The evolution of insect swarms from XNUMX million years ago

Chapter 224 Upgrading Space Creatures
Previously, the first space creature belonging to the nest was more of an experimental product. It was not in the most perfect state in all aspects. Lin Yi even deliberately left a lot of design redundancy just in case.

The subsequent space creatures have made many detailed improvements based on the first one, further enhancing their comprehensive offensive and defensive capabilities and giving them stronger combat effectiveness.

In terms of defense, the improved space creature has a thicker shell, which is still the familiar composite sandwich armor-style exoskeleton structure, but the proportions are somewhat different, and it is more focused on absorbing kinetic energy rather than resisting head-on collisions.

Since there is no so-called imaginary enemy, the tactics used by possible enemies are unknown, but according to the basic rules of the universe, there are only a few main attack methods in early space battles.

The first is kinetic energy attack, represented by the electromagnetic gun currently used by Lin Yi. The second is explosive weapons. The most practical method should be nuclear bombs. The third is various directed energy weapons, such as high-energy lasers, particle beams, plasma, etc.

Lin Yi is more familiar with the first two. Kinetic energy weapons can use their structures to resist impact as much as possible, that is, they use the shell structure to absorb kinetic energy and minimize its damage. Explosive weapons can be intercepted using active defense methods.

Active defense systems are the main means of intercepting missiles in naval battles in the missile era. They generally consist of close-in defense missiles and close-in defense guns. They use precise targeting to intercept incoming missiles and detonate them directly in the air.

In the early space age, guided explosive weapons like heavy ballistic missiles could still play a great role, and for these missiles, the existing electromagnetic guns were a good means of interception.

But there is a problem. Kinetic energy weapons such as electromagnetic guns will produce recoil when launched, and there is no friction and resistance in space. If the position of the gun mount is not on the central axis of the ship, such recoil will occur. It brings a strong moment and causes the ship body to deflect.

Correcting the hull angle requires consuming precious propulsion fluid. Even if the electric rocket engine used to stabilize the attitude has a high specific impulse, it cannot afford such waste. This is why Lin Yi has no plans to install electromagnetic secondary guns other than axis guns for the space creatures.

At present, there are a large number of biological missile nest structures similar to the symbionts of the Ku-Wing Diver all over the body of the space creatures. The symbiotic biological missile structures are housed inside. Most of them are short-range small missiles, which play the role of short-range active defense. .

Regarding secondary guns and close-in defense guns, especially close-in defense guns, the optimal solution is actually directed energy weapons, such as high-energy lasers. The straight trajectory brought by the speed of light makes them miraculous in intercepting physical structures.

Even if directed energy weapons continue to develop, or to be precise, observation and fire control systems continue to develop, electromagnetic gun shells may be intercepted, making electromagnetic guns withdraw from the battlefield stage of space wars.

In a sense, directed energy weapons are probably the real development direction of space warfare. Therefore, Lin Yi also began research on biological laser weapons.

But this was a field that he was completely unfamiliar with. Not only the manufacture of laser weapons, but also the defense of laser weapons. He had no clue. He could only further enhance the thermal energy resistance of the outer shell of space creatures from the fact that lasers kill through high temperatures. resistance.

This is the change in defense. The rest is in attack. With the technical support of various creatures, the attack power of space creatures is now not what it used to be. Although it was limited by the recoil problem of the electromagnetic gun, it did not install more electromagnetic secondary guns, but the main gun installed on the central axis, because the design details have been referenced by many archaeological discoveries, now has a faster rate of fire.

Since the directed energy weapon has not yet been put into practical use, it only has a bare main gun. However, Lin Yi has reserved a place to install the directed energy secondary gun. Once it is put into use, it can be used on space creatures. Retrofit.

In addition, the most common weapons carried by space creatures are biological missiles - larger, heavy-duty, medium- and long-range biological missiles, close in size to Cornerstone II, but because they are launched in space, there is no hierarchical design.

It is not directly stuffed into the body of space organisms, but is transported in an external carrying compartment. It is similar to the Bacconite Type 1 that was previously used to develop the asteroid belt, but it is larger. Therefore, Lin Yi called it Bacconite 2. type.

In order to enhance the lethality, the Baghorn Stone Type II uses a nuclear fission warhead. In order to simplify the structure and reduce production costs, it uses a target warhead with a relatively simple structure instead of a more complex ring-type warhead. The two pieces are approached but not critical. The mass of uranium is simply separated, and when detonated it is squeezed into one piece, pushing it past the critical mass.

In order to reduce costs, it does not use a nuclear fission engine, but uses a traditional chemical rocket thruster, which limits its speed and range to a certain extent, making it easier to be intercepted by the enemy.

However, it was originally envisioned as a weapon that wins by quantity. After all, the characteristics of the nest do not require a complex guidance system. Instead, it can use the same biological guidance technology as the traditional Taijun, further reducing its cost.

It is envisaged that a large number of space creatures, including those defending asteroids, will be equipped with Cornerstone II. Once they contact the enemy, they will launch them in large numbers, leaving the enemy's active defense system with no time to deal with too many targets.

If necessary, a large number of cheap conventional explosive warheads can be used as false targets to cover the real nuclear warheads to launch a surprise attack on the enemy, just like the sodium-containing micron torpedoes were mixed with ordinary micronized torpedoes to kill the Utopia. kill.

In addition to offense and defense, the new space creature is also equipped with a large number of small electric rocket engines throughout its body, which are used to change its attitude and control its orbit. They replace the small nozzles extending from the original nuclear rocket engine and further enhance its mobility.

time flies. In the orbit of Mars and the asteroid belt, a large amount of concentrated nutrients were blasted into space by electromagnetic cannons, and assembled into improved space creatures one by one, allowing the fleet to grow rapidly like a dumpling.

In order to reduce consumption and hide themselves, most of these space creatures are parked in the asteroid belt, turning off their rocket engines, silently absorbing cosmic radiation and accumulating energy, and exist as part of the defense system.

The defense system is also taking shape bit by bit. If there is really an unknown and hostile existence visiting, if it only has a fusion reactor and supporting propulsion system that can carry out preliminary interstellar navigation, Lin Yi is confident that he can take advantage of his home field advantage. With the carefully established defense line, leapfrog it and repel it!

(End of this chapter)