Technology invades the modern world

Chapter 431 Freedom Space Station
Every country needs to have its own winning performance.

Soviet Russia's strength lay in its steel torrent, airplanes, artillery, and perhaps some remnants of Korolev's space program.

But it was just the afterglow.

The Kremlin has decided to break the ice with China.

They hope to freeze the disputed issues, reduce the intensity of the border standoff, and find new avenues for cooperation.

Soviet Russia's primary desire was to use rubles to purchase Chinese goods, followed by oil, technology, and large industrial equipment, with US dollars being the last option.

They also found their way to break the ice: cooperation in the aerospace field.

Among the delegation led by Kosygin that visited China were two familiar names: Pokrovsky and Glushko.

After Korolev's death, the Russian Space Agency attempted to find "professors" from China to work for them in order to catch up with America's progress.

They initially thought money would be the right choice.

But how could Qian, who was already in charge of Area 51, possibly go to Moscow to work for them?
Therefore, China dispatched Wang Xiji, a young man with some experience, to undertake this important task, and China will provide assistance for his work.

The cooperation between the two parties was very pleasant at the beginning.

Although Wang Xiji's idea of ​​a distributed control network was inconsistent with Soviet tradition.

However, judging from the experiments, this approach works for the N-1 rocket, is effective, and shows signs of a solution.

Unfortunately, the rapid cooling of relations between the two sides prevented the cooperation from continuing, and Wang Xiji was forced to return to China before achieving success.

His chosen technological approach was also destroyed.

The development of the entire N-1 rocket also came to a standstill.

A series of launch failures, coupled with the increasing emphasis on semiconductor technology, led to dwindling funding for the Russian Space Agency, rendering the N-1 rocket project virtually defunct.

Now, the Soviet Union hopes to restart this project.

This is both a step towards returning to the moon and a first step in breaking the ice.

This was not an easy decision for Soviet Russia.

In a sense, this is tantamount to admitting that we are not capable and that the project must be led by Chinese people.

This demonstrates the strong determination of Soviet Russia to repair relations under Kosygin's guidance.

Moscow, 1969

Several years later, Wang Xiji once again set foot on this frozen land.

In my memory, Moscow is a place of long winters, short summers, and almost non-existent springs and autumns.

This time it wasn't winter, so the temperature was quite pleasant.

Combined with the gunfire on the front lines of the Vietnam War, the conflict between America and Soviet Russia intensified in terms of public opinion, and the political atmosphere was equally heated.

But he could still smell the cold air from his memory; it was a feeling, a reawakening of his memories of Moscow.

He knew that this time, he was not a guest, but a returning visitor.

In the conference room of the Russian Space Agency, he sat at one end of a long table, opposite his former colleague, Valentin Glushko.

Years ago, they fought side by side, striving for a common dream.

Ultimately, however, the breakdown in relations between the two countries led them to go their separate ways.

Valentin had aged considerably, and his once upright figure had become somewhat hunched.

However, their last meeting was not long ago in Yanjing.

Upon seeing Wang Xiji's return, Valentin smiled and said, "Wang, we'll be fighting side by side again. This time, we believe we can ignite the whole thing. Just like how the Saturn V rocket continuously sent American astronauts to the moon, we will also send our astronauts to the moon."

Wang Xiji responded with a smile, his tone calm and sincere: "Of course, of course, I haven't stopped for the past three years. I have made ample preparations in terms of theory and calculation."

If our verification goes smoothly, I think we'll succeed soon.

Valentin's mouth dropped open; this was something he hadn't known back in Yanjing:

"N-1, it remains our biggest concern."

After you left, we tried many times, but we failed every time.

Rockets always disintegrate at some point after liftoff.

We used a state-of-the-art centralized control system, but it always crashed within milliseconds when faced with the complex vibrations generated by multiple engines operating simultaneously.

You're now saying that you've theoretically and computationally verified it? How is that possible?

