Technology invades the modern world

Chapter 266 Lunar Orbit Insertion
Lying in bed that night, John Morgan Jr. recalled the first words Lin Ran had said to him:

"The NASA administrator, I suppose."

He thought to himself, "No, could the professor really want to become the director of NASA?"

While it's unrealistic to expect the White House to appoint him as NASA administrator, it would be a real possibility if an entity like General Aerospace were to compete with SpaceX, and if he were to replicate SpaceX's technology, or even develop Starship ahead of SpaceX.

Isn't that NASA's shadow administrator?
"Located in Shanghai, remotely controlling NASA."

John Morgan Jr. simply couldn't understand how a Chinese person could be so obsessed with becoming the NASA administrator. Was that a position you could even dream of?
Don't you see, even when Musk wanted to put his friend in that position, he had to be fired?

John Morgan Jr.'s ideas are easy to understand.

He knew that Musk had said more than once in private that NASA was unnecessary and that SpaceX should replace NASA and take charge of all American space affairs.

If General Aerospace can take down SpaceX, then with the backing of Morgan Stanley, it wouldn't be a problem for General Aerospace to completely sideline NASA.

Lin Ran, who single-handedly created General Aerospace, is arguably NASA's shadow director.

From John Morgan Jr.'s perspective, Lin Ran's proposal of this cooperation method might actually have been aimed at becoming NASA's shadow administrator.

If the open methods don't work, then try the covert ones.

He sighed, "Ultimately, it all comes down to tomorrow's launch."

Tim finally managed to edit out the interview video with Lin Ran before the Saturn V launch.

Before witnessing the Apollo miracle, I interviewed the God of Burning.

"Hello everyone, I haven't even washed my hair or shaved yet, and I'm about to embark on my journey to the Wenchang Launch Center."

The reason it happened so suddenly is because I got the opportunity to interview the God of Burning.

And just seven days later, on October 7th, the last day of the National Day holiday, we will witness a miracle in the history of spaceflight.

In just over a year, Apollo Technology accomplished the miracle of design, launch, and lunar orbit.

This number might not be immediately apparent to most viewers, but if we take President Kennedy's moon landing speech as the starting point and the astronauts' lunar orbit tests as the starting point, from May 25, 1961 to December 24, 1968, they spent a total of 2770 days. For the Apollo team led by [name omitted], that number was 385 days.

The special effect number next to Tim dropped sharply from 2770 to 385.

"People may think that the difficulty of landing on the moon has been reduced due to the advancement of current technology, but America's Artemis program can be traced back to the Authorization Act passed by NASA in 2005, which aimed to study a manned spacecraft called Orion to explore the moon."

The project was officially approved in 2017, four years ago. However, four years have passed and there has been no sign of the Orion spacecraft, which was originally scheduled to launch in 2016.

Although NASA's latest news says that the Orion spacecraft will launch for the first time next year, NASA has missed too many deadlines and has completely lost credibility. NASA has spent four years and still hasn't been able to do it, while a Chinese private company has only taken 385 days.

You can find all sorts of reasons—we use outdated technology, we lack a recyclable concept, we employ obsolete ideas—but regardless, tomorrow, our Chinese astronauts will embark on their lunar orbit!

Tim clarified that "tomorrow" refers to the time the video is posted, not the time it is filmed.

He was extremely excited in the video.

After the video was posted, it garnered over a million views in just one hour. When he mentioned this, the comments section was filled with "6" and various wishes from his fellow Bilibili users.

The number of comments in the comment section is surging.

"I'd heard about the Apollo moon landings, but I'd witnessed the Apollo technology moon landings firsthand!" This was the comment with the most likes.

It doesn't explicitly state any conspiracy theory about the moon landing, but it easily evokes those associations.

"Having just received an offer from Apollo Technology, and after reading Mr. Lin's plans for the future, I can't wait to dedicate my youth and passion to Apollo Technology! I hope that I can also make a contribution to humanity's journey into the universe."

In the comments section with the most likes, supporters and opponents of the moon landing conspiracy theory are arguing fiercely.

Then the comments within this thread are much more harmonious.

"Congratulations! I'll be graduating with a master's degree in mechanical engineering next year, and I'm joining Apollo Technology!"

"Fucking awesome!"

"Keep up the good work, guys. The future of humanity rests on your shoulders."

"Could you get me an autograph from the God of Burning?"

Of course, there are also lengthy discussions:

"After listening to the interview with Ran Shen, I was really moved. In the past, people always talked about how young people in China are, but Ran Shen, as a representative of young people, shattered all the doubts about the younger generation in China and even Chinese entrepreneurs."

