Great Country Academician

In the general command room of the Aerospace Research Institute, Xu Chuan was sitting in the center completing the final assembly and construction of the space shuttle and preparing for the first flight.

On the other side, on the Atlantic coast, is NASA's Washington command center.

Busy people were rushing in and out of the building. As the main person in charge of restarting the Artemis Project, NASA controls all aspects of this huge project.

In an office in the headquarters office building, NASA Director Bill Nelson is busy with his work, browsing through documents one after another, and making approvals and instructions.

As a huge project that unites many commercial aerospace companies such as Space-X, Blue Origin, Lockheed Martin, and even multiple national space agencies, it is a matter of itself to be able to smoothly advance and continue to develop. It's very difficult.

Fortunately, thanks to the country on the other side of the Pacific Ocean, if it weren't for the other country's increasing pressure on the international situation, the group of gentlemen in Congress would not have focused their attention and focus on the aerospace field, let alone approved such a plan. Huge plan.

NASA's space agency has enjoyed a very prosperous life in the past year or so due to the restart and upgrade of the Artemis program.

Of course, what Bill could imagine was how much the international situation would hit them if they lost to that country again in the space race.

As for his position as director of NASA, it is probably impossible for him to sit down again.

However, he does not think that NASA will lose to others in the aerospace competition. This is the confidence brought by decades of leadership in the aerospace field, and it is also the honor engraved in the bones of a major aerospace country.

The first country to land on the moon, the first manned space shuttle, and the first Voyager satellite to fly the furthest distance from the earth.

In this field, they have too many honors and medals, and they also have an extremely strong foundation.

In fact, it has been nearly a year since the Artemis project was restarted, and they have initially completed preparations for a manned moon landing.

From Space-X's BFR heavy-lift launch vehicle to Blue Origin's orbital spacecraft and Lockheed Martin's Orion multi-purpose manned spacecraft, these are the core equipment used to achieve manned moon landings in 2023. It's ready.

If the next work goes well enough, they are expected to start the first and crucial step in the Artemis project around July this year, sending astronauts to the moon and back to the moon.

Although the date promised for the press conference has been delayed a lot, isn't it normal for complex projects such as scientific research and aerospace to have delays?

In the office, Bill Nelson handled the work at hand happily. Although he was busy with tasks, it was so wonderful to not have to worry about funds.

At this moment, there was a knock on the door of the office, and a female secretary in professional attire walked in quickly.

"Mr. Director, someone is looking for you outside."

Bill Nelson, who was doing his work, stopped writing and looked up.

"who?"

"The CIA staff have verified their identities," the secretary said quickly.

"People from the CIA?" Bill Nelson frowned slightly, hesitated for a moment and then said, "Invite them in."

Before he could finish speaking, the office door was pushed open forcefully again.

Two middle-aged men wearing low-key and simple black clothes walked in quickly. Bill Nelson frowned when he saw the two people who broke in.

There was one person he was quite familiar with. He was a close associate of the director of the CIA. He had dealt with him twice in the White House for work reasons.

"Sorry, Director Bill, the situation is urgent and we need to confirm the situation faster."

After Yoel Hubert showed his ID to Bill Nelson in a procedural manner, he looked at the female assistant standing aside.

Bill Nelson nodded, glanced at his assistant, and motioned for her to go out first.

"what's going on?"

Because of their acquaintance, Bill Nelson simply asked directly.

Yoel Hubert said quickly: "There are two things that need to be confirmed and investigated by NASA."

"The first thing is about NASA selling a batch of space shuttles including deep space exploration equipment, star trackers, etc. to a Chinese company called Blue Arrow Aerospace four and a half months ago, that is, in November 2022. We need accurate inventory and reporting documentation for the necessary equipment and materials and equipment."

Hearing this, Bill Nelson frowned slightly and said: "There is nothing wrong with the sale of this batch of equipment and materials. It is legal and compliant. If you need the list and report documents, I will need the relevant approval documents before I can give them to you. .”

Yoel Hubert didn't waste any time and quickly handed over what the other party needed, and then said: "According to our investigation, this batch of materials and equipment eventually flowed from the private Blue Arrow Aerospace Company to the Xinghai Research Institute, and Xinghai The institute is currently assembling and manufacturing space shuttles, which are very likely to pose a serious threat to our space race."

Hearing this, Bill Nelson leaned back on the chair indifferently, tapped his fingers on the armrest twice, and said with a smile: "What does it matter? The space shuttle? They picked up the product that we gave up long ago. Are you going to get up and eat ashes in the footsteps of the past?”

"As for the threat."

After a pause, he continued: "I don't think Xinghai Research Institute can pose any threat to our development in the aerospace field, even if it is led by the famous Professor Xu."

"You must know that aerospace is two completely different fields from nuclear fusion and mathematics."

