The rise of a great power: starting with military industry

Technological breakthroughs are like a girl chasing a boy, with a thin veil between them.

If you break through it, the sky will be vast and boundless; if you don’t break through it, you will never get the truth!
Therefore, doing scientific research and conducting experiments is a process of trial and error. After conducting experiments thousands and thousands of times and experiencing all the wrong ones, there will always be one time when you will get the correct result!

A lucky person may succeed once or twice, but it's just a guess.

People who are unlucky may not be able to find the right path ten thousand or one hundred thousand times.

All countries have invested a lot of resources in laser technology.

Especially since China's laser weapons have been put into actual combat and have played a huge deterrent role, countries around the world have invested even more in laser weapons.

However, whether it is the United States or Russia, their progress in laser weapons is actually not satisfactory. This is because they have not broken through this layer of veil and are still facing many technical difficulties.

It’s not that there are no American spies or Russian spies who want to obtain the relevant technical information from China, but China’s confidentiality system is very strong, and the corresponding technology of laser weapons is at the highest level of confidentiality. It is not easy for them to obtain it!
Electromagnetic guns, which are also regarded as weapons of the new era, have been the focus of attention since the beginning of the 20th century. Research on electromagnetic guns has never stopped in the nearly years since then.

The first person to formally propose the concept of electromagnetic launch/electromagnetic gun and conduct experiments was Professor Birkeland of Physics at the University of Oslo in Norway. He obtained the patent for "electric gun" in 1901. In 1920, Fortune Villepleu of France published the article "Electric Gun". Almost at the same time, the Electric Gun Company in Philadelphia, USA, developed an electromagnetic accelerator for artillery. During World War II, stimulated by military needs, Germany and Japan developed electromagnetic guns. Hensler of Germany once used an electromagnetic gun to accelerate a 10-gram projectile to an initial velocity of 1.2 kilometers per second.

In the early 20s, the Australian National University built the first electromagnetic launch device, which accelerated a 70-gram plastic block (cannonball) to a speed of 3 meters per second. Since then, Australian and American scientists have built different types of experimental prototypes and conducted multiple launch experiments. The electromagnetic cannon powered by a monopole generator can accelerate a 6000-gram cannonball to a speed of 318 meters per second. The magnetic flux compression electromagnetic cannon can accelerate a 4200-gram cannonball to a speed of 2 meters per second.

In the 20s, Dr. Charity Marshall of the Australian National University used new technology to accelerate a 70-gram projectile to 3 kilometers per second. This achievement experimentally proved that it is feasible to use electromagnetic force to propel objects to ultra-high speeds. After the experimental results were announced in 5.9, they attracted special attention from the military of various countries. The US Defense Committee concluded that "future high-performance weapons must be based on electrical energy." The US Department of Defense established the "Electromagnetic Gun Joint Committee" to coordinate the scattered research work of the military, the Department of Energy, the Defense Atomic Energy Agency, and the Strategic Defense Initiative.

In 1980, the experimental electromagnetic gun built by Westinghouse Electric Company for "Star Wars" accelerated a 300-gram projectile to about 4 kilometers per second. In a vacuum, this speed can be increased to 8 to 10 kilometers per second.

In 1992, the United States had already pushed a prototype electromagnetic gun with a caliber of 90 mm and a muzzle energy of 9 megajoules to the Yuma range for testing. The electromagnetic gun's transition from the laboratory to the range showed that there had been a breakthrough in the technology of miniaturization of power supplies.

When the United States proposed "Star Wars", laser weapons and electromagnetic guns were included in the key projects of the "Star Wars" armament plan and were regarded as secret weapons to counter nuclear bombs.

Later, the electromagnetic gun research was cancelled by Clinton because of the huge cost. However, during the Bush administration, the US Navy restarted the electromagnetic gun research and invested a lot of funds in it.

However, there is still a long way to go before the United States can put its electromagnetic gun research into practical use.

China started research in this area relatively late, and before that it was all in the stage of cultivating talents.

It was not until later that Liu Tao personally took charge of the project that China leapt to the world's leading level in the field of electromagnetic gun technology.

Nowadays, electromagnetic guns are used on warships.

Although it is only experimental now, there is no problem in applying it directly to actual combat in an emergency.

What we are considering now is nothing more than the training of talents and the cost.

But in wartime, all we have to think about is winning the war.