Who says Chinese people don't know innovation? Has anyone else mentioned building an electromagnetic launch tower on the moon? As for bragging, the Saturn V is launching tomorrow—is that bragging? Weren't the astronauts sent into orbit and returned safely? Hasn't the Burning One medium rocket successfully launched twice? Once for testing, and once for actual mission.

NASA is the one that boasts but doesn't deliver; it's the young people of China who boast and then make it happen!

On the international internet, there was widespread lamentation, with photos of the Saturn V taken by an AFP reporter being circulated everywhere.

The photo taken by the AFP reporter was retweeted more than 50 times on Twitter.

Indirect ones are even more numerous.

This is the power of the Saturn V.

Lin Ran openly admitted in the video that it was the Saturn V, which made foreigners both excited and angry.

The excitement stems from the reappearance of the world's largest rocket in history, while the anger arises from the fact that it was actually developed by a Chinese private enterprise.

Despite repeated emphasis from American media that Apollo Technology is not a private enterprise at all, but merely a shell company of China's aerospace industry.

But in the eyes of Americans, isn't SpaceX just NASA in disguise?
Why can't you build a Saturn V by using a shell?

Lin Ran's public admission gave foreign media more reasons to attack him, and his despicable remarks became rampant.

Internally, Apollo Technology called it the Big Rocket.

But in foreign media, it's called Saturn.

The English name of Saturn V is Saturn V. Saturn is also the name of the god of agriculture. The one that Lin Ran and his team built is called Saturn (Saturn), which is the god of agriculture.

Why is it called that?

Not only because it is a replica of the Saturn V, but also because in Roman mythology, Saturn was the god of agriculture, time and harvest, equivalent to Cronus in Greek mythology.

Saturn devoured his children out of fear of being overthrown by them—isn't that villainous? More importantly, the falling out between Aldrin and his son adds another layer of persuasiveness to the story.

After Lin Ran found out, he felt that you guys were quite fitting. In a sense, he could indeed be called the God of Time.

With so many gods and spirits around him, and the abilities he's displayed, he's practically a god-king of time!

The Saturn V launch was not a simple launch; it also included a command module and a lunar module, making it a partial lunar landing.

Aside from not landing, there is almost no difference.

In addition to the first launch of Saturn V.

This led to a large number of big names in China's aerospace industry coming to the Wenchang Space Observatory, and Bilibili sent a truly luxurious viewing group. Pony Ma also came in person to witness this historic moment.

If manned spaceflight was a first for China's private space agencies, then this mission to lunar orbit is something that no Chinese space agency has ever accomplished before.

While Chinese astronauts are still just wandering around in Earth orbit, a private space agency is about to send their astronauts into lunar orbit.

CCTV provided full coverage of the event.

The top leaders in China are all watching this launch closely.

"Professor Lin, we are about to witness the launch of the large rocket on the last day of the National Day holiday. How are you feeling right now?" The CCTV reporter still managed to find an opportunity to interview Lin Ran before the launch.

The reporter who came this time is a female reporter who recently became famous for her pure and innocent image.

CCTV would naturally not call it Saturn V, but Apollo Technology has not given it an official name either.

Therefore, CCTV had no choice but to call it the "Big Rocket." Standing in a place where the Big Rocket could be seen with the naked eye, CCTV staff had to admit that the name "Big Rocket" was truly fitting.

"I feel very calm because, for me, this task is as simple as eating and drinking; it's just a part of my daily life," Lin Ran said expressionlessly.

The female reporter was shocked: "Oh? Aren't you worried about failing?"

Lin Ran remained expressionless: "The word 'failure' has never existed in my dictionary."

The female reporter smiled with a hint of embarrassment: "Well, Professor Lin is indeed Professor Lin, so confident indeed."

We would also like to thank Professor Lin for accepting our interview, and we wish Apollo Technology a successful lunar orbit test!
Finally, Professor, would you please say a few words to the viewers at home?

Officially, Lin Ran is described as incredibly confident, but in reality, he is seen as a madman by outsiders—a madman who is so confident that he is arrogant.

Lin Ran finally smiled and said, "This is the final step we take toward the moon. We will show the world our technology and determination."

At 6 a.m. on October 7, the 110-meter-tall rocket stood on the launch pad, its silver-white body contrasting sharply with the orange escape tower.

Around the launch tower, technicians in white protective suits were busy inspecting fuel lines, circuits, and communication equipment.

The air was filled with the faint smell of liquid oxygen, and the lights on the tower flickered in the morning mist.

At 9:00 AM, dazzling flames erupted from the base of the rocket, and all five F-1 engines roared simultaneously, creating a deafening roar that swept across the land. The rocket slowly ascended, its thrust tearing through the air, breaking through the clouds, and soaring into the sky.

The live broadcast captured spectacular footage of the heatwave distorting the air.

