The sun never sets

Chapter 962 Report

The nuclear fusion experimental device successfully operated for three hours and was still running well, but for safety reasons, the project manager stopped the device and conducted a comprehensive inspection.

"This time the operation lasted three hours, Senior Engineer, is this considered successful?"

Chief Engineer Gao Qiang is not old, not even fifty years old, and is in the prime of his life. He has lived in the laboratory for more than nine months, burying himself in work every day and is very clear about every progress of the nuclear fusion power generation project.

The nuclear fusion power generation project, code-named Project 9XXX, was rushed, and it felt like someone was whipping us from behind. But scientific research is not like driving a horse carriage, and progress can't be accelerated by whipping it more.

Gao Qiang had repeatedly advised Chairman Lin to slow down the pace and do the work at hand thoroughly before moving on to the next step. He felt that Chairman Lin was too impatient and that using new technologies and solutions so hastily would likely lead to problems.

He hadn't slept well these days, and when he finally fell asleep, he still had nightmares. In his dreams, without exception, the nuclear fusion experiment device exploded, blowing the entire experimental base and the nearby city to ashes.

When the No. 3 experimental device was being assembled, he followed the whole process, but still couldn't dispel his doubts and fears. Unable to convince Chairman Lin to slow down the progress of the experiment, Gao Qiang persuaded Chairman Lin not to stay at the experimental base. He promised that he would stand by the experimental device and report the successful results of the experiment to the leaders of the central government as soon as possible.

What if it fails? If it fails, it will also be reported, but it will be reported by someone else. If the nightmare becomes a reality and the entire experimental base is blown to ashes, Gao Qiang will be the first to be killed!

Now, the latest experimental device has been running for three hours and is running well, with stable output power, which is the best result that can appear in a dream. After Gao Qiang issued the order to stop the machine for inspection, he still couldn't believe it.

Is it really that successful?

He didn't think that the nuclear fusion power generation project could not succeed, he just felt that it all happened too fast, too fast!

After being asked twice in a row, Gao Qiang finally reacted, "Oh, it's a success. I'll call the chairman immediately and report the good news to him!"

The Alliance has come up with a lot of new scientific theories and technologies over the years, and telephones are no longer what they used to be. In the past, operators were required to plug in and out the plugs, but now it is much more convenient. Not only do operators no longer need them, but there are also wireless phones that can be held in your hand, which are called mobile phones.

However, this experimental base is a top-level confidentiality unit, and mobile phones are not allowed. Even making landline calls outside the base requires reporting. Who you call, what you say, and how long you talk are all recorded. There is also a recorder to record the conversation between the two parties on the phone.

The Syndicate's spies are everywhere, so we must always be on guard, not to mention a top-secret engineering project like "9XXX".

No matter how much Gao Qiang worried before, the nuclear fusion power generation project has achieved a milestone, and he and all the staff of General Gong have been commended. At the same time, they still have to continue to remain anonymous in this base near Dunhuang. Even if the country announces the success of "nuclear fusion power generation" in the future, their actions will not be

Subject to great restrictions.

Especially Chief Engineer Gao Qiang, he will not be able to go abroad in the future. No matter where he goes, he will be followed by people from the intelligence department, not for surveillance, but to protect him.

The intelligence personnel of the Syndicate are very good at inciting people from other countries to defect and collecting intelligence, and they are also well-known for assassinations. The intelligence department of the Alliance does not like to carry out assassinations, but the Syndicate is different. They never show mercy to traitors, and sometimes they will assassinate the political leaders, important scientists, or people with important influence in the enemy country, and they have succeeded many times.

Gao Qiang doesn't care about not being able to go abroad in the future, and he is comfortable with the protection of the intelligence department. The project has achieved phased results, but there is still a lot of follow-up work to be done. There is a long way to go from the experimental device to a stably operating nuclear fusion power station.

He had a lot of things to do and didn't have time to think about much else.

The last day of 1950 passed, and the calendar turned to 1951. On April 1951, 4, the Industrial Syndicate conducted a hydrogen bomb test on an island in the Atlantic Ocean. 11 million tons of TNT equivalent energy was released, destroying everything on the nameless island. A huge mushroom cloud rose slowly, and strong light, heat, and shock waves appeared together.

The strong wind created huge waves, and the sea began to churn at this moment.

When the Industrial Group conducted a hydrogen bomb explosion experiment, a Union satellite in low-Earth orbit happened to be over the Atlantic Ocean and took pictures of the Industrial Group's hydrogen bomb explosion. At the same time, several "Sky Fortresses" took off from Greenland and approached the explosion point of the hydrogen bomb to collect first-hand information.

