Siheyuan: I eat melons while doing scientific research

Chapter 1419 Shamanistic Ritual (5k)

His words immediately made the deputy chief engineer of the Land Resources Department take the matter to the highest level.

Although this person is not in the industry, he has a high level of technical expertise and sometimes makes brilliant contributions to land resources work. He said he had "studied" it, so it is definitely worth paying attention to.

"Committee Member Gao, have you made a discovery?" He couldn't suppress his curiosity.

Gao Zhendong nodded: "Yes, a little."

After he finished speaking, he looked up at the map. He needed to match the coordinates in his memory with the ones in reality, which was a little difficult, but not too difficult.

The main point is that the western coastline of Bohai has changed over the decades, but fortunately the two "pincers" to the north and south have not changed much. He can still accurately match the locations with his extraordinary memory and eyesight, but this will take some time.

Seeing that he actually responded and took action, the deputy chief engineer of the Ministry of Land Resources became even happier. If offshore oil was difficult to extract, then Bohai Sea could be considered an exception, at least it was not that difficult.

It's important to know that the average depth of the Bohai Sea is only 18 meters, with a maximum depth of no more than 85 meters. Moreover, it extends deep inland, with the landmasses extending into the sea to the north and south acting as a barrier, so the wind and waves are not particularly severe. To put it optimistically, in some places, you can even drill wells using just a frame made of wood and bamboo. In fact, the earliest offshore oil platforms were built with wooden frames.

If Committee Member Gao can truly pull off another stroke of genius, just like he did with the bauxite mine, then this news would be wonderful.

If it doesn't succeed, it's not a big problem. This entire sea area was already in the exploration plan; it's just a matter of time. It's just that "later" might be very late without a target.

The problem is actually more complex than he thought, but his general direction was correct.

At this moment, Gao Zhendong frowned and said, "Tsk, the scale of this map is a bit small, but it's still usable."

The map on the wall is a national map, and Bo Hai is only a small part of it, so the scale is naturally not large.

The deputy chief engineer of the Ministry of Land Resources chuckled upon hearing this. "You're asking me about this? I may not have anything else, but I do have a map of the Bohai Sea, even one divided into different sea areas: 'Committee Member Gao, do you want a map of the Bohai Sea? Do you want the full map or one divided into different sea areas?'"

Gao Zhendong was taken aback. "Wait, you're here to present an award, why are you carrying Bo Hai's picture? Did you have something in mind all along? Wow, my comrade."

"A full map, just a larger scale will do." Divided into sea areas, Gao Zhendong was genuinely confused about which area was which.

Perhaps noticing Gao Zhendong's expression, the other party also felt it was somewhat coincidental and explained with a smile, "Didn't I just say that an oil field was discovered in the Bohai Sea? I've been reporting on the relevant work recently, so naturally I carry this nautical chart with me at all times."

After saying that, he turned to a comrade who was chatting enthusiastically with someone from the Third Factory and said, "Xiao Yan, bring me the map of Bo Hai, the whole map!"

I don't know if this comrade's given name is Yan or her surname is Yan, but anyway, she really brought it with her. Upon hearing this, she quickly took out a stack of blueprints from her bag, picked one out, and handed it over.

Gao Zhendong found it somewhat amusing. A map of the Yan Kingdom, huh? He wondered if the map was short or not.

It was obvious that there was no dagger here. The map was quickly opened, and it was much clearer than the national map on the wall. Gao Zhendong quickly compared it in his mind, then pointed to a spot with his finger and drew a small area.

“I think there’s oil here, and a lot of it, but it’s quite deep.”

How deep can it be?

"I estimate the depth to be between 1000 and 1500 meters." Gao Zhendong frowned; this depth was rather deep.

Even with the newest seismographs, it's unlikely we could get a clear picture of what's down there. Drilling would be the only solution, but that depth might be a bit of a problem.

Unexpectedly, the chief engineer of the Ministry of Land Resources laughed. "Hey, Committee Member Gao is really interesting. He can answer profound questions fluently, but he doesn't understand such simple parameters."

Boss, boss, focus on the big picture and let go of the small details.

