This star is going to the moon

Chapter 524 A Choice: Which Side of the Ocean Should We Choose?
When the UAE's "Magic Carpet" space shuttle flew into space from the "Desert Star" spaceport the next day, people knew the true value of "cooperating with Laos and China was the right choice".

As one of the crew members, Abdul, looking out the porthole at the view of space, was completely different from his solemn and serious demeanor the day before; he was practically grinning from ear to ear.

"Cool!"

"So beautiful, universe!"

"Our UAE now has its own manned spaceflight capability!"

"We are the great... cough, we are absolutely number one in space exploration in the Middle East!"

Watching these guys with "a piece of cloth on their heads" so excited in the cabin of the space shuttle, many foreigners watching the live broadcast began to reflect.

Anyone with eyes can see that something is wrong with the US right now, especially since the last election brought in a businessman, which is definitely something wrong.

That blond businessman went bankrupt several times in his business, yet he was still elected as the President of the Federation.

Moreover, after becoming president, instead of focusing on uniting allies, he openly began to exploit them and take drastic measures against them. Is this reasonable?

Why do those allied countries become allies of the Federation? Isn't it because the Federation is very powerful and capable in combat?

Everyone was thinking of fighting against enemy countries with you, but you not only fought against enemy countries, but also attacked your allies!

He's probably gone mad.

Fortunately, the old man eventually took power, and the allies breathed a sigh of relief...

Well, at least they didn't openly turn against each other or exploit each other, which made their allies look a little better.

As long as there are no obvious problems, things can continue as they are.

However, maintaining the status quo cannot satisfy the people in the country.

Because maintaining the status quo means they are slowly deteriorating.

Therefore, we must come up with something new to boost public confidence.

It was mentioned before that engaging in aerospace engineering and manned spaceflight can boost national self-confidence, but that's not something that's easy to do.

However, now that the UAE has seen the proposal, many countries have started to consider it.

Of course, some ambitious countries, such as the French and the United States, are also permanent members of the UN Security Council and they do not want to admit that they are inferior to the so-called "top three permanent members".

We're all the same, so why differentiate between superior and inferior?

However, if they want to improve their international standing, they need to improve in all aspects. But their economy is not improving, and their military is not improving either. After thinking it over, they can only improve their space capabilities in the space boom.

Even if we can't have a new space race like the US and China, or a new manned lunar landing, we could at least do some manned spaceflight.

After all, only the US, China, and the UK have successfully completed manned spaceflight, so they could become the fourth.

Although it can't beat the top three, at least it's not the last one.

Especially now that India is developing manned spaceflight, if they, as permanent members of the UN Security Council, can't even compare to India, then what's the point of being a permanent member?
So now it's the French, the Germans, and India vying for the title of "the fourth country to independently send humans into space."

Of course, opinions on their so-called "independent completion" are subjective.

Besides those countries that are ambitious and strive to be at the top, there are also those that want to compete but understand their limited strength, resulting in a lot of conflicting situations.

Comparatively, they are less inclined to "complete independently," as long as it appears to be something they did themselves.

After all, everyone knows they can't be in the top tier, so being among the top of the second tier isn't bad either.

The UAE is a typical example of this.

Many people used to think that Arab oil-producing countries like the UAE only relied on selling oil and natural gas for their economy, and had no other highlights.

In fact, this idea is outdated. Major oil-producing countries are now working hard to change their economic structure and explore new areas, and the UAE is doing the best in this regard.

In the past, Arab countries made a lot of money by selling oil and gas resources. Although this method was simple and direct, it was indeed a quick way to get rich.

As a result, many "Middle Eastern tycoons" have emerged, driving luxury cars, living in mansions, and traveling by private jet.

However, oil and gas are non-renewable resources...

Well, the main problem is that their regeneration time is too long, and humans definitely can't wait that long.

With the current popularity of new energy sources, major oil-producing countries in the Middle East have been thinking about how to transform their industries in recent years.

The UAE was one of the early adopters of this transformation, having started planning it as early as the 1980s. This shows that it was truly determined and had a clear understanding of the transformation process.