After the war, the Canadian government and National France both joined the People's Revolutionary League, and the League also had a military base on Greenland, so the League's "Sky Fortress" could fly near the hydrogen bomb explosion site in the Atlantic Ocean.

The "Sky Fortress" can fly directly to the British Isles and conduct high-altitude reconnaissance of the United Kingdom, so it can also fly to the explosion site. But this is not a matter of whether it can or not. The "Sky Fortress" of the Alliance appeared near the explosion site, which means that the [People's Revolutionary League] received relevant information in advance, indicating that there is a mole in the team responsible for the hydrogen bomb project of the syndicate. It is also possible that someone in the leadership of the syndicate leaked the news. That person must be in a high position to get clear information.

On the sea, the Syndicate's warships were cruising. Admiral Andrew saw the Alliance's heavy bombers, first the light spots representing the aircraft appeared on the radar, and then he saw them through the telescope.

The Navy of the Industrial Syndicate had no way to deal with satellites in low-Earth orbit, but it had a way to deal with heavy bombers. Under Andrew's order, the Navy of the Industrial Syndicate launched carrier-based aircraft. After the carrier-based aircraft completed the formation, they quickly flew towards the Alliance's heavy bombers.

A few years ago, the turbocharging technology of the Industrial Group was not mature enough. A few years later, the Industrial Group's carrier-based aircraft were able to use turbocharging.

The "Sky Fortress" can fly very high, so high that fighter jets cannot reach it, but in order to collect more detailed information, it lowered its altitude. In addition, the group also has mature turbine increase technology, and the fighter's ceiling can reach an altitude of 1 meters.

Therefore, the fleet of carrier-based aircraft easily drove away those "Sky Fortresses". However, Andrew was not happy about this. It was easy to drive away the alliance's bombers, but what about the satellites and space stations in the sky?

Chapter 963: Confrontation

After the trade union announced that it also possessed the hydrogen bomb, the People's Revolutionary League immediately announced the success of "nuclear fusion power generation" and issued a notice to the outside world saying that the alliance would build the world's first "nuclear fusion power station" in Central Asia.

The leaders of the syndicate knew that they were still in the position of catching up. The gap between the two camps narrowed a little, but soon widened again. The syndicate had many projects to catch up, such as nuclear submarines, intercontinental missiles, space stations, etc.

After the technology of nuclear fusion power generation was discovered, many things were different. [People's Revolutionary League] could build magnificent cities in the desert, huge bases on the glaciers of the Antarctic and the Arctic, and spacecraft for traveling between the earth and space.

In the process of climbing technology, the Alliance has made great progress in materials science, so the Alliance began to develop a driving technology that uses nuclear fusion as energy.

Once the new engine is successfully developed, the [People's Revolutionary League] can start to build a base on the moon. The moon is the satellite of the earth and the closest celestial body to the earth. If you want to go to the sea of stars, you first need to build a supply station and port on the moon, and then you can move towards the deeper and more distant sea of stars.

Using nuclear fusion as an energy source is a prerequisite technology for reaching the stars and the sea, but nuclear fusion power generation technology alone is not enough. Other technologies must also keep up.

The universe is so huge that the nearest star system to the solar system is Proxima Centauri, which is 4.22 light years away from the solar system. That is to say, even if we travel at the speed of light, it will take four years to reach another star system.

If technology continues to develop, a spacecraft using nuclear fusion as energy may be able to accelerate a spacecraft to one tenth the speed of light (many people think this is difficult, but it is theoretically possible), and it would take forty years to fly to the vicinity of Proxima Centauri.

Considering that there are

Half of the time is accelerating and the other half is decelerating, so this one-way journey will take more than a hundred years, which is about five generations.

Even if nuclear fusion power generation technology is lit up, humans can only hop around in the small pond of the solar system for the time being, and are still a long, long way from the real sea of stars.

Even if the People's Revolutionary League used all its high-tech reserves, it would be difficult to expand into the interstellar space, just like paddling a canoe across the Pacific Ocean. Even if it could expand its living space to Proxima Centauri, it would definitely become two different political entities due to the huge distance.

The solar system has no means of restraining Proxima. At a distance that would take a hundred years to travel one way, it is inevitable that it will split. It is more likely that it will split within the solar system.

If a self-sufficient force appeared on Mars, why would they listen to Earth? It would take several years to get from Earth to Mars. Even if it was only one year, the Earth government would be helpless against Mars.

"Nuclear fusion power generation" technology can help humans gain a foothold in outer space and on other planets, but it can also become a cause of division.

