This star is going to the moon

Chapter 357 Lu Yun: The "Bargain-Priced" Lunar Rover Project is Launched!
"Many people probably know that I have a 'technology integration theory,' which is to integrate existing technologies to create new things."

Standing in front of the large screen at the space agency's booth, Lu Yun spoke eloquently, "Based on our assessment, Bluestar Aerospace's participation in the 'Lunar Navigation and Resource Exploration' program's commercial lunar exploration will be developed based on the Chang'e-3 and Chang'e-4 lunar probes."

"Of course, as the latest lunar probes, many of their outdated technologies will be replaced by new ones."

"As a commercial lunar probe, some of its expensive aerospace components will be replaced with cheaper commercial components."

"How to ensure that inexpensive commercial parts perform as well as expensive aerospace parts is what my 'technology integration theory' excels at..."

As he spoke, Lu Yun changed the image on the big screen, showing Bluestar Aerospace's commercial version of the lunar probe, which is divided into a lander and a lunar rover.

The lunar rover is divided into two models, one large and one small.

"The probe, including its fuel, has a total mass of 3.7 tons. It can be sent into a lunar transfer orbit using the Wanhu rocket recovery mode with an added upper stage, and the probe can deliver a 200-kilogram payload to the lunar surface."

"The total mass of these two lunar rovers, one large and one small, is 200 kilograms."

"This large lunar rover is based on the 'Yutu' lunar rover, but with updated technology and greater intelligence, while still weighing 140 kilograms."

"The configuration of the small lunar rover is a smaller version of the 'Yutu' rover, with a mass of 60 kilograms."

"In response to the fourth phase of the lunar exploration program, we plan to send ten lunar rovers to the moon within ten years..."

Lu Yun dropped another bombshell, leaving aerospace experts and enthusiasts familiar with lunar exploration exclaiming, "Wow!"

The reporters didn't quite understand, so they quickly whispered to the industry insiders around them for advice.

Then they added, "Goodness!"

They didn't expect that after decades of human lunar exploration, not counting those that broke apart during hard landings, there were only 8 lunar rovers on the lunar surface.

Two of them were Russians, named simply "Lunar Rover 1" and "Lunar Rover 2".

(Image of Lunar Rover 1)

These two lunar rovers are quite large. Without their prototype solar panels deployed, they are 2.2 meters long, 1.6 meters wide, and 1.35 meters high, weighing over 750 kilograms.

Then there were the three Apollo lunar rovers used by the Americans for manned missions. They used disposable batteries and were left at the landing site after the astronauts returned to Earth.

(Image of the Apollo manned lunar rover)

These three manned lunar rovers are quite large, measuring 3 meters in length, 2.3 meters in width, and 1.1 meters in height when unfolded from their folded state, but they weigh only 210 kilograms.

The other three unmanned lunar rovers are all Chinese: "Yutu" and "Yutu-2".

Another example is Lu Yun's debut, the mini lunar rover "Golden Toad".

(Image of Yutu-2)

Many people think the Yutu lunar rover is small, but it is actually quite large.

Without unfolding the solar panels, it is 1.5 meters long, 1 meter wide, and 1.1 meters high, and weighs 140 kilograms.

Let's not even mention the Golden Toad rover; it's a lunar rover, so it occupies one spot.

Even so, only eight lunar rovers have reached the lunar surface, and currently only one of them, the Chinese-made Yutu-2 lunar rover, is still in operation.

At this very moment, Lu Yun suddenly announced that he would send 10 lunar rovers to the lunar surface within 10 years!

"Ghost~"

The space enthusiast who was live-streaming whispered to the viewers, "Did I hear that right? Lu Sheng said he'll send 10 lunar rovers to the lunar surface within 10 years?"

【I heard that too, you heard it!】

[This is incredible! How much funding did Bluestar Aerospace receive from the space agency to send 10 vehicles at once?]

Our country's space program budget is not large. Chang'e 3 cost 14 billion RMB, and Chang'e 4 cost 500 million RMB.

[The fourth one is really cheap as a backup, but I think if Lu Yun were to handle it, it would probably be ten times cheaper.]