"Takeoff normal, attitude stable," Li Wei reported, his tone calm.

Inside the spacecraft, the vibrations were intense, and the astronauts were pinned to their seats.

During this final period, Qian Fei and Zhao Jianguo focused on recuperating to ensure that all their physical indicators were in the healthiest possible state.

Qian Fei gritted his teeth and stared at the speed data: "Speed ​​6000 meters per second, ascending."

The first-stage rocket separated, the second-stage rocket ignited, and the spacecraft continued to accelerate.

A few minutes later, the spacecraft entered low Earth orbit, the vibrations stopped, and a feeling of weightlessness began.

Zhao Jianguo grinned: "We're in space again!"

Qian Fei calmly replied, "The challenge has only just begun."

Inside the control center, the engineers erupted in applause.

Lin Ran said, "The first step is perfect. We're now preparing for the lunar transfer orbit."

Pony was unable to go to the control center to watch this time.

Because this was too critical, Lin Ran did not intend to rely on automatic guidance devices. He knew very well that the automatic navigation devices of the 60s were unreliable, and they had not had time to develop a new automatic navigation system.

They simply enhanced the communication system to ensure the spacecraft could maintain constant communication with the ground and to record the time difference between the two sides.

That's right, Lin Ran's idea was to personally micromanage at crucial moments.

Automatic navigation systems came later.

Micro-management isn't a new thing; let's use the old methods as long as they work.

The successful launch and entry into orbit were reported in news outlets that day.

"According to the latest news from our station, the lunar probe launched by a private space agency in my country has successfully reached low Earth orbit and is expected to perform a lunar orbit insertion operation in three days. We wish them all the best and hope that the astronauts will return safely."

The command and control center in Wenchang is brightly lit 24 hours a day.

In the center of the circular control room, three giant screens display the mission progress in real time: one shows the 3D trajectory of the lunar probe, with the gray-white outline of the moon gradually enlarging.

A screen displays a view inside the spacecraft, with the astronauts' operations clearly visible.

Another rolling data stream includes velocity, altitude, and propellant pressure.

Hundreds of engineers sat around a circular workbench, computer screens flashing and keyboards clattering.

A task schedule is hanging on the wall.

Lin Ran stood in the center of the command platform, holding a walkie-talkie, and said calmly: "10000 kilometers from the moon, speed 2.5 kilometers per second, prepare to upload LOI parameters."

He personally reviewed all the key data, including the spacecraft's real-time position, with longitude and latitude errors not exceeding 0.01 degrees, speed accurate to 0.001 km/s, and propellant balance accurate to 0.1 kg.

The Chinese aerospace experts, astronauts, and guests invited by Apollo Technology, such as Pony, who were sitting in the outside visitor room, were all on tenterhooks.

According to Apollo Technology staff, this is the most crucial step:
"Ladies and gentlemen, the Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) is one of the most critical maneuvers in the entire manned lunar landing mission. It requires the spacecraft to perform deceleration and burn-up with extremely high precision on the far side of the moon."

Due to lunar obstruction, the spacecraft lost contact with Earth during its burn-up phase and could not receive real-time commands. Therefore, the ground team had to calculate and upload all parameters in advance, while the astronauts had to rely on training and experience to manually operate the spacecraft to ensure it entered its designated orbit.

Chinese aerospace experts were both astonished that a private aerospace organization could achieve this, and hoped that Apollo Technology would succeed, accumulating experience for their future lunar landings.

The parameters are precisely calculated by the command and control center and uploaded to the spacecraft via the communication system before it enters the far side of the moon, ensuring that the astronauts can carry out the mission while out of contact.

Track Officer Xiao Liu adjusted his glasses and quickly checked the trajectory line on the screen: "Track parameters have been calibrated, combustion time 6 minutes, ignition countdown 30 minutes."

Parameter transfer is expected to be completed 5 minutes before entering LOS.

Navigation officer Li Rui whispered to his colleague, "The professor personally simulated the trajectory ten times. The thrust curve of the F-1 engine is perfect. This time it will definitely be stable."

His fingers flew across the keyboard as he typed commands to check the propellant pressure: 300 bar, with an error margin of less than 0.5 bar.

Lin Ran turned to the communications officer and ordered, "Confirm with the Lunar Exploration Mission and upload the LOI parameters."

The communications officer called out through the microphone: "Benyue, Wenchang Control Center, preparing to transmit LOI parameters, please confirm receipt."

The screen displays the transmission progress; the data stream is uploading rapidly.

Inside the Lunar Exploration Rover's command module, screens flashed blue light, displaying propellant pressure, speed, and orbital altitude.

The command module features a conical design, weighs 5.56 tons, and is virtually identical to the Columbia on the outside, but its interior is filled with modern features.

