Great Country Academician

Beijing, Chang'an Street.

On the Beihai Island, standing in front of the quaint two-story building in front of him, Gao Hongming, the head of the Strategic Planning Department of the Department of Science and Technology, took a deep breath and reached out to knock on the door gently.

After hearing a "come in", he pushed the door open and walked in, saying respectfully.

"Are you looking for me?"

Looking at the head of the Strategic Planning Department standing at the door, the old man smiled, pushed the letter that An Jing had placed on the table forward, and said:

"I have a letter here, take a look first."

Without any hesitation, Gao Hongming took two steps at a time and walked forward and picked up the letter from the table.

The letter was opened, and he took out the letter from it.

When he got it, the material of the letter made Gao Hongming stunned for a moment.

It's not that there is anything wrong with the letter, but the material is too ordinary, so ordinary that it looks like it was torn from an ordinary notebook.

And when he saw the torn edge next to the letter, the corners of his mouth twitched slightly.

Well, this is really torn from a notebook.

Before he even read the contents of the letter, he already had more than 90% guesses about who wrote the letter.

Although there are still a few people in the country who can send letters here.

But the person who can tear a piece of paper from his own notebook and write a letter here without any care is the person he followed a few years ago.

As an acquaintance, he can even imagine that before writing this letter, the person sat in his office and wanted to write a letter but couldn't find the special letter paper, and was too lazy to ask the assistant for it, so he touched the notebook.

Reading it, the familiar handwriting on the letter directly confirmed his guess.

As he assisted in the completion of the controlled nuclear fusion project in the past few years, he could easily recognize that it was Xu Chuan's handwriting.

[Dear]

[. The construction of the lunar orbit mass projector is not only about the development of aerospace and lunar resources. ]

[The development of the electromagnetic field can also promote scientific and technological cooperation and exchanges, and give birth to new economic growth points and industrial development. 】

【It can also provide testing guarantee conditions for the exploration and research of advanced civil frontier basic sciences such as advanced materials, high-speed aerodynamics, impact and collision mechanics, and can also provide a new generation of high-performance test environment for the development of frontier equipment such as guidance, fuze, inertial navigation, and life-saving. 】

【For example, the development of the maglev train industry chain will drive the development of railways, materials, equipment manufacturing and other fields, forming a new economic growth point. 】

【At the same time, the core technology of the mass projector can also be applied to the energy field. For example, electromagnetic power generation technology can effectively utilize renewable energy, reduce dependence on traditional energy, and improve energy utilization efficiency. 】

【In addition, the application of electromagnetic technology in the military field is also very important. For example, electromagnetic catapults can provide aircraft carriers with powerful take-off capabilities, electromagnetic guns can achieve long-range strike targets, and electromagnetic shield technology can protect target units, etc. 】

【These research results not only enhance the country's military strength, but also make important contributions to maintaining national security and maintaining world peace. 】

【Of course, whether to choose to develop these technologies is in your hands. 】

【.】

The letter did not end here. There was also a timetable for the construction of the lunar orbital mass projector, the expected goals of the entire project, and a budget table.

On the last page of the letter, Xu Chuan simply but carefully listed the estimated parameters of the various components of the lunar orbital mass projector, as well as the performance expectations of the lunar orbital mass projector after completion.

[Project goal: Complete the construction of the lunar orbital mass projector before 2026. 】

[Standard performance planning: micron-level and nano-level high-speed high-thrust linear motors, 100-megawatt broadband variable frequency power supply, ultra-high-speed electromagnetic launch and propulsion devices, and orbital acceleration energy levels that can accelerate 50 tons of mass to 2.5 kilometers per second within two minutes.]

[.】

[Project budget: 60 billion overall, the budgets of each core component are as follows.]

Quickly browsing the letter in his hand, Gao Hongming carefully refolded the letter, stuffed it into the envelope, and put it back on the table.

Although he knew that person could send his opinions here directly several years ago, it was the first time for him to see such a letter.

And he had never thought that the content of the letter would be like this.

After reading the whole letter, apart from the description of the benefits of the lunar orbital projector technology, the rest can be summed up in two words.

Asking for money!

That's right, in Gao Hongming's opinion, this letter is almost the same as writing a letter to ask for money.

After writing about the prospects and benefits of the lunar orbital projector technology, there is nothing else except the budget table.

One letter, 60 billion.

Well, it's still less than when he was working on controlled nuclear fusion technology.

If he remembered correctly, there was a time when that person asked for 40 billion in one go, Mi Jin.

Converted at the exchange rate at that time, it was about 280 billion RMB, rounded up to 300 billion.

This time, 60 billion, in comparison, seems to be only one-fifth.

But you have to know that the purchasing power of RMB at that time cannot be compared with that of now.

The 60 billion today is probably equivalent to the 100 billion at that time, or even more.

And, more importantly, the project invested at that time was controllable nuclear fusion technology. The benefits that come from success are indescribable.

Now, it is really worth investing at least 60 billion in the lunar orbital mass projector, whose biggest use is aerospace and mining of lunar mineral deposits?

Looking at Gao Hongming with a complicated expression on his face, the old man smiled and asked: "From your position, what do you think?"

Upon hearing the inquiry, Gao Hongming thought for a moment and spoke with caution: "The mass projector is not a new concept. As Academician Xu wrote in his letter, it is one of the core technologies in the electromagnetic field. It has considerable development prospects.”

"Whether it is military, commercial, aerospace and other fields, it can be widely used."

