Development of productivity started in 1981

Chapter 207 Satellite Launch Successfully
The weather on the second day was still good. Although the wind speed reached Level 2, it had no effect on the takeoff and landing of the space shuttle.

Last night, after the ground crew collected data, Wang Jiankun made minor changes to some parts of the "Qihang" based on the modification suggestions given by Zhizi.

Then he used his super powers to create two small solid rocket boosters, which the ground crew installed under the space shuttle overnight.

So when the hangar was opened in the morning, the "Departure" had completed its preparations for takeoff.

This flight did not start from the ground by rolling and taking off. Instead, a high-altitude cargo airship lifted the "Qihang" to an altitude of 4 meters and released it for takeoff there.

"Reporting to the commander-in-chief, all observation points are ready, the system self-check has been completed, and we can take off. Please give instructions." The commander-in-chief reported to Wang Jiankun who had already flown into the air.

"It's going according to plan. I'm waiting for it in the air."

"receive."

"Attention all units, the hoisting work is in a 5-minute countdown. Please prepare for takeoff in the airship department."

"Received. The airship has been inspected and the connection with the Sailing Ship has also been checked. There are no abnormalities."

"Understood. One minute countdown. Control room, please pay attention. The airship will take off with the 'Departure'."

When the commander shouted the 1-minute countdown, the airship's electric lift fans were turned on to keep the airship suspended in the air. At this time, the fixed ropes on the ground had been stretched straight. Once the countdown was over, these fixed ropes would detach from the airship, allowing the airship to fly freely into the sky with the "Qihang".

"10, 9, 8..., 3, 2, 1, take off."

As the final "take-off" command was given, the airship on the runway in the distance broke free from the ropes and slowly flew into the air with the "Setting Sail" below.

At this time, Wang Jiankun was on another airship, which also carried the "Thunderbird". He would follow the "Hang Sail" for a while when it separated from the airship and opened the solid rocket booster to ensure that the first flight with the booster would go smoothly.

If anything abnormal happens during takeoff, he will be able to use his superpowers to project the scene in time, and then come back to ask Tomoko to make corresponding modifications.

If it is a conventional space shuttle development, the previous steps should actually be carried out in a wind tunnel on the ground. The small model should be placed in the wind tunnel for blowing, and then the full-size prototype should be manufactured based on the results of the wind tunnel experiment.

However, Wang Jiankun found that it was very troublesome to manufacture a wind tunnel, and hypersonic wind tunnels, such as those above 10 times the speed of sound, were difficult to manufacture. From the collected information, the fastest wind tunnel in the world is currently in the Soviet Union, which is only 6 times the speed of sound, and the wind tunnel in the United States is less than 5 times the speed of sound.

As for why the United States and the Soviet Union were able to produce ballistic missiles and space shuttles without wind tunnels 10 times larger?

Because the structure of the rocket is very simple, the whole thing is a long cylinder with a pointed cone at the head, so it doesn’t matter much if there is no hypersonic wind tunnel. The fluid conditions on the surface of the projectile are easier to calculate. In addition, their speed in the ascent phase is not fast. The speed below the Karman line is actually less than Mach 10. Moreover, the higher the altitude, the thinner the air, and the impact of the air will be very small. After crossing the Karman line, the aerodynamic shape can actually be ignored. The thin air can no longer have any effect on the aircraft.

The warhead of an intercontinental missile is very small during the descent phase, and its density is very high. Its structure is also very simple, being a pointed cone. Its speed will rise to over Mach 10 when it is only a few kilometers away from the ground. Since the pointed cone will spin, the atmosphere has very little influence on it, and in the final stage it will almost vertically hit the ground, so there is no need to consider the influence of airflow.

Therefore, at this time, no country in the world has developed a wind tunnel that can reach speeds exceeding 10 times the speed of sound. However, even the wind tunnel technology that can reach speeds exceeding 5 times the speed of sound is kept secret. Wang Jiankun has not yet collected the relevant manufacturing technology. Even if he can develop wind tunnel technology through some public theoretical knowledge, it will still require a lot of effort.

Therefore, he does not plan to develop wind tunnel technology for the time being. He will first use his superpowers to conduct physical test flights. Even if the experiment fails, the loss will not be great, it will just be a waste of some basic raw materials and energy.

At this time, above the base, the two airships differed in vertical height by more than 300 meters and in horizontal position by 500 meters. Driven by air buoyancy and electric lift fans, they slowly moved toward an altitude of 4 meters.