In Yanjing, they talked about a wide range of topics.

Now, let's talk about some specifics.

Wang Xiji said helplessly, "When I was here, I said that the difficulty of solving this problem with a centralized control system is 100, while the difficulty with a distributed control system is at most 50."

Valentin said with a wry smile, "In Soviet Russia, science was never just science."

You can propose a distributed control system, you can be the project leader, and you can push it forward, but we can't.

You should know Lysenko, right?

This refers to the debate between Lysenko and Vavilov.

The two sides have been debating whether biological traits are determined by the environment or by genetic inheritance.

Lysenko's theories dominated Soviet Russia during the Nikita era, becoming the accepted theory in Moscow and being forcibly promoted in Soviet agricultural practices.

Lysenko's theory was not refuted until Nikita was exiled to the Black Sea.

Now it's Leonard's turn, Lysenko has been rejected, but the atmosphere hasn't disappeared, and the soil that shaped it still exists.

Wang Xiji understood immediately, and he shook his head helplessly as well, "Okay, I understand, I understand."

This is not something we can decide.

Let's return to distributed control systems.

We have done a lot of work in the past, but some key issues have not yet been resolved.

During my three years in Yenching, I have resolved these crucial issues.

Wang Xiji took out a thick stack of drawings and calculation reports from his briefcase.

"Comrade Valentin, do you remember what I told you back then?" Wang Xi asked. "I said that freedom is for better control."

He laid the blueprints flat on the table; it was a detailed scheme for parallel operation of multiple engines.

"The 30 NK-15 engines of the first stage of the N-1 are what we call the rocket forest."

At the moment of ignition, each engine will produce a slight thrust deviation, and these deviations will accumulate to form subsynchronous vibration.

Your centralized KORD simulation computer, faced with such a massive amount of real-time computation, was unable to make effective adjustments within milliseconds, ultimately leading to the rocket's disintegration.

Wang Xiji pointed to a module on the blueprint: "In recent years, we have acquired more advanced semiconductor technology in China."

We have used these technologies to develop a digital distributed controller.

It can be integrated next to each engine to monitor and adjust thrust in real time.

He continued, "These controllers can achieve millisecond-level communication via a high-speed data bus."

If the thrust of one engine is abnormal, the adjacent controller will immediately detect it and, under the coordination of the central unit, dynamically compensate the thrust of other engines.

This is similar to the human nervous system, where each part is independent, yet they all obey the brain's commands.

When one part malfunctions, the other parts can be quickly compensated for.

This is exactly what we need.

Wang Xi then pulled out a paper: "This is a PID control algorithm."

Each local controller monitors the engine's thrust deviation in real time and calculates the thrust that needs to be corrected instantly based on this deviation.

This computational load is very small and negligible for our digital processor.

The role of the central control unit has changed from an all-powerful calculator to a coordinator.

It only needs to handle a simplified model, such as transforming the failure of an engine into a global thrust compensation vector and distributing it to other controllers.

This distributed computing approach completely avoids the problems of single points of failure and system overload.

No one would question China's civilian semiconductor manufacturing capabilities, but these are for rockets, which require higher stability and the ability to withstand extreme environments.

Valentin was still shocked by the rapid progress made by China.

Wang Xi then took out a semiconductor circuit from his briefcase:

"This is the distributed controller we developed."

It can be integrated next to each engine to monitor and adjust thrust in real time.

It utilizes our independently developed solid-state transistors and integrated circuits, enabling it to withstand high-intensity radiation and vibration.

Valentin was troubled by the fact that Soviet Russia had invested funds in the semiconductor field in recent years, but the progress was slow.

This used up their Russian space agency's budget.

Then he became interested in Wang Xiji's briefcase. No, what kind of all-purpose briefcase is this? How did it contain so many good things?

"Your Majesty, bring out all your good stuff so I can see it all," Valentin teased.