"However, it is undoubtedly very difficult to build a mass projector on the moon. Whether it can be successfully completed and bring us corresponding technological breakthroughs and economic effects is still open to question."

As the director of the Science and Technology Strategic Planning Department, his job responsibilities are to formulate science and technology innovation development strategies, plan and coordinate the implementation of organizations to carry out technology forecasts, and undertake the operation of the national major science and technology decision-making consultation system, etc.

It can be said to be a very important position.

Therefore, Gao Hongming did not blindly believe in Xu Chuan's choice just because he had assisted Xu Chuan in completing controllable nuclear fusion technology before. Instead, he gave corresponding considerations and answers from his own perspective.

After all, even for China, 60 billion is not a small amount.

Moreover, the Lunar Orbital Mass Projector is somewhat different from other projects with promising prospects and benefits, such as controllable nuclear fusion, space shuttles, etc.

The realization of the latter two may soon bring them huge prospects and benefits.

As for the lunar surface orbital mass projector, aside from the technological developments that may be driven by the research process, its biggest role is only to project resources on the moon for application in the aerospace field.

To be honest, with the realization of controllable nuclear fusion technology today, they are not as in short supply of various resources as before.

After all, cheap electricity costs allow them to mine or develop mineral deposits that were previously abandoned. The appreciation of the softmei currency and the improvement of their international status also make it much easier for them to obtain resources from third world countries.

As for the resources on the moon, except for helium-3, which is difficult to obtain on the earth, it can be said that most other resources are more abundant on the earth.

After all, the moon is just a satellite of the earth.

Opposite me, the old man put down the book in his hand, nodded and said, "It's a bit difficult, but this technology still needs to be developed."

"I think I can give the suggestion put forward by Academician Xu a try."

After hearing this, Gao Hongming's face changed slightly, and he immediately said respectfully: "I understand."

Although he still has some doubts about the construction of the lunar orbital mass projector.

But when the person in front of him said that he could try it, his doubts were no longer important.

Obviously, it is impossible for a single person to make a casual decision on a large project worth 60 billion.

And now listening to this person's tone, it was obvious that this letter sent from Jinling had probably been discussed at a higher level before he came.

Maybe even the Academy of Sciences has passed relevant expert demonstrations on its feasibility.

And since even the top management agrees, then all he needs to do is to conduct project investigation and cooperation through the Department of Science and Technology and Strategic Planning.

The adult in front of him called him over, probably to get him to cooperate with this project, right? After all, he had previous experience in cooperating with Academician Xu to complete controllable nuclear fusion technology.

Sure enough, just as Gao Hongming thought, in the office, the old man paused and said:

"Please cooperate with me on related work."

Upon hearing this, Gao Hongming nodded without hesitation and said, "Okay."

Suddenly thinking of something, the old man sitting behind the desk asked: "I remember that Dongshan seemed to be working on a similar project before, right?"

Gao Hongming thought for a moment and quickly replied: "The 'Electromagnetic Propulsion Ground Ultra-High Speed ​​Test Facility' and 'Electromagnetic Sled Project' are located in Dongshan Quancheng. They are one of the major strategic cooperation projects between the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Quancheng."

"Construction of the facility started in October 2019, and it will be completed in stages by the end of December 2021 and will be successfully operated. The maximum propulsion speed for objects of tonnage and above can reach 1,030 kilometers per hour."

The electromagnetic propulsion ground ultra-high-speed test facility, also known as the Quancheng electromagnetic sled project, has been shortlisted for the top ten most important national weapons in 2022.

He still has memories of such projects related to national strategic development.

The old man nodded and said, "Can you ask the other side to cooperate with Academician Xu's research?"

Hearing this, Gao Hongming's eyes flashed with shock, and he quickly replied: "I will coordinate."

Let a national strategic project that has already been approved and completed in stages be used to cooperate with another project that has not even been established yet. One can imagine the status of the lunar orbital mass projector in the hearts of senior officials.

Perhaps, the lunar orbital mass projector has some greater uses that he has not noticed.

While the top leaders were discussing the construction of the lunar orbital mass projector, on the other side, 380,000 kilometers above the moon.

Yuehuatai·Qiansheng Research Base.

After successfully receiving the astronauts, researchers and engineers for the Mid-Autumn Moon Landing, a series of scientific experiments on the lunar surface were officially launched.

Sitting in the lunar rover, dragging a long column-shaped, silver-white device that looked a bit like a "crawler truck", four researchers, engineers and staff slowly drove towards the shallow titanium-rich metal vein not far away.

It took more than ten minutes to reach the destination, which was not a long distance. After confirming that they had arrived at the destination, the four stopped the lunar rover and worked together to properly place the silver-white device towed from behind.

This is the "small fully automated mining machine" transported from the earth by the Hanhai space shuttle.

As early as a year ago, after the Xinghai space shuttle successfully completed the manned lunar landing project, the Xinghai Research Institute joined forces with several domestic mining research institutions to start the research and development of automated mining equipment on the lunar surface.

And now, this research has made some progress.

The device in front of us, which is worth about 150 million RMB, is one of the main research results of this year.

This automated mining device named "Pioneer" is mainly responsible for the preliminary mining of lunar rocks rich in titanium ore.

It is called a small fully automated mining machine, which is actually compared with the automatic mining machines on Earth.

In fact, its size is not small, almost the size of a medium-sized container.

If the Hanhai space shuttle had not achieved vertical take-off and landing capabilities, how to put this "big guy" on the moon would also be a big problem.

Fortunately, the successful development of the Hanhai has made the originally difficult work much simpler.

Now they only need to drag this equipment from the base.