Even now, the UAE still has abundant oil and gas resources. Its proven oil reserves are approximately 100 billion barrels, accounting for about 5% of the world's total reserves, ranking seventh in the world.

Moreover, the UAE has a strong production capacity, producing an average of nearly three million barrels of oil per day, which is quite good by global standards.

The proven reserves of natural gas are approximately 6 trillion cubic meters, accounting for 3.16% of the world's total reserves, ranking eighth globally.

It may not seem like much, but the main reason is that their country is small and has a small population, so even a little bit is enough to ensure they have enough to eat and drink.

It's different from countries like China with over a billion people.

China has such a large population that if everything is divided among billions of people, there won't be much left.

Moreover, although the total amount of oil and gas in the UAE is not particularly large, they can extract it for a long enough period of time. If other countries can extract it for fifty years, they can extract it for a hundred years.

Therefore, considering oil and gas reserves and extraction and supply capabilities, even if the UAE did nothing else, it could still make a lot of money just by selling oil and gas. However…

A hundred years, to be honest, isn't a very long time.

After all, the Chinese have survived a century of humiliation.

Oil and gas resources will eventually run out. If we don't plan for transformation now, it will be too late when we want to transform later.

From the current perspective, the UAE's transformation has been relatively successful.

Currently, the oil economy contributes approximately 25% to the UAE's GDP, while the non-oil economy accounts for 75%, three times that of the non-oil economy.

This proportion is among the lowest in several major Arab countries, and oil has gone from being the main player to a supporting role in the UAE economy.

The contribution of oil to the economy of several countries around it is also declining, but not as fast as in the UAE, so in some respects the UAE is indeed the number one in the Middle East.

The UAE's economy no longer relies on oil; it now focuses on investment, trade, tourism, and the service industry.

Its location is particularly good, right at the crossroads of Asia, Europe and Africa, so many free trade zones can be built here.

It enjoys a tax-free policy within the free trade zone, and its advantageous geographical location has made it a huge trade center where goods from all over the world are transported and distributed.

Emirates Airlines has routes covering six continents and hundreds of cities, with direct flights to many places, making it particularly convenient.

In addition, its new energy industry is developing quite well.

For example, it has created the world's largest cluster of solar energy projects.

The main reason is that its desert location is perfect for this kind of thing. They're also building a nuclear power plant.

In addition, a hydrogen energy strategy was launched, with a plan to produce 15 million tons of low-carbon hydrogen by 2050.

And unsurprisingly, these were collaborations between Laos and China.

Now, these changes have yielded a tremendous success: a collaboration with Laos and China on a space program, the construction of the "Desert Star" space airport, and the purchase of the "Magic Carpet" space shuttle.

So fourth, what fourth?
The UAE is the fourth country to launch a manned space mission from its own territory using its own spacecraft!
Gallic Rooster, Daiying, and Third Brother: "???"

Is that all it takes to accomplish manned spaceflight?
We really want to buy it too...

No, we are a dignified great power, and we must rely on our own strength to achieve manned spaceflight!

Those "great powers" that are put on a pedestal are having a hard time, but those mediocre countries are more scheming.

Of course, they have to be rich.

Since the UAE was able to so easily complete its manned space program and enhance its international standing, can't they do the same?

After all, they are just average countries, and people don't expect them to achieve manned spaceflight on their own, so this method is theoretically feasible.

Many organizations have previously analyzed that even if China, Laos, and the UAE join the ranks of commercial space tourism, they still cannot absorb the entire space tourism market.

After all, there are many poor people in this world, but there are also many rich people.

There are even more people who pretend to be rich when they're not.

Otherwise, luxury goods wouldn't sell so well.

So even if a country were to enter the market now and buy the complete Lao-Chinese and Blue Star aerospace systems to develop commercial space tourism, it could still make a fortune.

However, while space exploration sounds simple, many countries have been living under the rules set by the United States for decades. If they suddenly have to accept the entire Sino-US space system, does that mean they are... switching sides to the big boss?
Are we going to have to choose between the two sides of the ocean again?

Would Americans allow that?