“Committee Member Gao, if the water depth is 1000 meters, no, even 100 meters would be difficult for us now, but with a geological depth of 1500 meters, don’t worry, there won’t be any problem at all.”

The waters are too deep; the comrades in the Ministry of Land Resources really can't grasp them for the time being.

However, a depth of 1500 meters is really not a problem these days.

Not to mention now, at the end of the 19th century, the deepest salt well in Sichuan Province had already reached a depth of nearly 900 meters, while in the late 1960s, a well in the Tieren Oilfield in Northeast my country had already reached a depth of more than 4700 meters.

Therefore, in the special sea area of ​​the Bohai Sea, it is not impossible to drill wells over 1000 meters deep.

"Really? That's great!" Gao Zhendong exclaimed excitedly.

If that's the case, then it'll be incredibly funny.

In fact, the reason he had such a deep memory of this oil field was because it was very large, and up to the time he crossed it, it was the largest offshore oil field in my country.

How large is it? With proven geological reserves of 6 million tons, it is my country's largest integrated offshore oil field and the second largest integrated oil field in the country. The largest is the Tieren Oilfield in Northeast China.

The term "concentrated oilfield" can be understood as meaning that the oil is concentrated in one place, like a large underground lake, rather than scattered underground waterways. This is evident from the fact that this large oilfield covers an area of ​​only 50 square kilometers.

"Here? 1500 meters?" The comrades from the Land Resources Department were a little confused, mainly because this was somewhat mysterious.

Gao Zhendong nodded without saying much, then looked at another place, the southern bay of Bohai. To the east of this bay was the famous Xunxian City, and to the west was the estuary of the Hun River.

He pointed to a spot somewhere in the bay: "There's one here too, but it's deeper, around 1500 to 2000 meters."

This one is smaller, 1 million tons.

"Here? This is a depression area. It's not usually easy for oil to accumulate in the shallow layers."

Gao Zhendong then realized that this depth was actually shallow for them.
He laughed. If this weren't a shallow oil depression, he wouldn't have remembered this oil field at all.

Because this oil field was the first to be discovered in the shallow depression of the Bohai Sea, and it is a lithologic oil field, its discovery broke the traditional structural oil and gas reservoir model, which is quite special. That's why he had seen the report and was able to remember it.

Gao Zhendong reached out and precisely marked several points in the two areas he had just indicated, then smiled and said, "Anyway, I think these two places have potential."

These points were locations he had seen directly on a digital globe in his previous life using scientific principles to access satellite images of drilling platforms. In terms of precision, there probably couldn't be anything more accurate.

He's done everything he could. Whether you comrades believe him or not is up to fate and your luck.

"Yes, thank you, Committee Member Gao! We will go back and study your findings and start work when the time is right." This matter is really mysterious, and one aspect even contradicts current experience with oil and gas reservoirs. This made the deputy chief engineer of the Ministry of Land Resources hesitant to say "as soon as possible," and could only vaguely say "when the time is right."

You can disagree with a top researcher like Committee Member Gao, but it's troublesome to lie to him. You can only speak vaguely.
-
What the final outcome of the Ministry of Land Resources will be is a matter for later. However, at a certain aircraft overhaul plant, there is a project underway that relates to Gao Zhendong's earlier suggestion.

On the runway of the aircraft overhaul plant, a Z-5 fighter jet is being prepared for takeoff.

However, this aircraft looks somewhat different from the ordinary Z-5 fighter jet. The most obvious difference is that the raised canopy on the fuselage is completely gone, replaced by an oval aluminum alloy skin patch that is almost flush with the fuselage.

If there's anything else different, it's that the 37mm and 25mm cannons around the nose air intake, including the camera gun, are nowhere to be seen. In their place is a more noticeable bulge above the air intake, which looks somewhat like the model equipped with the early RP-1 "Emerald" radar. It just looks more streamlined without the Emerald radar transmitter.

Speaking of the MiG-17 that was equipped with the RP-1 "Emerald," it also brought a lot of benefits to the development of the "aircraft" in front of us. At least in terms of the aerodynamics of the air intake after the radar was installed, not much research and experimentation was needed.

