This star is going to the moon

Chapter 525: Dream Boat Spaceship Enters Lunar Orbit, Movie "Lone on the Moon" Released

The US is now truly tied up in the return-to-the-moon project; they have no choice but to spend money.

Lu Yun did not have any informants at NASA, but he was aware of the current situation of the other party.

In the previous life, without the space pressure from the Chinese, NASA was in complete chaos. The return to the moon project was delayed as much as possible, and they wanted money whenever they could. As a result, after Trump came back online, he and Trump decided to scrap the SLS rocket and replace it with Trump's 9-meter diameter rocket.

Of course, due to various factors, it wasn't abandoned in the end, and the old plan still had to be followed.

The US aerospace complex is no less powerful than the military-industrial complex and the medical complex; their influence is considerable.

In this life, thanks to Lu Yun's involvement, the US's return to the moon program faced immense external pressure from China's manned lunar landing program, making it impossible for it to deviate from the original plan. It could only proceed along the same path as the Artemis program.

After all, compared to the relatively mature SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft, Mohammed's 9-meter diameter "Super Falcon" rocket is even less reliable.

It's still in the prototype stage, with the prototypes constantly exploding.

At least the SLS rocket has successfully completed its maiden flight. Although there were some minor issues, it accomplished its basic mission without exploding.

The Orion spacecraft also completed its unmanned lunar orbit mission.

Although there were a lot of problems, it didn't explode and landed safely.

Furthermore, NASA has learned its lesson this time and will keep the Orion spacecraft issue strictly confidential, absolutely not leaking any information.

Of course, we'll leave aside the cases that have already been leaked.

However, if the outside world only knows about the problems that were previously leaked, and as long as the problems after the return are not leaked, then the general public's perception will be that "the Orion spacecraft only has a few minor problems."

That little problem can be easily fixed, and we'll be able to carry out the Artemis 2 manned lunar orbit mission soon.

Only the Orion spacecraft project team knew that its progress was directly proportional to the amount of funding allocated.

The more funding allocated, the faster the process.

However, they still have a lot to argue about regarding the specific amount of funding.

Because the Federation doesn't have any surplus grain either!

The reason the federal government's situation is getting worse and worse is because it doesn't have enough money!

Would having money really cause such a fuss?

While Americans were worrying about money, China's DreamZoo spacecraft entered lunar orbit and sent back clearer photos.

After all, the Orion spacecraft has been designed and manufactured for more than a decade, and its systems are very "outdated". Once the design is finalized, it is basically impossible to change.

Just like China's "Shenzhou" manned spacecraft, people have been complaining about its cameras being "door lock quality" and "ancestral quality" for a long time, but they just can't get them replaced.

Manned spacecraft require extremely high safety standards. Once the design is successful and passes manned certification, the technical plan will be completely frozen and will not be easily changed unless there are major problems.

Therefore, the pixel count and transmission rate of the in-cabin camera were fixed in the initial design.

Even if you're uncomfortable with the inherited image quality, I'm sorry, it can't be changed.

The original intention of this design was to ensure that other critical data had sufficient bandwidth for space-to-ground communication.

As for the image quality inside the cabin, just make do with it. For ground monitoring personnel, image quality isn't the most important thing; the most accurate data is the various data obtained through sensors.

The Orion spacecraft, which was finalized more than a decade ago, naturally used technology from more than a decade ago. Although the Dreamship spacecraft was also researched and developed a long time ago, its formal design only began in recent years.

The development of the Mengzhou spacecraft was very fast simply because of Lu Yun's influence on China's aerospace technology.

It goes without saying which camera technology from a few years ago was more advanced compared to that from over a decade ago.

Not to mention that the camera only takes pictures; how to transmit the photos and videos back is a matter of antenna bandwidth.

When it comes to information transmission between the Earth and the Moon, no other country can compare to China.

The Orion spacecraft lost contact while in lunar orbit, but the Dreamship spacecraft will not.

And it can provide ultra-high-definition video in real time!

Because of this, the Dreamship spacecraft started a high-definition live broadcast after entering lunar orbit, allowing interested viewers to enjoy the show.

This was also a preliminary test for the live broadcast of the actual manned lunar landing.

[That's crystal clear, guys, just like when I was inside the spaceship looking at the moon through the porthole.]

Yes, it felt absolutely immersive!

[Great, I have material for tonight's dream.]

[Dude, are you using this as material for your dream?]

Of course, I'm a very dedicated space enthusiast!

[It's really not easy; I never thought our manned spacecraft could reach lunar orbit.]

Yes, we've waited far too long for this.

[Who can argue with that? Just decades ago, we launched our first artificial satellite the year after the Americans landed a man on the moon.]

[I never imagined we'd catch up in just a few decades.]

Actually, it's not a few decades, but thousands of years. We've wanted to land on the moon for thousands of years.

Indeed, since ancient times...

"When I was young, I didn't recognize the moon, and it looked like a white jade plate."

This line of poetry comes from Li Bai's "Ancient Ballad of the Moon," which is over a thousand years old.