Although this was not a simultaneous launch, but only the launch of a single electromagnetic cannon, the experimental results were still shocking.

The maximum range is as high as 500 kilometers!

The maximum firing rate reaches a terrifying speed of Mach 8.

Zhang Zhaozhong and others couldn't help but gasp when they looked at the test data.

Such a long range means that the development of the navy will usher in revolutionary changes.

In those days, the world's navy ushered in the era of battleships. The so-called battleship is a high-tonnage naval combat ship that mainly relies on the attack power of large-caliber artillery and the protection of heavy armor.

But then, the battleships were eliminated!

The reason for the elimination is that with the emergence of aircraft carriers and missiles, the combat effectiveness of battleships has been seriously challenged. The emergence of aircraft carriers has extended naval warfare from two-dimensional to three-dimensional, and battleships have become easy targets for aircraft carrier-based aircraft due to their bulky size and limited maneuverability. At the same time, the cost of building and maintaining battleships is extremely high. In comparison, ships such as aircraft carriers and missile destroyers can provide more comprehensive and efficient combat capabilities, resulting in the gradual elimination of battleships.

But now, with the application of electromagnetic guns in naval combat ships, the navy will usher in another huge change.

This is the particularity of the navy. The application of a new type of weapon can often lead to earth-shaking changes in the navy's combat methods, and tactics and strategies will change accordingly.

Of course, this does not mean that aircraft carriers will be eliminated.

After all, the most important function of an aircraft carrier is to serve as a combat platform, and its real combat power still depends on its carrier-based aircraft.

The same is true for China's nuclear-powered aircraft carrier!
It’s just that China’s nuclear-powered aircraft carrier has enhanced its air defense capabilities through anti-aircraft missiles and laser cannons.

Liu Tao was very satisfied with this experiment.

Although electromagnetic guns have been tested on land before, there is a huge difference between the ocean environment and the land environment. Who knew that electromagnetic guns would be greatly disturbed in the ocean environment.

Liu Tao gave Zhang Zhaozhong and others some instructions, asking them to explore the relevant technologies and applications of the Type 058 heavy cruiser, and then left.

Now, he only needs to solve the key technologies.

As for the rest, there are a large number of technical personnel to solve them.

Many people say that China has a huge demographic dividend.

But Liu Tao knew that compared with the huge demographic dividend, the huge engineer dividend was China's biggest dividend today.

It is precisely because China has trained a large number of engineers in the past that China can have the most complete industrial chain in the world, the world's largest industrial cluster, and form a terrible scale effect.

The production cost of any product in China is the lowest! Even for some low-end manufacturing industries, the production cost in China is the lowest!

Take the textile industry for example. Although production costs seem to be rising as China’s labor costs continue to rise, in fact they are not, because China’s electricity and material costs are falling!

This has led to the transfer of low-end manufacturing industries such as the textile industry to coastal areas. Although Southeast Asia has introduced various policies to attract these industries, only a part of them has been transferred to Southeast Asia, while more have been transferred to the central, western and northeastern regions. Moreover, even for those that have been transferred to Southeast Asia, the ready-made garments are still in China.

Raw materials, production, brand, design, etc. have long been very complete in China.

This is true for low-end manufacturing, not to mention mid- to high-end manufacturing and high-tech manufacturing!
By 2009, China had become the largest industrial country in history, with its industrial output value equal to the total output value of the next ten industrial countries.

China can produce any product, the only issue is production cost and quality!

Just like now, take the Type 058 heavy cruiser as an example. It has a lot of advanced technologies and it will be able to be industrialized in less than ten years. The production cost of the entire Type 058 heavy cruiser will be greatly reduced.

Liu Tao took a laser helicopter to Macau. Macau also holds a small celebration on May Day and a big celebration on October 2009st. This year is the th anniversary, and Macau has made it very grand. The relevant celebration work began to be prepared and carried out after the New Year's Day in .

By now, as time goes by, the footsteps are getting closer and closer, and the atmosphere has become very thick.

After years of rapid development, although the population of Macau is less than one million, the population of the Zhuhai-Macao Cooperation Zone is 300 million.

Macau is now the city with the highest GDP per capita in the world!

In other people's impression, Macau is a gambling city, with the gaming industry as its core. But in fact, Macau is now a modern city, and the gaming industry accounts for less than one-third of Macau!