Indeed, as the overhaul plant of the Z-5 fighter jet, rather than an aircraft research institute, the comrades at the overhaul plant adopted a strategy of utilizing every available resource when developing this "aircraft," copying and imitating whatever they could.

The aircraft was not actually a drone, but an anti-radiation loitering munition.

The use of "架" (jià) instead of "枚" (méi) as a measure word for loitering munitions sounds a bit strange, but it precisely illustrates the special nature of this munition: it was modified from a single Fighter-5 fighter jet.

If we trace it back further, the oldest of the Z-5 fighter jets, the MiG-15, really looks exactly like the first-generation air-launched air-to-ground/ship missile, the KS-1, only twice the size. The KS-1 is the same missile we stopped copying, the Type 542. This loitering munition and the Type 542 form a clever cycle here.

However, putting aside the technical level, the biggest difference between this missile and the 542 is that this is a loitering munition, while the 542 is a cruise missile.

Loitering, loitering, means patrolling.

The control tower at the overhaul plant's airfield was packed with testing personnel. A comrade in military uniform asked a colleague from the overhaul plant next to him, "Chief Engineer Cheng, are you confident about today's test?"

The man next to him is Mr. Cheng, the chief engineer of the overhaul plant who once visited Gao Zhendong.

"We've conducted many flight tests, and we have experience with the Z-5 target. The flight itself isn't a problem, and the range issue has been resolved well; the loiter time has reached the expected level. However, as for hitting the radar target, we still need to see the actual results." General Manager Cheng is a steady and reliable person, without making any boastful claims.

This loitering munition actually has a much longer range than the Z-5 target missile. The Z-5 target missile is used for target practice and does not have a high range requirement; it just needs to be able to fly to the test area. Therefore, the modification work can be described as simple and make do with what is available.

The drone has been turned into a target drone, but a set of human-related systems, such as life support, seats, canopy, instruments, and cannons, are still in use.

This setup increases drag, adds weight, and takes up space. In addition, the target drone doesn't have external fuel tanks, so its actual range is not very long.

On this loitering munition, everything changed. The canopy was flattened, most of the instruments and things inside the cockpit were emptied, the cannon was removed, saving a lot of space. This space, except for the necessary electronic equipment and warheads, was converted into fuel tanks.

This greatly increases the loitering munition's range and loiter time.

Without a canopy or external fuel tanks, the lower drag and larger internal fuel tanks allow the loitering munition to have a range that is not much shorter than that of the Z-5 fighter jet with external fuel tanks, with a range of 1200 kilometers. If it loiters at a speed of 600 kilometers per hour, its loiter time can reach about two hours.

These data were all obtained by our comrades during previous flights. Therefore, General Cheng was very confident, but when it came to target practice, he was a bit conservative.

After all, they weren't experts in anti-radiation; it was the radar institute that developed the seeker.

I'm hitting myself, which is quite a speechless thing for the comrades at the radar institute.

Upon hearing what General Cheng said, a comrade from the radar unit who had come to provide support smiled and said, "Don't worry, it's not a big problem. We are still confident."

During the conversation, the comrades at the airport also got ready. General Manager Cheng exchanged glances with several comrades and picked up the radio microphone.

"Let it fly!"

Calling this thing "launch" isn't quite right, and calling it "takeoff" doesn't seem quite right either. After much deliberation, the comrades finally settled on the command "release."

Amidst the roar of the LYP-5 engine, the loitering munition took off from the airport and soared into the sky.

"Wait, it'll be a while before we fly again."

The test plan for this loitering munition was to fly to a pre-designated target range 400 kilometers to the northwest, and only after entering loitering mode would a live-fire test be conducted.

Although there was no one on the loitering munition, a Go-5 attack aircraft followed it the whole time. 400 kilometers is nothing for the Go-5, and it can keep up with it the entire time.

Meanwhile, several radars along the route also firmly locked onto the loitering munition. Fortunately, the loitering munition did not enter attack mode, otherwise these radars would have been in real danger.

"Flying well, proceeding exactly as planned."