At about 5 kilometers, the airship passed through several white clouds, and golden sunlight sprinkled on the airship, reflecting a dazzling light.

After about half an hour, the two airships finally reached an altitude of 4 meters. Looking into the distance from here, the arc of the earth has appeared, and the Himalayas in the north also appear very flat at this time, looking like low white hills.

"Reporting to the commander-in-chief, the airship has reached the designated altitude. According to the plan, it will be launched and ignited for takeoff in 5 minutes."

"It can be dropped and taken off."

"receive."

"Attention all units, the launch will begin in five minutes. Air support personnel, please check the 'Qihang' again now to ensure that there is no problem during the launch."

"receive."

"The aerial inspection has been completed, everything is normal, and it can be launched and taken off." Three minutes later, the air support personnel in the cabin below the airship conducted a final inspection of the "Qihang".

"Countdown 1 minute, get ready."

"Countdown 10 seconds, 10, 9, 8..., 3, 2, 1, release."

As the launch order was given by the ground commander, Wang Jiankun saw on the Thunderbird that the Qihang had broken away from the fixed lock below the airship and fell about 100 meters under the action of gravity. After unloading the 14-ton weight, the airship above also soared upwards for dozens of meters, and its horizontal distance from the Qihang was also 200 meters.

At this time, the two solid rocket engines under the wing roots of "Qihang" ignited and started according to the set program, emitting a large amount of white smoke. The three rotating detonation engines at the tail also ignited successfully, emitting a light blue tail flame.

Driven by the super-powerful 3+2 engine, the speed of "Qihang" instantly jumped from tens of kilometers per hour to hundreds of kilometers per hour, and then continued to accelerate at an acceleration of 15G per second. After only 5 seconds, its speed exceeded Mach 2.

Wang Jiankun was flying the Thunderbird beside it, tracking and recording the flight status of the spacecraft after the solid rocket engine was ignited. Then he had to move away from the Qihang after tracking it for less than 10 seconds.

Because when the speed reached Mach 2, the "Qihang" completed the transition from level flight to climbing and upward oblique flight.

Wang Jiankun flew towards the equator at an altitude of 4 meters, because according to the flight test, he would cross the Karman Line above the equator, then turn around and fly down to the Tropic of Capricorn and then return.

"Reporting to the commander-in-chief, the booster separation was successful. At the time of separation, the speed of the 'Sailor' had reached Mach 23 and the altitude reached 9 meters."

"Received. Pay attention to tracking the landing point of the booster debris. If it is near the main flight path, pay attention to changing the flight path."

"Understood, Commander. The Sailing Ship has crossed the Karman Line and is traveling at Mach 30. In five seconds, we will shut down the engines and turn downward."

"Very good. This means that with the help of rocket boosters, our 'Qihang' can fly into space with its payload. Pay attention to the blackout area when returning and pay close attention to the optical tracking equipment."

"Received. There are currently six observation airships in the sky above the South Indian Ocean. They have all tracked the Sailing Ship. Commander-in-Chief, you can access the data link to view the tracking footage."

So Wang Jiankun flew the Thunderbird to the South Indian Ocean while using a brain wave helmet to connect to the data link and receive data from several aerial observation airships between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Equator.

In the boundless sky, 40,000 meters above the ground, the lens of the optical tracking system was like a pair of sharp eyes, staring closely at the Sailing Ship near the Kármán Line.

The Sailing Ship suddenly made a thrilling turn and headed downward, rushing towards the earth like a meteor.

When it broke into the 85-kilometer airspace, it plunged into the black barrier area.

In an instant, the Qihang was surrounded by layers of high-temperature plasma flames. The flames seemed like demons rushing out of hell, devouring the Qihang with its fangs and claws.

In the camera, the Sailing Ship gradually disappeared, and was replaced by a huge burning fireball that continued to descend. The blazing light seemed to set the entire sky on fire.

As the altitude continued to decrease, at 40 kilometers, the flames gradually diminished, as if the power of the demon was slowly weakening.

Gradually, the familiar figure of the "Qihang" slowly emerged from the flames, like a phoenix reborn from the flames, continuing its way home with a hint of mystery and majesty. Wang Jiankun also arrived near the "Qihang" a few seconds later. At this time, its altitude had dropped to 3 meters and its speed was less than Mach 2.

The tail engine was successfully restarted under program control, allowing it to maintain a speed of Mach 2 and turn towards the base in northern Myanmar.

