I ask you to build tractors, but you build rockets?

Carey: "Based on the STS program of the last century, we estimate that the H2 space shuttle will enter service no later than 2018, so NACA's nuclear-powered space shuttle must also be able to make its first flight at this time."

Claire: "..."

"No, that's impossible."

Carey: "Why is it impossible? Compared to them, NACA has built five space shuttles and carried out more than a hundred launch missions.

Now that so many years have passed and technology has become more advanced, it has become easier to build a space shuttle. "

Claire: "The last Endeavor was built in 1991. Even Boeing may have lost most of the space shuttle data, and the space shuttle at that time was completely outdated."

Carey: "Then apply new technologies to build a better space shuttle. Xinyuan Company can build it, and you can build it even better. You are NACA. I bet your funding this year is higher than the market value of XAP. You guys are Aramco." The hope is the hope of mankind, you can do it.”

Claire:…

After a long time, Claire replied in a muffled voice: "The STS program has been going on for 20 years, manufacturing 5 space shuttles, costing more than 190 billion US dollars, and it is far from meeting the reusability requirements, and Congress will not agree.

You know, that was $200 billion from the 1970s to the 1990s, and now it would take at least $1,000 billion to compare. "

"No, that's not the case."

Michael Carey's answer was firm and powerful.

He stood up, put his big-brimmed hat on his head, and straightened his clothes.

"Mr. Claire, please start preparing the construction plan for the nuclear-powered space shuttle immediately. I named it...nuclear power, that is NSTS. Oops, Dream Chaser took this name. Let me think about it again;

Future aerospace transportation systems, FATS, what is the code name? Wait a minute, Mr. Director, you know nothing about the Air Force. "

Kaili asked his assistant to pack up the information and walked out of the intelligence room without looking back.

…

Senate... No, at the space agency executive meeting, a space shuttle also appeared on the projector screen.

In fact, as early as when H1 was undergoing aerodynamic testing, the space agency started, perhaps it should be called restarting the space shuttle program.

As early as when the "863" plan was proposed, our country held the first space shuttle demonstration meeting, and then the 805th Institute and the 604th Institute of the Ministry of Aerospace proposed the "Great Wall No. 1" space shuttle.

The Great Wall 1 space shuttle is 24 meters long, has a wingspan of 14 meters, can carry 5 crew members and 5 tons of cargo, and has an orbital mass of 39 tons. This figure is basically half of Aramco and Alliance, but it is enough for China. .

Moreover, with the technology at the time, the requirement was to make its first flight before 2008, and it could be achieved with hard work.

A lot of preparatory work was carried out for the Great Wall-1 project, not only a lot of wind tunnel tests were done, but also the space shuttle's simulation cabin trainer was built.

Later, when the manned space engineering plans were selected, among more than a dozen plans, the Great Wall-1 and the Shenzhou spacecraft were finally selected. The former scored 83.69 points and the latter 84 points.

The Shenzhou spacecraft won the election with an advantage of 0.31 points due to its "small investment, low risk and high certainty", and the Great Wall No. 1 project was abandoned.

In this regard, Huaguo Aerospace missed the space shuttle for the first time. It paid attention again when the X37B was born to build a small unmanned space shuttle.

But after the first flight of H1, Academician She began to collect information about the Great Wall No. 1, and slowly found the elderly from the 805 and 604 schools at that time, and reimagined China's new space shuttle bit by bit.

A year has passed, but the progress of the space shuttle is still not smooth, and it can only barely pull up the people.

Because the space agency has always believed that the future aerospace plane can completely replace the space shuttle. The Tengyun project is enough, and a new generation of manned spacecraft will be put into use soon. There is really no need to study the space shuttle.

What's more, isn't the upper stage of the original Tengyun Project just a small space shuttle?

Therefore, even when the H2-sized prototype flew to Ulan Hashan for testing, Academician She's proposal to resume the Great Wall One was still rejected by the majority.

"Academician She, from a military perspective, we have unmanned aircraft. From a space perspective, the new generation of manned spacecraft is completely sufficient. Space shuttles are also accelerating. We no longer need space shuttles."

Academician She: "However, large platforms of more than 50 tons have advantages that small platforms cannot match. The role of a 100-ton space shuttle in some aspects is not comparable to that of five 20-ton small space shuttles."

This sentence made others think for a while, but someone quickly responded:

"If we really need it, let's buy an H2?"

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone suddenly woke up and clapped quickly.

"Yes, our rebuilt space shuttle can no longer be called independent. It is redundant construction. Now everything is under the control of the Aerospace Development Commission. It is not that H2 cannot be used. Now the Tiangong Space Station is using H1 to pick up people."

"You don't have to buy H2. You can rent it once when needed. It doesn't cost much for this kind of task."

"The main purpose of the space shuttle is to grab satellites and install trusses. Then we can build large satellite platforms in low orbit. The practical series can be expanded to more than 20 tons."

"When the atmospheric friction causes the orbit to drop, will H2 be used to replenish fuel? Is that really possible? H2 can supply 10 super-large satellites in one operation, right?"

"..."

The content of the meeting began to deviate gradually, from the Great Wall No. 1 to how to use the H2 space shuttle, and the talk became more and more enthusiastic.

In the end, Academician She couldn't interrupt even if he wanted to, and could only watch the meeting end in a pleasant atmosphere.

However, Ami didn't think so.

…

"Gentlemen, do you know about nuclear power? It is almost endless energy. When there is a nuclear-powered space shuttle floating around in space, it will pose a serious threat to the entire world!

Think about it, our satellite was running in orbit without any precautions, and suddenly an evil laser hit us from a distance of tens of thousands of kilometers..."

"Wait a minute, Kaili, we have the X37B."

"Ha, Mr. Senator, X37B can't even install a small nuclear reactor. Only large space shuttles like Endeavor, Atlantis, and H2 can install it, and it can install three! "

When the H2 space shuttle was mentioned, the atmosphere in the entire House of Commons reached a climax. Many silly sons of landlords who inherited the position of senator from their fathers trembled, feeling that the end was coming.

In just two days, the Arab Air Force produced a series of fanciful imaginary pictures of a nuclear-powered space shuttle equipped with laser weapons and electromagnetic guns, exaggerating and creating panic everywhere.

In particular, they kept showing photos of the H2 full-size prototype, and using examples of the H1 to continue dissing the mistake of terminating the STS program, which made the senators feel more and more justified.

In the end, the Senate compromised:

"The FATS plan can be carried out, but the budget must not be as large as before, and it must be carried out as quickly as possible."