Looking up at the night sky, the bright moon is Earth's only natural satellite, with an average distance of about 38 kilometers between them.

The Moon's uniqueness lies in its close relationship with Earth, and unraveling the Moon's mysteries is of great help in studying Earth itself and the origin of the universe.

The moon has no atmosphere, a weak magnetic field, and no light pollution, making it a natural "laboratory" for outer space scientific observation and the best transit station for exploring Mars and other more distant planets.

Major aerospace projects can fully stimulate scientific innovation, effectively drive technological progress, and benefit the national economy and people's livelihood.

Some calculations have shown that the input-output ratio of aerospace engineering is 1:15, meaning that an investment of 1 yuan can generate a benefit of 15 yuan.

Whether it's the construction of the Tiangong space station, the lunar exploration program, or the BeiDou navigation satellite system, these projects have spurred the rise of numerous cutting-edge technologies, advanced materials, and intelligent manufacturing industries, with their achievements being widely applied across various sectors.

For humanity to fly out of Earth and head to the Moon, "distance" is the primary challenge.

Choosing which route to fly and which stages to fly in tests one's courage, wisdom, and skills.

China's manned lunar landing program involves using two heavy-lift Long March 10 carrier rockets to send a lunar lander and a manned spacecraft to a lunar transfer orbit.

Then, using the lunar orbit docking technology honed through the unmanned sample return technology of Chang'e 5 and 6, the manned spacecraft and the lunar lander rendezvoused and docked in lunar orbit, and the astronauts entered the lunar lander from the spacecraft.

The lunar lander then brakes and descends to a predetermined area on the moon, where astronauts will conduct scientific research and collect samples. After completing their mission, the astronauts will ascend the lander to lunar orbit, rendezvous and dock with the spacecraft, and then return to Earth with the samples carried by the spacecraft.

This series of processes has clear objectives, a well-defined route, and is full of challenges.

First and foremost, the carrying capacity must be strong, and the rocket must be large.

Just like driving a car to different locations, the fuel consumed varies depending on the distance.

The propulsion systems of rockets are completely different when flying to a low Earth orbit of 400 kilometers and to the moon of 38 kilometers.

Based on scientific analysis, the rocket's payload capacity, aimed at the lunar transfer orbit, should be no less than 27 tons.

Previously, when reviewing the current mainstays of the Chinese Rockets, although they had made outstanding contributions, they were not able to shoulder this heavy responsibility.

Even the most powerful rocket currently in service, the Long March 5, has a lunar transfer orbit carrying capacity of about 8 tons, which is still far from the 27-ton capacity required for a manned lunar landing.

Developing a new rocket platform with the capability to deliver large-mass deep-space orbital payloads has become an inevitable choice.

The Long March 10 series of carrier rockets were developed in response to this need.

Manned lunar landing missions are characterized by long cycles, extreme environments, and many irreversible processes.

Ensuring the safety of astronauts on the moon and the success of the mission requires rockets to have a reliability and fault response capability far exceeding that of ordinary rockets.

Meanwhile, the two heavy-lift Long March 10 carrier rockets need to be launched in sequence according to the design schedule to accurately send their respective payloads into the predetermined Earth-Moon transfer orbit, ensuring the feasibility and efficiency of subsequent lunar rendezvous and docking. This requires the rockets to have extremely high orbital accuracy and launch window flexibility.

In addition, adaptability to multi-tasking configurations must also be taken into account.

Rocket development is no easy task. In order to achieve "one type, multiple uses", the Long March 10 carrier rocket adopts two configuration designs: a heavy lunar landing rocket and a bare near-Earth type.

In other words, due to the tight schedule and heavy workload, the Long March 10 rocket was developed based on the Long March 5 rocket.

Otherwise, they could develop the Long March 9 rocket that China and Laos previously planned, or the 10.6-meter diameter super rocket of the Lu Yun Project, which would only require one rocket to send the manned spacecraft and lunar lander up together.

With the new rocket for the manned lunar landing program, a new spacecraft was also needed.

The new generation manned spacecraft "Dream Boat" is expected to withstand the enormous thrust of the new generation of rockets, possess stronger orbital maneuverability, and provide a larger and more comfortable cabin environment and more comprehensive life support capabilities.

It is larger and stronger, and has changed from a three-module structure to a two-module structure, making it more compact.

Unlike the Shenzhou spacecraft launch model where "the rocket is responsible for escape and the spacecraft is responsible for rescue," the Mengzhou spacecraft takes responsibility for both escape and rescue after receiving the rocket's escape command, and assumes the overall management function of the escape system.

In the event of an emergency malfunction, the Mengzhou spacecraft can promptly remove the return capsule carrying the astronauts from the danger zone and ensure the astronauts' safe return to Earth.

The DreamZoo spacecraft performed exceptionally well during this unmanned lunar orbit test flight. As long as it can safely return to Earth, it will qualify for manned lunar orbit missions.