However, even if there may be a split, Lin Yongchang is still determined to promote the exploration of outer space. The Human Innovation Alliance is the strongest camp in the world today, and has achieved the achievement that the sun never sets on the alliance's territory.

But this is not enough, far from enough. How can we be free if we cannot break free from the constraints of gravity?

After 1950, Lin Yongchang once again stepped behind the scenes and gradually faded out of the public eye, focusing on promoting the progress of science and technology and the transformation and application of technology.

The competition between the trade unions and the People's Revolutionary League continued. In many aspects, there were conflicts and frictions between the two sides. Several times, millions of troops confronted each other on German territory. The intercontinental missiles on both sides began to be refueled, as if they were about to use nuclear bombs to flatten the other side.

But that was impossible. The armies on both sides had trained to deal with nuclear attacks. Even if all the nuclear bombs of the Labor Union and the People's Revolutionary League were thrown, it would be impossible to flatten either side.

When the situation was most dangerous, emergency contact was made between Paris and Chang'an, and the two sides had not-so-friendly communication, but ultimately no fight broke out.

Although the trade union appears to be aggressive, a quick look at the map will show that the People's Revolutionary League can easily bombard the trade union's important cities and bases with nuclear bombs, launch a trinity nuclear strike from land, air and sea, and possibly drop nuclear bombs on the earth from space.

And the Syndicalists? They could probably blow Berlin to pieces with nuclear bombs, but they might not even reach Moscow. The Syndicalists' nuclear submarines could launch an effective counterattack, but there weren't enough of them, and they didn't carry enough nuclear bombs.

Throughout the 1950s, the Industrial Syndicate vigorously developed nuclear submarine forces and actively carried out exploration of outer space. Unlike Lin Yongchang who wanted to go to the stars and the sea, the Industrial Syndicate did not explore outer space for the purpose of expanding into space. Their main purpose was to fight against the [People's Revolutionary League].

The confrontation is not only at the military level, but also at the political, diplomatic and economic levels. Deploying nuclear weapons in low-Earth orbit can greatly enhance nuclear deterrence capabilities. However, the industrial group later found that the technical difficulty of doing so was too great, and there were many uncontrollable factors. What if a nuclear bomb deployed in space malfunctioned?

It would be extremely difficult to send people up there for repairs. If a nuclear bomb or a space station malfunctioned and exploded in outer space, that would be ok, or if it fell into an uninhabited area, that would also be ok, but the only thing to worry about is a nuclear bomb falling from above and landing in a densely populated area.

Whether it falls on the territory of the trade union or the territory of the People's Revolutionary League, it will cause great trouble.

Therefore, after several rounds of negotiations, the Trade Union and the People's Revolutionary League reached an agreement that neither side, nor any country or camp would allow the deployment of nuclear weapons in outer space or on the moon.

The treaty only said that nuclear weapons were not allowed to be deployed, but other weapons were not mentioned. The Industrial Syndicate did not mention it, and neither did the People's Revolutionary League. Both sides seemed to be pretending that it did not happen.

The People's Revolutionary League spent a lot of resources on exploring outer space, and even after lighting up the "nuclear fusion power generation" technology, it felt the strain. As a follower, the Industrial Group also spent a lot of manpower and material resources on developing space technology, and at one point it was almost impossible to sustain its finances.

However, the People's Revolutionary League has been making continuous progress. After building the space station, it launched the Tanyue rocket every two years, and the Siqin moon landing was also put on the agenda.

The leaders of the Syndicalist Group now rarely talk about liberating the world. In the process of catching up with Germany, the Syndicalist Group has felt unparalleled pain. Just maintaining the existing huge army has overwhelmed the Syndicalist Group. In order not to fall behind too much in outer space exploration, the Syndicalist Group has exhausted its vitality.

Fortunately, the Syndicate's intelligence personnel were very strong and they obtained a lot of key technologies from the Alliance, which prevented the Syndicate from falling too far behind.

Chapter 964 Guanghan Palace

The People's Revolutionary League explores space very quickly, one step after another, with almost no rest. Unlike another world where a rocket is launched every few years, the League launches at least ten carrier rockets into space every year.

This is not surprising, with nuclear fusion power generation, everything is different.

In March 1952, after launching three exploration satellites to the moon, the Soyuz launched an unprecedentedly large carrier rocket, reaching a height of more than 100 meters and weighing more than 3000 tons.

This is not just a launch vehicle, but also a spacecraft. After entering low-Earth orbit, the spacecraft will discard all its outer shells, fly to the moon as a real spacecraft, and land on the dark side of the moon.