Macau is extremely prosperous now!
In terms of urban construction and urban management, we are in the world leading position!

It has both historical heritage and modern aspects, and attracts a large number of tourists every year.

In the Zhuhai-Macao Integrated Cooperation Zone, Macao is also the main focus.

Macau has also played an active and positive role in the integration of Zhuhai and Macao, and Zhuhai's economic development has always been among the best in Guangdong Province.

Perhaps within ten years, the entire Zhuhai-Macao population will exceed 1500 million, making it a true international metropolis!

When Liu Tao arrived in the city of Macau, he saw the national flag and the flag of the Special Administrative Region hanging in every street and alley.

Since its return, Macau has done much better than Hong Kong in integrating into China and developing patriotism.

The subway here in Macau has even been connected to the subway network in Zhuhai.

The national anthem, "Singing the Motherland" and "Song of the Seven Sons" were playing in the streets and alleys.

Primary and middle school students, wearing school uniforms and red scarves.

To be honest, no one is dissatisfied with Macau.

No parent would dislike an excellent child who is well-behaved, sensible and obedient!

For example, regarding the Greater Bay Area strategy, Macau is much more proactive than Hong Kong, and even more proactive than Guangdong Province!

In terms of the next five-year plan, the Macao Special Administrative Region Government plans to invest 2000 billion yuan to promote the construction of the Greater Bay Area!

Macau has very good educational resources, medical resources, and tourism resources. Even in terms of scientific research, it is ranked among the top ten in the country!
In terms of overall social welfare, Macau is also in a leading position in the country, far ahead of Hong Kong and Taiwan.

You know, the policies for Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan are the same, but the development of the three places is at different levels and they bloom different flowers.

In terms of assistance, Macau is also the most active, and the cities assisted by Macau are also the first to complete poverty alleviation.

The current head of Macau has participated in poverty alleviation work for five years!
In the evening, everyone visited the Macau Museum together. This is also a must-visit place for many people who come to Macau for tourism. It has many precious cultural relics.

In addition, we will visit and comfort the troops stationed in Australia.

The troops stationed in Australia, including those in the Pearl River, consist of a combined brigade, a naval brigade and an aviation brigade!
The only difference is that the Hong Kong garrison is often a heavy or medium combined brigade, while the Australian garrison is often a light combined brigade!

Early the next morning, a military parade was held in the city square, and the troops and police stationed in Australia were reviewed.

The weather is sunny and the sky is clear!
Even at the end of the year, the weather in Macau is still very pleasant!
More than 100,000 Hong Kong citizens came to watch the military parade.

It is very different from the National Day military parade. The marching columns of this parade only include the three-service guard of honor and the police column, and the rest are equipment columns.

The infantry rode on all-terrain vehicles and infantry fighting vehicles, followed by various self-propelled artillery, and then the light tank formation. There were hundreds of light tanks, 4 rows in total, with 28 tanks in each row, plus all-terrain vehicles, various self-propelled artillery, etc., presenting an overwhelming momentum.

Any enemy will be crushed.

The troops stationed in Macao are also Macao’s biggest stabilizer.

Once, the troops stationed in Australia won a collective first-class merit, which was the first time in the entire army in ten years.

It is not easy to win first-class merit, let alone a collective first-class merit!
That’s the entire garrison in Australia!
The military parade was grand and solemn, demonstrating that the troops stationed in Australia are a civilized and powerful force!
The citizens of Macau are also full of affection for the troops stationed in Macau.

Since the return, the troops stationed in Australia have always actively participated in disaster relief work whenever there is heavy rain or typhoon, and so far, no soldier has ever taken a single needle or thread from the people!
Every year there are always soldiers on leave who encounter citizens falling into the water or in some dangerous situations, and then they rush to rescue people regardless of their own safety, fully demonstrating the heroic qualities of the people's soldiers.

Over the years, the troops stationed in Australia have made the greatest sacrifices by participating in disaster relief and performing heroic acts!
After the entire light combined brigade was reviewed, it was the Army Aviation Brigade. The first to start was the helicopter formation, followed by the J-10 fighter jets and the J-11 fighter jets. The Navy Brigade was also reviewed simply. Two Type 054 frigates, one Type 052 destroyer, four Type 022 missile boats, and four Type 022 torpedo boats formed the Navy formation. Citizens could see the Navy formation appearing on the sea. (End of this chapter)