters away from the S1 panel, and the robotic arm is approaching at a speed of half a meter per second. In Ophiopogon japonicus's eyes, the huge solar panel is gradually approaching.

Ophiopogon japonicus pulled down the light filter mask, the sunlight was a bit dazzling.

"There are still five meters...three meters...one meter away, OK! Lock!"

"Ophiopogon japonicus?"

"OK! I can already see the sensor..." Maidong raised her hand and pushed the light filter mask halfway up. She hid in the shadow behind the solar panel to avoid direct sunlight.

The S1 battery pack has a total of two solar panels, installed together on a torsion mechanism, and is one of the main sources of power for the Joint Space Station. A solar panel is more than 40 meters long. The main body is made of monocrystalline silicon and the surface is covered with a protective film, which makes the blue solar cell look dark brown.

The actuator of the battery panel is installed on the truss, which is a very huge and complex mechanical structure, while the light sensor is an inconspicuous gadget. It is a protruding plexiglass hemisphere. This plastic shell is only for protection. There is a small chip inside the cover that is flat on the space station. That is the main body of the sensor.

The overall appearance looks a bit like a surveillance camera, but the task of the light sensor is not to image, but to identify the direction of sunlight.

A set of battery panels has two sensors, which serve as backup for each other. If one is broken, the other one will be there, but this time the damage is to the main control circuit, so it must be repaired manually.

"Find the correct location!" Tang Yue instructed, "Do you still remember the steps? Find the correct location, and then open the shell. You will have completed the mission of leaving the cabin this time!"

"Find the right position...find the right position..." Maidong nodded, and the water vapor he exhaled condensed on the mask.

The actuator shell is covered with several layers of solid polymer films for thermal insulation. If you want to open the shell, you must first cut off all the insulation materials.

Maidong took out the small electric circular saw from the tool bag on his chest.

Tang Yue and Lao Mao stayed at the Kunlun Station. All four cameras on the super arm were turned towards Ophiopogon japonicus. One person and one cat watched the bloated white figure operating awkwardly from different angles. Ophiopogon japonicus only had its feet fixed. On the super big arm, her body swayed slowly in the weightless environment, and the tool slipped from her hand several times.

"Don't be anxious, don't be anxious... Ophiopogon japonicus." Tang Yue put one hand on the table and the other hand on the old cat's shoulder, "There is plenty of time."

"There are four layers of cloth on the outside." Maidong replied, "I cut the first layer and opened a 40-centimeter-long opening, and then prepared to cut the second layer."

"Would you like to take a break?"

"No need." Maidong let out a long breath, "I'm not tired yet."

"Don't force it." Old Cat said, "Miss Maidong, fatigue will affect work efficiency."

"I feel like a doctor now, operating on this giant." Maidong turned his head and glanced at the huge space station behind him, "I also thought about being a doctor when I was a child... If I really became a surgeon , then I probably wouldn’t be here now.”

It took almost ten minutes to tear open the second layer of insulation material. There was a little trouble when cutting the third layer. A thin steel wire hindered the progress. This was a bit beyond everyone's expectations. No one knew it would pop out here. For a piece of steel wire, Lao Mao suggested returning to the space station to replace the tool, but Maidong filed it off abruptly.

When the task time was over, Ophiopogon japonicus finally cut off all the plastic films.

"I see the shell!"

"Did you see the access cover?" Tang Yue asked, "The four socket head screws?"

"Yes...that's right." Maidong raised his head and smiled at the camera, "You are right."

"Next step, remove the screws and disassemble the casing! You still have fifty minutes."