This star is going to the moon

Chapter 245 The American: Win! Win! Win! The advantage is on my side!
As more and more space information is shared between China and the US, space conferences are being held more and more frequently in the US.

After all, it said it wanted to start a new space race, so it definitely needs to know about its opponents, and it has to keep up with their moves as soon as they make them.

Of course, terms like "competition," "opponent," and "playing a card" are all definitions used by the Americans themselves.

They never responded from across the ocean.

However, the Americans are having a blast and are completely hooked.

“Retiring the International Space Station in two or four years is indeed a big problem. The space station was an important race in the last space race, and we cannot afford to lose on the space station track in this new space race.”

"It is possible to use the lunar space station to surpass the Tiangong space station after the International Space Station is decommissioned, but the lunar space station is very small and has a slight disadvantage in comparison."

"It doesn't matter if the lunar space station is small. The most important thing is its 'lunar' nature. Even if the lunar space station only has one module, it is still more powerful than a space station in Earth orbit and can still win!"

"Then I have no objection, as long as we win."

"Perhaps we can try to extend the lifespan of the International Space Station. Its current module lifespan can still support it. I feel that extending its lifespan to 30 years should not be a problem. There are already space companies planning to build private commercial space stations. Perhaps we can push for it, just like we have promoted the commercial manned spacecraft program. In this way, it should be no problem for the commercial space station to replace the International Space Station within ten years."

"That's a good idea, I agree."

This is indeed a good idea: a lunar space station and a commercial space station in Earth orbit, so that even if the International Space Station is decommissioned, we won't have to worry.

They can rightfully fight two against one!

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the space station race is a sure win.

So they started considering other tracks.

"I've already visited Lockheed Martin's X-33 single-stage-to-orbit space shuttle. Their prototype is quite impressive, and I think we should allocate funds to them."

"Are you sure it's okay?"

"Of course!"

"Although funding is allocated, the 'X-33' space shuttle is still somewhat behind the 'Muyuan'. Only its upgraded version can be on par with the 'Muyuan', but its upgraded version will take some time. We can't win in this race."

"There's nothing we can do about it. It's all the fault of the previous person in charge who canceled the 'X-33' development project, causing the related technology to stagnate for 20 years."

“Indeed, if it weren’t for them, we might already have commercial spaceflight, instead of worrying about how to win in this race like we do now.”

"So I suggest holding them accountable; they're the ones who prevented us from winning on this track!"

"This...isn't that a bit inappropriate?"

"Buddy, if it's not their fault, then it's ours."

"Sigh, I support holding them accountable. Their previous actions have already endangered national security!"

Because the American space community is now paying close attention to China's space information, and there are more related meetings, the seriousness of these meetings has decreased considerably.

As we chatted, the conversation drifted to the topic of returning to the moon.

This is the biggest track, and it's what makes them most effective at winning.

Decades ago, they probably won the manned moon landing, which directly led to the defeat of the Russians.

If we could replicate a mega-project from decades ago, wouldn't that country across the ocean also...? Just thinking about it is exciting!
Boeing assured everyone: "The SLS rocket is fine. It's currently undergoing final testing, and we're confident it will make its maiden flight by the middle of this year!"

“I remember that Lu Yun’s ‘Wooden Kite’ also made its maiden flight in the middle of the year. Although it is a very advanced orbital spacecraft, it can only fly in Earth orbit. The SLS rocket, on the other hand, can carry the spacecraft to the moon, so we won the first step!”

Lockheed Martin also assured that "the Orion spacecraft, which is coordinating with the SLS's maiden flight, is also undergoing final checks, and its maiden flight will be problem-free. After this test flight is completed, we can conduct a manned lunar orbit test flight next time!"

"Although our 'X-33' space shuttle is a small step behind Lu Yun's 'Wooden Kite', our 'Orion' spacecraft can carry people to the moon, which is a huge leap forward for us!"

Since the lunar space station is a collaborative project involving multiple companies, and we've already discussed that, we'll jump directly to the lunar lander.

However, the lunar module design is still being selected, so the contestants all spoke up.

Boeing representative Smith looked at the scene with some disdain, feeling that the advantage lay with him.

Because the company's lobbying has already begun.

Which of the companies present has the strength of Boeing?
Bezos, the owner of Blue Origin, touched his bald head, feeling that the advantage was in his hands.

After all, the team he assembled was called the "national team," and its members included Blue Origin, a company with deep pockets, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, renowned military giants, and Draper, a veteran in navigation and control. It can be said that it brought together the elite of the American aerospace industry.

The partners he chose all had extensive technical and management experience, and the lunar lander they designed met and exceeded NASA's requirements.

In particular, Northrop Grumman's predecessor was responsible for the lunar module decades ago, so there will definitely be no problem this time as well.

Of course, times have changed, and so have the requirements. This time, their lunar module is much larger!

The "small business team" on the other side also felt that they had a great chance of winning.

Their lunar module is a low-profile crew cabin with horizontally arranged jettisonable tanks. Compared to other companies' proposals, this simple design not only greatly simplifies the design process but also provides excellent crew visibility and facilitates extravehicular activity (EVA) for lunar landing.

After all, other companies' lunar landers are very tall, such as the "national team's" lunar lander, which is 10 meters high!

Astronauts have to climb up and down a 10-meter-high distance when exiting and returning to the spacecraft!
Their "low-profile" lunar module's entrance is only a little over a meter high, allowing astronauts to descend in just a few steps. It's even lower than the more than two-meter-high entrance of the lunar module from decades ago.

Of course, even more bizarre is Elon Musk's space fork, whose lunar module was directly modified from the second stage of the "Super Falcon" rocket.

The giant crab is 50 meters tall!

Is that the lunar module?

That was a lunar "rocket"!
The crew module was located at the top of the lunar landing "rocket," with the hatch more than 40 meters above the ground.

To make it easier for astronauts to get in and out, Elon Musk thoughtfully installed an elevator so that astronauts could take it up and down.

But there is one most obvious problem...

What to do if the elevator breaks down?
Ma Yilong looked around and felt that... the advantage was in his hands.

Because his lunar spacecraft was a groundbreaking creation, with powerful performance far exceeding NASA's needs!
A lunar spacecraft can transport dozens of astronauts to the moon at once!

It can also transport the hull of a lunar base, and has enough capacity to directly build a lunar base.

Isn't this a win?

(End of this chapter)