Qian Fei sat in the center seat, his gaze sweeping across the instrument panel as he checked the combustion parameters. A ground command came through his headset, delivered in a calm tone: "Wenchang Control Center, Lunar Strike received, parameter transmission complete."

He remained calm, thinking to himself, "The professor's calculations have never been wrong; we can definitely do it."

Zhao Jianguo sat on the left, his finger sliding on the touchscreen to confirm the status of the service module's main engine: "Engine green light, propellant pressure 300 bar, temperature 22 degrees Celsius, ready to ignite at any time, position and speed confirmed, we are on orbit."

He muttered to himself, "The professor's parameters are indeed accurate."

Outside the window, the moon gradually approaches, and the gray-white craters and rugged mountains slowly become visible in the sunlight.

After gazing into the distance, Zhao Jianguo exclaimed, "This is a hundred times more impressive than a simulator!"

Qian Fei calmly replied, "Don't get distracted. There are 5 minutes left before the ignition starts. Check the checklist."

He checked each item one by one: the propellant valves were fully open, the engine ignition sequence was normal, and the spacecraft's attitude yaw angle was 0.02 degrees and pitch angle was 0.01 degrees.

As the spacecraft approached the far side of the moon, communication signals began to fluctuate.

The communications officer reported: "Approaching LOS, the signal will be interrupted in 3 minutes."

Lin Ran decisively ordered: "Benyue, you have been approved to execute LOI. The parameters have been uploaded. Good luck, see you on the other side."

He gripped the walkie-talkie tightly, staring at the countdown on the screen, his heart utterly calm.

Qian Fei responded: "Understood, Wenchang. The lunar probe will proceed as planned."

The signal was interrupted, the screen displayed "LOS", and the control room fell into a brief silence. Everyone held their breath and stared at the countdown clock: 3 minutes until ignition.

Inside the spaceship, Qian Fei stared intently at the timer, his voice firm: "Ignition countdown, 3, 2, 1, ignition!"

He pressed the confirmation button, and the F-1 engine in the service module roared to life, spewing out blazing blue flames. The spacecraft trembled slightly, and the deceleration force gently propelled the astronaut forward.

The dashboard data refreshed rapidly, the speed began to drop from 2.5 km/s, the propellant pressure stabilized at 300 bar, and the engine temperature rose to 500 degrees Celsius.

Zhao Jianguo kept a close eye on the engine data and reported: "Thrust 100 tons, temperature normal, vibration amplitude 0.5 m/s²."

He gripped the joystick, ready to make manual adjustments at any moment, thinking to himself, "These six minutes feel longer than a lifetime."

At the same time, Zhao Jianguo was also responsible for focusing on monitoring speed and altitude: "Speed ​​2.4 km/s... 2.3 km/s... 2.2 km/s..."

His finger hovered above the control button, ready to deal with any anomaly, as the screen displayed an altitude that rapidly dropped from 10000 kilometers to 1000 kilometers.

The burning continued, and the spacecraft glided silently on the far side of the moon, with the dark universe and the desolate lunar landscape visible outside the windows.

The engine roared inside the cabin, and the astronauts held their breath, hearing only the low rumble and their own heartbeats through their headphones.

At the 3rd minute, Qian Fei reported: "Speed ​​2.0 km/s, altitude 500 km, orbital curve as expected."

In the 5th minute, Zhao Jianguo shouted: "Thrust stable, 6 tons of propellant remaining, temperature 550 degrees Celsius, everything normal!"

At the 6-minute mark, Qian Fei stared at the timer: "Ignition complete, countdown 3, 2, 1, shut down the engine!" He decisively pressed the stop button, the engine shut off, and the cabin returned to calm.

Qian Fei took a deep breath: "Ignition complete, check the track."

Zhao Jianguo quickly entered the command, and the screen displayed the new trajectory: "Speed ​​1.8 km/s, perigee 100.1 km, apogee 300.2 km, orbit captured successfully!"

He adjusted his glasses and breathed a sigh of relief: "The error is only 0.1 kilometers, the professor is amazing!"

Qian Fei clapped lightly and said, "We've arrived on the moon! Now we just wait for the signal to be restored."

The spacecraft circled the far side of the moon, and communications were restored.

Qian Fei reported through his headset: "Wenchang, the lunar orbiter has successfully completed LOI. We are in lunar orbit."

Thunderous applause erupted in the control center.

The experts in the observation room looked at each other in disbelief: "Was inserting a lunar orbit really that simple?"

It was truly unbelievable to everyone.

They made countless contingency plans and calculations in the past, being extremely cautious, yet they have delayed conducting lunar orbit tests with astronauts. Isn't it precisely because this operation is difficult?
Looking at it now, it doesn't seem that difficult!

(End of this chapter)