Once on the moon, the astronauts will face many unknown challenges due to its extreme temperatures, high vacuum, and complex terrain.
The new generation manned spacecraft is named "Dream Boat," the lunar lander is named "Moon Embrace," the lunar suit is named "Looking Towards the Universe," and the manned lunar rover is called "Seeking Truth." The naming of the Lao-Chinese manned lunar mission reflects the integration of traditional culture and the spirit of aerospace.

As planned, after the "Mengzhou" manned spacecraft and the Lanyue lunar lander docked, the two astronauts entered the "Lanyue" spacecraft to prepare for lunar landing.

The other astronaut remained on board the "Dream Ship," flying along lunar orbit in preparation for a rendezvous.

The lunar lander carries a lunar rover and scientific payloads. It serves as the lunar surface living center, energy center, and data center for astronauts after landing on the moon, supporting lunar stays and activities.

Its lunar descent and landing process, as well as the process of taking off from the lunar surface and returning to lunar orbit after completing the lunar mission, can be said to be the most crucial part of the lunar landing.

The lunar lander is currently undergoing testing. It needs to simulate the landing process, using advanced equipment and autonomous obstacle avoidance algorithms to perceive lunar meteorites and craters in real time, flexibly adjust its descent trajectory, and ensure a safe landing.

The test site's tower, servo disk, and multiple steel cables work together to simulate the low-gravity environment of the moon and accurately track the lander's flight trajectory.

The ground was also paved with special materials to form craters or slopes, simulating the lunar surface environment.

When the "Lanyue" spacecraft lands smoothly and everything is ready, the astronauts, wearing the "Wangyu" lunar suit, will disembark from the spacecraft and take the first step towards landing on the moon.

Astronauts typically move around the moon in two ways: on foot or by manned lunar rover. After arriving at the designated work site, they stay, collect samples, and place exploration instruments.

Although numerous experiments will be conducted in the simulated lunar environment on Earth to verify the safety of the "lunar walk," astronauts will face many unknown challenges due to the extreme temperatures, high vacuum, and complex terrain of the moon.

For example, the actual thickness of the lunar regolith is uneven, which may hide hidden pits that could trip people up; lunar dust may obstruct the view; and the moon lacks an atmospheric protective layer, so it may be attacked by micrometeors at any time.

The test team is currently exhausting all technical means and making contingency plans in advance to protect the safety of the astronauts.

A safe lunar landing is important, but a safe return to Earth is even more crucial.

According to the design plan, after completing the lunar landing mission, the two astronauts will return to the "Lanyue" spacecraft, ascend from the lunar surface to lunar orbit, and achieve a second rendezvous and docking with the "Mengzhou" spacecraft, which is carrying another astronaut who is waiting in the air.

The two astronauts from "Lanyue" entered "Mengzhou". After the three astronauts separated from "Lanyue" aboard "Mengzhou", they returned to Earth.

The lunar orbit separation technology has been fully verified by the Chang'e 5 and 6 missions and is quite mature.

Next came the challenging journey home.

Astronauts, carrying lunar samples, will accelerate on the moon aboard the "Dream Boat," escape lunar orbit, enter a lunar-Earth transfer orbit, and aim for the optimal time to fly back to Earth.

Thermal protection during high-speed reentry is a significant challenge.

When the return capsule passes through the Earth's atmosphere, it generates a large amount of heat due to the intense friction between the high-speed flight and the atmosphere.

Returning to Earth from the Moon will generate even more intense temperatures due to the faster initial reentry velocity.

Precision flight presents an even more severe challenge.

During manned lunar landing missions, the "Dreamship" spacecraft, which returns from the moon and flies at high speed to land precisely on Earth, will also undergo a process similar to the "skipping stones" process experienced by Chang'e 6 when it returned to Earth.

This is mainly because the "Dreamship" flew at a very high speed from the moon to Earth, and had to slow down during the return journey.

The purpose of this design is to make full use of the atmospheric drag during the long journey of thousands of kilometers to gradually consume the initial energy of the "Dream Ship," so that its speed will be significantly reduced when it exits the atmosphere again, and it will no longer have the conditions to fly around the earth, thus allowing it to enter the atmosphere a second time.

The problems the American Orion spacecraft encountered during its return occurred during this phase.

The spacecraft from decades ago was not considered for reuse at all, but now it is considered for reuse, so problems arise.

The Chinese side had made such preparations from the beginning, and the Chang'e 5 and 6 missions conducted a full set of simulations of these.

Although their return capsules do not need to be reused, the Lao-Chinese design was based on reuse specifications.

Now that they have successfully completed their mission, the remaining question is whether the "Lunar Exploration" manned spacecraft can return to Earth smoothly.

Of course, it's too early to return now. It will need to orbit the moon for several more days to fully test its various equipment and safety measures.

When it returns to Earth at the end of the month, a new movie called "Lone on the Moon" will be released in China.

It tells the story of how an asteroid destroyed humanity's lunar base, and incidentally, Earth was also hit by a meteor shower, nearly wiping out humanity.

In the end, only one repairman remained on the moon...

Releasing the film at this time is quite... auspicious.

After all, Rowoon had a cameo role in it.

(End of this chapter)