When Wang Jiankun returned to the base in northern Myanmar, he had already collected data. After calculations, Zhizi found that there was no need to modify the configuration and size of the "Qihang" space shuttle. Its aerodynamic shape was already perfect, and its structural strength could meet the requirements for round-trip flights between the earth and the sky.

The three rotating detonation engines have also undergone long-term flight tests and experienced changes in high and low temperatures without any unknown abnormal situations, so they can basically be finalized.

"Uncle, today's full flight test has also been successfully completed. Tomorrow, the 'Voyage' will fly into real space."

"Okay, very good. Tomorrow I will ask several senior executives to watch the outer space flight test. By the way, Jiankun, will you take the payload into space tomorrow?"

"It will carry a payload of more than one ton, a 'Messenger 1' test satellite. Its operating altitude is 1 kilometers and its service life is about half a year. Its main mission is to test whether the satellite signal transceiver device I designed and manufactured can work normally in outer space, as well as the communication quality."

"If the operating altitude is 400 kilometers, it would be difficult to communicate well with only one satellite."

"Yes. We will launch multiple satellites at this altitude to form a small communications network, mainly to ensure communications in the Asia-Pacific region. After the communications technology test is completed, we will launch geosynchronous orbit communications satellites. By then, high and low altitude satellites will form a network, and most parts of the world will be able to communicate using satellites."

"Oh? How long will that take?"

"If tomorrow's 'Messenger 1' payload can successfully reach the predetermined orbit and operate successfully, there will be a period of intensive launches in the future, with a total of 66 satellites to be launched, with an orbital altitude of about 780 kilometers, all in polar orbits, with 11 satellites in each orbit, a total of 6 orbits, forming a complete constellation, which can cover 99% of the world's regions, including the polar regions and oceans.

Each 'Messenger' satellite weighs a little over 1 ton, and the 'Vanguard' can carry 11 of these satellites each time it takes off. It only takes 6 flights in total to complete the construction of the low-orbit satellite network, and then it can carry more than 3 tons of synchronous orbit satellites and complete the deployment in just one flight.

If everything goes well, it will only take about three months to complete. "

"It can be completed in three months? That's really fast, Jiankun. In that case, can our mobile communications be upgraded to satellite communications?"

"Not yet. We haven't fully recovered our investment in mobile communications, and we can't reveal that we have launched so many satellites. So this satellite communication network is currently only available for brain-computer chips and brainwave helmets to connect to."

"Oh, I forgot that we have to keep it secret for a while. Okay, then what time do we start the experiment tomorrow?"

"It will officially start at 9 am tomorrow, but it will take about half an hour for the 'Voyage' to be in the air, so if you are busy, you can connect to the data link at 9:10 to watch. At that time, you can just watch the aerial drop and ignition. The time it takes to fly into space and drop a satellite is very short, just over minutes."

"Okay, then I'll tell the senior leaders the time."

That night, Wang Jiankun built the "Messenger" satellite that had been designed long ago in the hangar of the Institute of Aerospace. It weighs 1022 kilograms and uses graphene solar panels to generate electricity. The light energy conversion rate in space is as high as 60%. There is a graphene battery inside that can store 1 kilowatt-hours of electricity.

After it was manufactured, the ground crew of the institute carefully lifted it into the cargo hold of the "Qihang" according to the operating manual, and then carefully secured it.

These ground crew members were actually preparing for a large number of subsequent launches, because Wang Jiankun planned that after the success of this experiment, he would be responsible for manufacturing 66 "Messenger" communication satellites, and then let the new humans at the Aerospace Research Institute carry out subsequent launch missions. He would not participate in the subsequent repetitive work because he had other research to conduct.

……

On February 1984, 2, there was a drizzle in the sky and the entire northern Myanmar base was shrouded in spring rain. The ground was foggy with evaporating water vapor.

Fortunately, the flight of the "Start" space shuttle started from an altitude of 4 meters, and the airship could take it to an altitude of 4 meters in this weather, so even on rainy days with extremely low visibility, a space launch could be carried out.

"Uncle, it's about to begin. Get ready to connect to the data link. You can start by watching from the base's perspective." It was 10 minutes before 9 o'clock when Wang Jiankun reminded his uncle who was far away in Landau.

"Okay, let's connect it now."

After my uncle and several other senior leaders were connected to the data link, Wang Jiankun asked the commander-in-chief to conduct the test according to the scheduled time.