On the day of the launch, many of the Alliance's television stations broadcast the event live. As the thrilling countdown ended, flames shot out from the tail of the rocket, and the huge aircraft slowly rose, then accelerated, and then flew into the sky.

When the rocket reached a certain height and the camera on the ground could not show more details, the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center switched the shooting screen. The astronauts on the space station adjusted the camera to focus on the largest aircraft in history.

Compared with super-dreadnought battleships and armored aircraft carriers, the weight of the aircraft is nothing. In the navy, a weight of 3000 tons is only suitable for use as a destroyer. But in space exploration, the weight of 3000 tons has exceeded any previous weight.

After entering low-Earth orbit, the outer part of the rocket fell off, and the spacecraft unfolded its original form, with plasma flames spurting out of the tail. The spacecraft quickly passed the location of the space station and flew towards the distant, but nearby moon.

The exciting moment is over for now. It will take more than 70 hours for the spacecraft to reach the gravitational circle of the moon. Although the moon is the closest satellite to the earth, it will take several days for the spacecraft to reach it.

The Alliance's CCTV will continue to track the spacecraft's trajectory, and the Industrial Corporation and other countries are also closely watching this operation. The Alliance's spacecraft will land on the dark side of the moon, taking the first step in building the Guanghan Palace.

There is a very interesting fact, that is, because the period of the moon's rotation and revolution is the same, the side facing the earth never changes.

This may be a coincidence, or there may be some other reason.

The alliance is trotting forward on the road of exploring outer space, sparking round after round of heated discussions. The propaganda department keeps abreast of current affairs and carries out a lot of publicity on the significance and prospects of the People's Revolutionary League's exploration of outer space.

There are more and more literary and artistic works related to interstellar travel. In the past, film studios always liked to make films such as "War and Peace", "The Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period", and the Four Great Classics. Now, there are many science fiction films.

For its own publicity, the aviation department cooperated with the film studios and major film and television companies to do a lot of work. During the time when the Alliance's spacecraft was heading to the moon, there was a heated discussion about Guanghan Palace both domestically and internationally.

There will certainly be many difficulties in establishing a base on the moon. It is necessary to ensure the living conditions of astronauts, consider radiation protection, etc. The moon is the closest celestial body to the earth, but this "closest" is also 38 kilometers away. What if there is a malfunction in the Guanghan Palace?

Because of the insufficient transportation capacity, the [People's Revolutionary League] cannot do everything and has no way to build a series of supporting factories on the moon for the time being. At the beginning of the construction of the [Guanghan Palace] base, there must be a lack of everything.

Some people are worried about the safety of astronauts, while others accuse the alliance of being too ambitious and wasteful. Are we going to explore the universe before we have even dealt with things on Earth? The people in Africa are still eating grass! If you have so much money to burn, wouldn't it be better to donate it to feed the Africans?

There are many similar statements, and the official media of the alliance has also seriously answered some questions. However, these discussions are meaningless. No matter when, there will always be people who are dissatisfied. This is a very normal thing. As long as people have food to eat and their children can go to school, a few complaints are nothing.

Three days later, the Soyuz spacecraft reached the moon's gravitational field. The lunar satellite adjusted its orbit, captured the scene of the spacecraft falling, and forwarded it to Earth.

Since many frames are lost during the image transmission process, the images sent back are intermittent and need to be accompanied by text or commentary.

The spacecraft flying to the moon this time did not prepare fuel for the return trip. After landing on the moon, it will unfold on the spot to make more accurate measurements of the lunar environment. The lunar orbiting satellite can collect a lot of information about the moon, but there are some things that can only be known by landing on the moon.

For example, the soil on the moon is very different from that on Earth. Because there is no atmosphere, the moon is exposed to space and exposed to cosmic rays, which makes the moon soil full of tiny and sharp crystals and amorphous materials.

These crystals and amorphous materials are so sharp that if a car drives on them, its tires may be cut. Knowing this, we can make corresponding improvements to the lunar rover, such as using solid rubber tires, or even metal tires.

The spacecraft landed smoothly in the designated area, and after a burst of dust, the flame at the tail of the spacecraft went out. After a long time, the smoke and dust fell back to the ground under the influence of the moon's gravity.

Then, the spacecraft opened outwards. This spacecraft had no intention of returning, so it could be operated in a simple and rough manner.

According to the alliance's plan, it will continue to launch spacecraft to the moon and build a space station in the moon's low-Earth orbit to use radio remote sensing to

Cheng controls the construction of a base on the moon.

Manned lunar landing will only be carried out when the time is right.