Wang Xiji said, "Our remaining work also includes the software development of the controller. We need to write a real-time operating system and control algorithm for it to ensure that it can accurately and quickly respond to sensor signals and make corresponding adjustments."

Then comes the hot test on the engine bench. We need to install the new controller onto a real NK-15 engine and conduct a full-thrust ignition test on the ground.

This will verify the response speed of the thrust control valve and the actual performance of the controller, ensuring that it can function properly in a real, vibration- and noise-filled environment.

We also need to build a parallel test bench with multiple engines to simulate the ignition process of the first stage of a rocket, in order to verify the actual effect of the distributed control system in dealing with subsynchronous vibrations.

We need to modify the rocket structure and redesign the internal structure of N-1 to install a high-speed data bus to ensure stable communication between the 30 controllers and the central unit.

New sensors need to be installed in critical parts of the rocket to monitor data such as vibration, pressure, and acceleration in real time and transmit this data to the controller.

Valentin reminded him, "Is there something you've forgotten?"

Wang Xi suddenly realized and pulled out a stack of documents from his briefcase: "You mean simulation experiments, right?"

I have already completed the task in China.

We have used computer simulations to study the flight physics, engine dynamics, and external environment of the N-1 rocket.

The stability and reliability of this control system have been verified.

Theoretically, it must be feasible. Valentin thought this required a huge amount of work from Wang Xiji, who had been busy developing the N-1 rocket for the past three years.

He thought to himself, what kind of spirit is this? He's already back in China, and he's done so much work with the future of the N-1 rocket project uncertain. We said we were looking for a professor back then, and although Wang's abilities are not on par with the professor's, his work ethic is truly commendable.

Valentin was deeply moved.

This is actually just self-pity.

This amount of computation is equivalent to a day's work at the computing center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

As for other work, that was just incidental.

Valentin, brimming with ambition, declared: "My lord, let us begin!"

Nixon was equally ambitious.

The reversal of the decline on the front lines of the Vietnam War has significantly improved his approval ratings, which have risen considerably compared to the beginning of the year.

After all, both Hoover's death and the many unanswered questions surrounding him can be blamed on the former Democrats.

From Kennedy to Johnson, the Democrats stayed in the White House for a full eight years. You guys are the ones who ruined it.

Nixon employed two main strategies: first, to shift blame to his predecessor, and second, to emphasize how well he fought the Vietnam War.

Now, the third one is coming.

That was America's first space station.

The space station project was initiated in 1962 when Lin Ran was the White House Special Assistant for Space Affairs. He proposed the idea when he participated in a NASA budget hearing in Congress.

The project was subsequently approved.

After a full eight years, assembly was finally completed in 1969.

The installation process, which began in early 1969, lasted for six months.

The entire design of the Freedom space station is full of the style of that era.

It consists of three huge cylindrical modules: the living module, the experimental module, and the docking module.

These modules were launched into orbit in batches by a modified Saturn V rocket and automatically docked in orbit.

Finally, the astronauts, led by Aldrin and Armstrong, carried out the final assembly through complex extravehicular activities.

When Freedom completed the installation of its last solar panel in orbit, it resembled a giant, gleaming metallic cross in space, symbolizing the arrival of a new era.

At Cape Canaveral, a modified Saturn IB rocket stands majestically on the launch pad, topped by the command module carrying three astronauts.

Unlike previous Apollo moon landing launches, which received little media attention except from journalists focused on the aerospace field and a few routine reporters from major newspapers, this launch attracted far too much media attention.

After all, there have been many moon landings, but this is the first time that humanity has established a permanent home in space.

Commander Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong, and mission specialist Alan Spencer were up at four in the morning.

They enjoyed a traditional steak and egg breakfast before donning bulky spacesuits.

On the way to the launch pad, they were all old buddies; the three of them had been the main ones who completed the construction process in space in the past.

So they didn't say anything more, just patted each other on the shoulder, as if this was just an ordinary mission.