As soon as 9 o'clock arrived, with the "take-off" order given by the commander-in-chief, the airship carrying the more than 16 tons of Qihang slowly rose into the air in the rain and fog.

At this time, all the searchlights on the airport runway were turned on to allow the camera system to capture the takeoff scene clearly.

Amid the drizzling rain, the airship broke through the thick clouds overhead and arrived at an altitude of ten thousand meters. The sunlight shone on the airship covered with ice crystals, which were formed by water droplets condensing in the low temperature at high altitude. The ice crystals reflected dazzling golden light, and the airship looked like it was covered with a layer of golden gauze.

As the altitude increased, the ice crystals on the airship began to sublime and then disappear. At an altitude of 4 meters, it stopped and then accelerated horizontally.

"Report to the commander-in-chief, the Sailing Ship is ready. Please give instructions on whether to launch it." The commander-in-chief made the request after receiving reports from various departments.

"Launch." Wang Jiankun replied
At 9:30, as the launch command was given, the "Qihang" separated from the airship and then ignited two solid rocket engines and three rotating detonation engines 300 meters below it.

Because the satellite payload of more than 1 ton was added this time, the acceleration was slightly smaller. However, in the lens of the optical tracking system, it was still very fast. It was seen to fly far away in a flash and then come into the next observation lens.

After flying level for a few seconds and gaining some initial speed, the "Qihang" raised its nose and flew quickly into the sky under the control of the rudders.

When entering the Bay of Bengal, the "Sail" arrived near the Karman Line, its speed reached Mach 23 and was still accelerating.

After flying over the Kármán Line, the optical system for high-altitude observation could no longer see the "Qihang" and could only be observed by airborne radar.

Wang Jiankun learned from radar data over the Indian Ocean that when the "Qihang" reached near the equator, its altitude had reached 350 kilometers. At this time, it had shut down its engine and was relying on inertia to carry the "Messenger 1" satellite to the predetermined orbit of 400 kilometers.

After more than ten seconds, it reached the predetermined orbit. Under the control of the central computer, it opened the cargo hold on its back, revealing the "Messenger 1" inside. Then the mechanical lock on the cargo hold took the satellite, and the fixing pins also opened under program control. The manipulator slowly moved the "Messenger 1" satellite out of the cargo hold.

The ground radar tracks it in real time, continuously sending coordinate data to the "Qihang". After the central computer calculates the position data, several attitude adjustment nozzles around it eject gas intermittently to adjust its position.

After it was adjusted into place, the robotic arm released and the satellite officially separated from the "Qihang".

After the "Messenger 1" satellite separated from the "Qihang", it opened its graphene solar panels under the command of the ground control station and officially began its space work.

Its first message was pre-stored in the satellite computer and consisted of 14 words, "Messenger 1 sends greetings to all members of the Quanjie Array."

At this time, several high-level executives of the Quanjie Array received this greeting from space through the aerial communication airship. They were so happy that they stood up from their seats and started to applaud with everyone in the conference room.

At this time, the "Qihang" began to close the cargo hold, and then gradually lowered its altitude under the adjustment of the attitude engine. It would enter the atmosphere from above XZ after circling the earth, then complete the deceleration over the Bay of Bengal to an altitude of 3 meters, and then return to the base in northern Myanmar under the propulsion of the rotating detonation engine at the tail.

Wang Jiankun was still over the Indian Ocean at this time. He was flying the "Thunderbird" slowly back at a speed of Mach 2, intending to meet the returning "Qihang" over the Bay of Bengal and then return to the base with it.

Because the flight altitude was lowered, it did not take 90 minutes for the Qihang to make a circle. In less than 60 minutes, it entered the Karman Line over the southern part of XZ. This place is vast and sparsely populated, and communication is inconvenient, so it would not be discovered by anyone when entering the atmosphere from here, because when it reached the blackout area, it was already over northern Myanmar.

When Wang Jiankun arrived over the Bay of Bengal, the "Qihang" which had completed its space delivery mission also arrived.

So he escorted the "Qihang" all the way to the base in northern Myanmar, and in the air he received congratulations from the senior leaders of the Quanjiefang.

In the following two weeks, Wang Jiankun continued to follow up on the communication testing of "Messenger 1" and also led the people from the Aerospace Research Institute to familiarize themselves with the launch of the "Qihang" so that they could master the launch procedures as soon as possible.

(End of this chapter)