Great Country Academician

The red-purple tail flame was like a passing star, particularly conspicuous in the blue sky.

On the ground, the general command center.

The deafening cheers and celebrations gradually faded away like a tide, and the people who hugged each other quickly returned to their jobs and continued to complete their work according to the already arranged schedule.

The first voyage of the Xinghai is not just about sending it into the sky.

Whether it is in the atmosphere below the critical point, in the subspace above the critical point, or even in low-Earth orbit, it will undergo a series of various tests.

This maiden flight was an unmanned flight, completed by an intelligent flight control system in conjunction with the command of ground control center personnel and the assistance of a supercomputing center.

Only after completing the maiden flight and performing well in various environments will the manned spaceflight project be launched.

Before Hongsu launched the world's first manned spacecraft to carry Gagarin into space, a total of 5 unmanned test spacecraft were launched. In the last century, the United States also developed a total of three manned spacecraft series, namely Mercury and Gemini. Constellation and Apollo.

These three series launched manned spaceflight and lunar exploration activities after a total of 10 unmanned test spacecraft were launched before the first manned mission.

Of course, these are sent through launch vehicles, and the manned spacecraft basically has no autonomous movement ability after liftoff, or it does not have very strong autonomous movement ability.

This forces space agencies to launch spacecraft multiple times to collect and compare information on orbits, data, transportation, etc., in order to ensure the safety of astronauts in order to ensure the safety of astronauts in subsequent manned space activities.

In this regard, the space shuttle does have its own unique advantages, especially the combination of small fusion reactor + aerospace engine, which provides extremely strong maneuverability. Unlike a manned spacecraft, it is difficult to adjust its orbit and direction through various orbit changes after entering space, and there are no restrictions on fuel, materials, living space, etc.

But this does not mean that the space shuttle can directly carry people on its maiden flight.

Astronauts are more valuable than the space shuttle, at least in this era.

As for the future, in the era of electric propulsion and in the field of comprehensive development of space shuttles, the physical requirements for astronauts to explore space will theoretically be reduced to an extremely low level. Even an ordinary person without any training can pass the space shuttle Go to space, land on the moon.

In the blue sky, the silver-white Xinghai dragged its long and narrow red-purple tail flames and rushed through the sky. Sometimes it rose, sometimes fell, sometimes rolled like a mundane world, sometimes it was as calm as a cloud. It was like a phoenix falling into the mundane world. Amazing.

Tests are being carried out one after another at an altitude of nearly 20,000 meters. In the distant sky, there are J20 fighters constantly patrolling around the Xinghai. They are like escorts, ensuring the absolute safety of this airspace.

On the ground, in the main control center of the space base, busy staff are conducting tests one after another in an orderly manner, recording complete experimental data.

Reporters from CTV and Jinling City took advantage of the opportunity to take some additional photos, and then quickly retreated to a corner to avoid disturbing the work of others.

Standing in front of the main console, Xu Chuan didn't know how long he had been waiting.

Finally, a trembling voice made his eyes brighten quickly.

"Report! All the experiments in the atmosphere have been completed, and the data has been completely collected. The Xinghai is currently in good condition. Please ask for instructions on the next step!"

Upon hearing this report, Xu Chuan took a deep breath and issued a new order calmly and clearly.

"End the intra-atmospheric voyage and execute the second stage of voyage!"

"receive!"

The command was passed on, and a loud reply sounded. Along with the modification of the command, the Xinghai, which was sailing in the sky, quickly adjusted its flying posture and flew towards higher and deeper space.

Compared with traditional chemical fuel launch vehicles, the acceleration of aerospace engines is definitely much weaker. At least before the electric propulsion system is fully powered to break through the gravity well, it needs more time to increase its speed. , to climb to a higher track.

Although it is much slower in comparison, its advantages are also quite obvious.

Before reaching the critical point and before switching flight attitude, its flight is more stable, and it will not cause any acceleration pressure on either the equipment inside or the people inside.

The long flight time passed by anxiously waiting until a report sounded again.

"The critical point will be reached in three minutes, and the flight mode switch is ready!"

The report sounded in the control center, and everyone in the main control room, including Xu Chuan, suddenly became excited.

Navigation within the atmosphere has been confirmed to be without any problems. The next most important thing for the Xinghai's maiden voyage is the switching of flight modes!

This is the most difficult step and the most critical stage.

If it can be completed successfully, even if an accident occurs in low-Earth orbit, they will be confident enough to adjust back.

However, if a problem occurs when switching flight modes, Xinghai may face the biggest setback or even serious damage during its maiden voyage.

Standing in front of the main console, Xu Chuan stared at the various data on the monitoring screen, his heart already rising.

From these screens, he could clearly see the operating status of various components on the Xinghai, including the fusion reactor, the aerospace engine, the flight control system, and even the two experimental pigs placed in the warehouse. figure.

For him, through these data, it seems that he can see the bright plasma iris in the fusion reactor chamber, and he can also see the extreme particles accelerated to one thousandth of the speed of light in the aerospace engine. Everything , all transformed from data into pictures at this moment, reflected in his mind.

Three minutes is not a long time, but in this moment it is extremely long.

With the switch of flight mode and the change of flight attitude, at this moment, the main control room was extremely quiet, and you could hear the needle drop. Everyone held their breath, waiting for the final moment.

As if he could hear his heartbeat, Xu Chuan clenched his fists and waited patiently.

until

[Arrived at the critical point, the flight mode switch was successful! 】

A crisp report sounded in the control center, and everyone's hearts dropped heavily at this moment.

"Oh oh oh oh!"

"Okay! Great!"

"It worked! We succeeded!"

"Awesome! Academician Xu is awesome!"

"Hahahaha, Sichuan God Beef!"

Looking at the space shuttle heading towards the vast deep space, all kinds of cheers sounded in the main control room again.

Xu Chuan breathed a long sigh of relief, and the flush on his face gradually faded.

His worries have passed. The Xinghai has passed the two biggest hurdles!

He believes there won't be any problems for the rest of the journey!

PS: I suddenly got busy with work in the afternoon. I came back in the evening and started typing. I will send one first to ensure full attendance. I am writing the rest. There will be more in the evening. Let’s read it when you get up in the morning.