If I don't choose this option, will the Chinese people take me out to play?

While other countries are starting to reconsider, the people of the UAE have certainly had a great time.

The Kite-class space shuttle has flown many times between Laos and China. Its performance is capable of supporting "ultra-intense" spaceflights once a day, which is why the UAE was able to carry out a manned space mission the day after receiving it.

It will carry people from within the UAE on several more flights before it begins its commercial luxury space journeys.

Those who are currently unable to participate in the Lao-Chinese spaceflight will have to wait.

Three days later, while people were still discussing this "new force in manned spaceflight," the Orion spacecraft, returning from the moon, entered Earth orbit.

Today, a new movie, "Mozart in Outer Space," is being released. It is directed by Chen Sicheng and stars Huang Bo.

This movie is a comedy about Ren Dawang's desire to train his son Ren Xiaotian, who loves astronomy, to become a pianist. As a result, the father and son argue constantly. One day, a mysterious alien named Mozart appears unexpectedly, and from then on, Mozart helps Ren Xiaotian start a life of "outwitting and fighting" with his father.

This movie received very poor ratings, with many viewers giving it a failing grade.

Of course, with its strong appeal, it can also achieve a box office of 200 million.

But it's destined to lose money, because its cost is also over 200 million.

Like the Orion spacecraft returning from outer space.

Despite its dazzling appearance upon re-entry into the atmosphere, which seemed quite beautiful to outsiders, only the scientists who retrieved it knew what was wrong with it.

(Orion spacecraft landing image)
"Damn it, its insulation tiles are burned too black; they shouldn't be this color."

"Look here, there are several places damaged."

“It’s available here too!”

"Hey, look at this data. When the return capsule officially entered Earth's atmosphere, due to atmospheric friction, the entire exterior of the spacecraft experienced severe high temperatures. According to the detectors installed on the spacecraft, the surface temperature of some parts reached over 2700 degrees Celsius..."

"No wonder this is happening, the temperature is exceeding the design range..."

After a quick look, they used the crane on the salvage ship to retrieve the return capsule onto the deck and then began a careful inspection.

Then they discovered that the heat-resistant material had accidentally fallen off in more than 100 locations, which was not in accordance with the design requirements.

Fortunately, there were no astronauts inside this time. If there had been, it certainly wouldn't have been so simple.

This thing is designed to protect astronauts from extreme heat.

What would happen to the astronauts inside if something went wrong with it...?

Don't think about it.

In addition to the problem with the insulation material, they also found that the release bolts were faulty.

After careful inspection, they discovered that the release bolt had unexpectedly melted and corroded, creating a gap that caused the internal temperature of the bolt to rise.

This defect could damage the spacecraft's structure and affect its integrity.

If the bolts fail due to overheating, it could lead to a failure to separate the crew compartment from the service compartment.

This could prevent the spacecraft from safely returning to Earth in an emergency, thereby endangering the lives of the astronauts, which would be a fatal impact.

The other electrical system anomalies were finally accurately tallied after the return capsule landed.

That is, during the entire testing process, data showed abnormal power distribution 24 times, to the point that some functions could not be executed as instructed.

If a power outage or loss of redundancy occurs during a mission, it could threaten the spacecraft's propulsion and pressurization systems.

This is crucial for the astronauts' survival.

Oh, and there was the signal loss issue that occurred when the spacecraft was in lunar orbit before; the return capsule also experienced signal loss during its reentry into the atmosphere this time.

These issues were discovered during testing and temporary checks after landing. If a full inspection is conducted later, even more problems will likely be found.

Definitely.

"Damn it, the problems we know of now are already very difficult to solve, and there are still many more problems that haven't been identified yet. The manned lunar orbit mission next year can't be carried out on time."

"No, we need to return to the moon in 2024, so the manned lunar orbit mission next year must be carried out."

"But if the problem can't be solved, are we going to send astronauts to the moon in a faulty spacecraft?"

"Perhaps we can ask for more funding and then bring in more engineers to solve the problem."

"Well, at this point, the White House will definitely agree..."

"It has no choice but to agree..."

(End of this chapter)