Because of the success of nuclear fusion power generation, the [People's Revolutionary League] has an endless supply of cheap energy, and the prices of various products have dropped a lot. However, due to the vigorous space exploration, too much manpower and material resources have been consumed, and the people's living standards have not changed dramatically.

On the other hand, the labor union and the People's Revolutionary League had to share many benefits with the grassroots people in the process of competition, and they did not dare to relax in military and outer space exploration. Day after day, year after year, the labor union was dragged to the point of being unable to breathe.

Now that the People's Revolutionary League has started building a lunar base, the labor group is under great pressure, but they have to keep up. The labor group has obtained a lot of technology from the People's Revolutionary League. Although it has not yet obtained the complete technology of "nuclear fusion power generation", it is not far behind the People's Revolutionary League. From a technical perspective, the labor group can also launch lunar exploration rockets and land on the moon. These things are difficult, but they can still be done.

The real problem is that there is no money. The expenses of the trade unions are too high, and they have to share the profits with the lower classes. The upper rulers have been patient for a long time. The [People's Revolutionary League] also has the same problem. As the older generation gradually retires, things have naturally changed.

Chapter 965: Growing Vegetables

The cake is getting bigger and bigger, but the ruling class can only watch it and dare not stretch out their knife and fork to scrape the cake onto their own plates. This kind of life where they can only watch but not eat is really too depressing.

However, things are changing. With the passing of the older generation of revolutionaries, the leaders in high positions generally have more flexible moral bottom lines. They are also smarter and have various ways to circumvent restrictions.

Because of technological progress, people's living standards are constantly rising. The Alliance led the third industrial revolution and opened up the road to informatization. The People's Revolutionary Alliance developed rapidly in electronic technology and quickly promoted new technologies and put them into actual production, unlike Intel in another world, which was like squeezing toothpaste to come up with new technologies.

The alliance has been very aggressive in promoting new technologies, both in hardware and software. It has not pursued the widespread use of piracy by industrial groups and some countries, and sometimes has even taken the initiative to spread the technology.

There are many considerations involved, such as cultivating the market, forming technical standards, etc.

The People's Revolutionary League kept launching rockets, and more and more spacecraft were flying to the moon. Because Guanghan Palace was built on the dark side of the moon, it could not be seen by observatories and telescopes on the ground. What could be seen was that the space station orbiting the moon was getting bigger and bigger, and the information and instructions it sent were getting more and more.

Some media have analyzed that the People's Revolutionary League built a lunar base on the dark side to show that Guanghan Palace is not used for military hegemony. Well, how should I put it? This is a good wish, but it doesn't make sense. Of course, strategic weapons can be deployed on the back of the moon, but the alliance did not use Guanghan Palace for military hegemony because it was unnecessary and the cost-effectiveness was very low.

The moon is 38 kilometers away from the earth. It is no problem to deploy strategic weapons in such a distant place, but it is impossible to respond in time. It takes at least three days for a rocket to fly from the moon to the earth. This time is too long, long enough for the enemy to react.

Unless a super huge laser cannon is built on the moon, people on Earth will not have time to react. However, the Alliance does not have such a crazy plan. Even if a laser cannon is built, it would be better to deploy it on the Earth space station.

The moon is too far away. Besides, the main purpose of the alliance now is to expand into outer space, not to dominate the cradle of the earth.

In 1957, the Alliance continued to launch spacecraft to the moon to build the Guanghan Palace, and also launched a probe to Mars. The moon is only the first foothold for mankind to move towards the sea of stars, and it is still within the scope of the earth. Only by expanding the living space to Mars can it be regarded as the first step.

In 1958, the People's Revolutionary League sent a second group of astronauts to the moon to participate in the construction of Guanghan Palace. Remote control on the lunar space station can only do some relatively simple things, and the efficiency will be relatively low. Astronauts still need to land on the surface of the moon to deal with more complex problems.

In that year, the Soyuz spacecraft engine that used nuclear fusion as energy finally passed the inspection, and the Soyuz Space Agency announced that it had begun to produce new spacecraft. Compared with the previous chemical fuel engines, the new pulse engine has higher requirements for materials and processing accuracy, and has a higher thrust-to-weight ratio.

It stands to reason that it would take a long time for such new technology to mature and be applied to spacecraft. First, an experimental spacecraft would be built, and then improvements would be made generation after generation so that the spacecraft could work with the new engine.

However, the Alliance came up with a mature design plan directly, which was contrary to common sense, and the scientists and engineers of the syndicate were often confused by this. After a long period of analysis, the syndicate believed that the Alliance had used supercomputers to perform a large number of simulations, which was why it was able to come up with a mature plan so quickly.