The loitering munition's trajectory was updated in real time on a monitor. Although the map was rudimentary, the comrades could still clearly grasp the munition's flight status.

The loitering munition is equipped with a simple inertial navigation and single-base station positioning and navigation system. Its flight is also stable, without complex routes or maneuvers. Therefore, the loitering munition's trajectory is maintained as well as ever.

The comrades breathed a sigh of relief; at least in terms of launching and heading to the war zone, this loitering munition had proven itself multiple times.

After a long 40 minutes, the loitering munition arrived over a desolate Gobi Desert, and the comrades below, who were already prepared, quickly reported the situation.

"Test missile detected, flight normal, our unit is about to shut down!" It would be dangerous if we didn't shut down soon. The loitering munition was about to enter attack mode. Even if it was dozens of kilometers away, there was an IFF system, but it was undoubtedly very dangerous for an on radar to be exposed to the attack range of the anti-radiation loitering munition during the test phase.

At this point, the pressure of observation falls on the attack-5 aircraft in the air and on the ground observers 5 kilometers away from the radar simulated target.

"Loitering munition enters attack mode." The voice of the attack-5 came from afar to the control tower. This was the result of the attack-5 recognizing the special signal transmitted by the IFF transponder on the loitering munition.

"Yes, everything is going smoothly." The comrades on the control tower felt a little relieved.

Right under the nose of the AJ-5, the loitering munition began to circle along its predetermined loitering route. The circle was quite large, which meant that the attack range was also large.

Another 20 minutes passed, and the comrades in the control tower looked at the clock on the wall and began to look forward to it. According to the plan, the radio target of the simulated radar should be turned on at this time.

All the equipment participating in the experiment received the same time signal from the same long-wave time station, and the time error of each region and equipment in executing the plan was very small.

Inside the loitering munition, something unseen is happening.

It detected the electromagnetic wave signal of the radio target and quickly determined its location using antennas distributed on both sides of the wing, maneuvering the warhead to turn towards the signal source.

"The loitering munition has turned, and the direction is towards the radio target." The positional relationship between the loitering munition and the target is random, and the position cannot be reported, so this is the only explanation we can give.

Good news came from the attack-5, and the comrades clenched their fists, just one last push away!
Then the main task was taken over by the anti-radiation seeker antenna on the nose of the aircraft, and the loitering munition approached the direction of the signal.

Suddenly, the loitering munition engaged afterburner and plunged headlong into the radio target at Mach 0.85. The afterburner plume of the loitering munition was even clearly visible on the attack-5.

Through the ground observer's binoculars, a silver figure, accompanied by a slightly muffled roar, crashed headfirst into a radio target, which was quickly engulfed in flames.

The loitering munition still had fuel on it, and with the warhead, the flames it emitted were exceptionally noticeable even in daylight.

"Target hit!"

"Target hit!"

The sounds of ground observers and the radios of the attack-5 aircraft arrived almost simultaneously.

"First shot hits!"

"Success!"

"Hit! Hit!"

"..."

The comrades in the control tower were shouting all sorts of things; for the comrades at the overhaul plant, this was a completely new experience. In the past, the drones they modified were always the ones getting shot down, but today they've finally turned the tables and become the masters.

General Manager Cheng wore a smile, but he didn't rush to share his joy with his colleagues.

He was waiting; he was waiting for the results of the last two tests.

On the vast Gobi Desert of the firing range, a plume of dust stretched toward the target as three ground observers drove a Type 63 soft-top off-road vehicle toward the hit target.

Five minutes later, their voices came through the radio.

"Direct hit, target completely destroyed, damage effect achieved as expected!"

General Cheng then stood up and shook hands with the military representatives and radar institute staff who had been waiting for a long time.

"Initial success! Thank you everyone, thank you everyone!" At this moment, he was more excited than all his comrades.

After a moment of excitement, Mr. Cheng picked up the megaphone.

"Comrades, the first live-fire test was a success, but this is only the first step. There is still much more work to be done. We must continue our efforts until all the test items are successfully completed!"

"Good!" the comrades responded in unison.

(End of this chapter)