Seeing Director Bill Nelson's nonchalant look, Yoel Hubert didn't say anything. He quickly took out a document bag from his chest, opened it, took a report document from it and handed it over.

"This is the information we obtained after our investigation. Xinghai Research Institute is currently developing an electric propulsion system. Their space shuttle technology will most likely not use traditional chemical fuel rocket propulsion and use a new electric propulsion system as the power source."

Upon hearing this, Bill Nelson looked at the other party in surprise and interrupted his statement.

"Electric propulsion? Are you sure you're right?"

Yoel Hubert nodded and said seriously: "That's right."

"Heh~."

After confirming the information, Bill Nelson showed a trace of disdain and ridicule in his eyes. He said, "Electric propulsion + space shuttle? I don't know if your intelligence collection was fooled or if the other party went crazy."

As he said that, he glanced at Yule Hubert and teased: "But I personally think it's more like the former."

As the director of the most advanced aerospace agency on the planet, he is very familiar with the development of the aerospace field and related technologies.

Although he dare not say that he fully understands every technology, no one knows the development direction and trends of the aerospace field, such as science and technology, theoretical future and other general directions better than him.

Electric propulsion? space shuttle?

Don’t be ridiculous, the single electric propulsion engine with the highest thrust in the world is currently owned by NASA. Their X3 thruster has created the highest thrust in history of 5.4 N, and it still holds the largest world record.

And this data is only enough to send an egg to the sky.

Standing opposite the desk, Yoel Hubert continued to ask expressionlessly: "Can't electric propulsion be done?"

Bill Nelson shook his head and replied without hesitation: "The most powerful single electric propulsion engine in the world is the X3 thruster we developed, and its thrust is only 5.4 N."

"A space shuttle can easily weigh tens of tons or even hundreds of tons. To propel an aircraft of such a huge weight in the atmosphere, its thrust needs to be at least tens of KN. If it leaves the surface, it will even need hundreds of KN or more. .”

"Are they planning to integrate tens of thousands of X3 thrusters to provide thrust for the space shuttle? This is a bit nonsense."

After a pause, he looked at Yoel Hubert and grinned: "Moreover, even if they develop an electric propulsion engine with greater thrust and find a way to solve the thrust problem, there is still no way to supply energy. solved problem."

"Although the power consumption of a single electric propulsion engine is not large and can be solved with solar panels, the power required to run tens of thousands of electric propulsion engines for one hour is more than enough for you to use it for a lifetime."

"Although the efficiency of electric propulsion is high, the energy required to propel a space shuttle of tens of tons is simply unsolvable."

"If the other party is really planning to use an electric propulsion system, it is probably because it can save some fuel for the space shuttle itself in outer space."

"After all, you and I both know very well that they still have a huge flaw in the weight load of chemical fuel launch vehicles. To achieve manned moon landing, this problem must be solved first."

"Perhaps they came up with electric propulsion to save fuel during the Earth-to-Moon voyage? In outer space, it is also feasible for electric propulsion to propel a space shuttle of dozens of tons."

As he spoke, Bill Nelson couldn't help laughing.

This set of assumptions, combined with his previous understanding of the other party's aerospace technology and that country's R\u0026D personnel, might actually be like this.

However, Yoel Hubert, who was standing opposite, did not relax after hearing this joking explanation, and his expression became even more solemn.

He asked quickly: "According to your opinion, if the energy problem is solved, electric propulsion is possible?"

Bill Nelson was stunned for a moment, a little confused. He frowned slightly and said, "I don't understand what you mean. What is the energy problem that can be solved?"

Yoel Hubert motioned the other party to read the report on the table, and explained in passing: "According to intelligence, the No. 03 aircraft carrier launched a few days ago is very likely to use a controllable nuclear fusion reactor as the energy supply system. "

"Through our investigation of Xinghai Research Institute, we have found that they have been researching and developing miniaturized controllable nuclear fusion technology. There is reliable information that the other party may have made some breakthroughs in this technology, and it is very likely to be used in the future. On the space shuttle.”

"This is impossible!"

After hearing the news, Bill Nelson, who was lying on the back of the chair, was stunned. He shouted in surprise and then quickly sat upright and picked up the report document handed over from the table.

As he flipped through the documents and reports in his hands, his brows furrowed quickly, and his breathing suddenly became heavier.

Although the analysis in his mind told him that the possibility of realizing the technologies in the information in his hand was less than 1 in 10,000 or even 1 in 100 million, and it was almost impossible for electric propulsion to send a space shuttle to the sky, but what if?

What if the other party really achieves the combination of super large electric propulsion + small fusion reactor?

Even if this technology is not mature yet, the development of the aerospace field will probably usher in an earth-shaking change.

PS: There will be another chapter later. Please ask for a monthly ticket before 12 o'clock. If you agree, there will still be more updates. I wish everyone a happy New Year!