[What does that mean? Fifty million RMB? More than seven million USD? That's a steal!] [This price wasn't announced by Lu Yun; it's just a guess. But judging from the Wan Hu rocket and the Mu Yuan spacecraft, these commercial lunar probes are definitely dirt cheap too.]

[It's definitely a steal! The cost of aerospace in China is already low, and with LuYun making it even cheaper, it's guaranteed to be a bargain.]

[According to the model Lu Yun described, that would involve 5 landers and 10 lunar rovers. Such a large-scale operation definitely couldn't be achieved without being cheap.]

I don't doubt Lu Shenhua's words, but is his claim of 10 years believable?

[Yes, I had the same doubt. Lu Yun is young and impetuous; could he really have taken that long to land only 10 vehicles?]

[Sigh, Lu Shen said within 10 years, and years 1 to 9 are all within 10 years.]

That makes sense. I've noticed that both the official sources and Lu Yun are referring to "within 10 years," not "around 10 years."

Haha, I knew it couldn't take that long. I still think our manned lunar landing will clash with the US in 2024.

Indeed, this navigation and reconnaissance program is expected to ramp up in the next few years. Even if not all of them can be launched, at least 70-80% will be able to be launched...

Indeed, that's true. The national team's plans are often very conservative, and Lu Yun was just echoing that sentiment.

After all, a plan is a plan, and the actual situation is the actual situation.

There are companies like Boeing that keep delaying and missing deliveries.

There are companies like Bluestar Aerospace that... reverse-engineer their plans and accelerate forward.

After all, Bluestar Space is making commercial lunar probes. Not only do they build their own probes, but they also use their own rockets. They don't need to wait in line for official rockets, so they can launch whenever they want.

Speaking of rockets, there were quite a few private aerospace companies from China and abroad at this year's International Astronautical Congress, and they all showcased the large, medium and small rockets that their companies are developing.

There are liquid and solid types, some are recyclable and some are disposable.

Most of them are still just PowerPoint presentations; at most, some engines have started test runs.

However, there are also two companies that are scheduled to launch next month.

Deep Blue Arrow was established in 2015. Previously, it had developed and successfully launched the Red Sparrow 1 solid rocket, but the launch failed.

However, Deep Blue Arrow immediately began developing the Red Sparrow II liquid oxygen methane rocket, and inspired by Wan Hu's rocket, directly developed a reusable version instead of making it a disposable one like in the previous life.

Because of this, Chief Engineer Kang did not resign and start his own company to develop reusable rockets as he did in his previous life. Instead, he took charge of the research and development of the reusable Red Sparrow II rocket.

Because of these changes, coupled with the availability of the RoadCloud open source, the development of the recyclable version of Red Sparrow II is progressing very quickly.

The Red Sparrow II rocket, which is now on its maiden flight, has been transported to the commercial launch site in Dongfeng Space City. Deep Blue Arrow has a dedicated launch pad there, and the launch is scheduled for early November.

The other company, Galaxy Glory, was established relatively late, in 2018. Their first rocket was also a small solid rocket.

Unlike Deep Blue Arrow, they won't abandon their rockets after their maiden flight. Instead, they will focus on developing small solid rockets, as there are plenty of opportunities in this field.

Galaxy Glory's "Ceres-1" has a takeoff mass of 30 tons and can launch a 300 kg payload to a sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of 500 km in one go, which is more than enough for the increasingly miniaturized satellites of today.

After all, if a company or organization wants to launch a small satellite weighing tens of kilograms, it would be much better to find a fast small rocket with a small payload than to use a rocket with a payload of several tons like the Wanhu rocket, which would require a long wait.

Ceres-1 is scheduled to launch in early November.

The commercial space sector in China is truly thriving and full of vitality.

[It is estimated that most of them will die out in a few years, leaving only two or three to supplement Blue Star Aerospace.]

Indeed, their smaller rockets are more flexible and can intercept many orders that can't wait for Wan Hu's rockets to be launched together.

They also have large liquid-fueled rockets; let's see if they survive long enough to compete with Earth's space program for the massive "star constellation" order.

[Elon Ma from SpaceX is also holding a press conference. The anchor should hurry and check it out. The focus will probably be on his Mars project and the Starlink project...]

(End of this chapter)