Lin Ran changed the way astronauts were used to some extent. In the original timeline, astronauts were disposable.

After you complete the mission, you become a mascot and enjoy the worship of people on Earth.

We will try our best to meet your material needs, but if you want to perform any more tasks, that won't work.

You are our hero, nothing can happen to you.

Lin Ran said, "If it works well, I'll keep using it. Aldrin has been to space countless times and ridden in rockets countless times."

He has ridden in rockets more times than 99 percent of Americans have ridden in airplanes.

Once inside the command bay, they were strapped to their seats, and the bay was filled with the hum of electronic equipment.

The countdown from ground control center came through the headset: "Ten, nine, eight."

"Three, two, one, ignition!"

With a deafening roar, orange-red flames shot out from the bottom of the rocket, and the entire launch pad was shrouded in smoke and steam.

They were pressed firmly into their seats by the enormous force.

Aldrin gripped the control stick tightly, his eyes fixed on the instrument panel, monitoring every minute change in the rocket.

“Neil, although it’s not the first time the professor isn’t in charge, I still feel very uncomfortable.”

"Yes, I feel the same way. Without hearing the professor's voice, I always feel like something is missing."

It's as strange as the chef not adding rosemary to our steak this morning.

"Rocket launch," Aldrin said calmly. "Everything is normal."

Having been there so many times, you'll be at peace when it's your turn.

“We have received your signal, Apollo 10.5,” the ground control center responded immediately. “Maintain your flight attitude. We will monitor your trajectory throughout the flight.”

Over the next few hours, they will perform a series of complex orbital adjustments. They need to precisely calculate the rendezvous point with the Freedom space station and then perform multiple firing maneuvers to ensure they dock with the station at the perfect angle and speed.

“Canaveral, we have entered rendezvous orbit and are making our first attitude adjustment,” Aldrin said, looking at the data on the screen.

The ground voice immediately responded: "Received, Apollo 10.5, we have seen your adjustment, the data is perfect."

Docking is the most critical and dangerous part of the entire mission.

NASA engineers jokingly call it the most intricate dance in space.

However, Aldrin has danced this dance far too many times.

Docking is required when landing on the moon, and it was also required when building a space station in the past.

This was just a routine matter.

He skillfully maneuvered the command module, slowly and steadily approaching the Freedom.

When the command module was only a few meters away from Freedom, they could clearly see the space station's metal hull and solar panels.

Alan Spencer was far less relaxed than the two beside him. He was nervously monitoring the data inside the cabin, and his voice was transmitted to Aldrin via radio: "Distance two meters, speed 0.05 meters per second, angle three degrees to the left."

In the final moments, Aldrin took a deep breath, putting all the data out of his mind and relying solely on his intuition honed over many years.

"Soon, soon," he said softly, as if talking to himself, or as if speaking to the Liberty.

Finally, with a dull click, the docking was complete.

“Canaveral, this is Apollo 10.5. We have docked safely,” Neil Armstrong said calmly.

A huge cheer erupted from the ground control center.

They knew that the hardest step was over.

It was already the second day at Cape Canaveral.

The meeting here is a traditional one, which usually takes two days to complete.

Because the spacecraft will first enter an orbit slightly lower than the space station, and then gradually increase its orbit through multiple ignitions to approach the space station.

This method is more fuel-efficient and safer.

Unless there are special needs, quick rendezvous of a few hours are generally not undertaken, even in the context of 2020.

Beside the launch pad, a gentle sea breeze caressed Nixon as he stood on the podium.

The smoke from the rocket had long since dissipated, but the deafening roar seemed to linger in the air.

Under everyone's gaze, Nixon walked onto the stage, his face as serious as ever.

He began to speak, his voice carrying through the sea breeze to everyone present, and also reaching every corner of the world via radio and television signals.

"My fellow Americans, today our astronauts have successfully entered the first space station in human history."

As we conquer the moon, we will also conquer the skies above us, and America's flag will fly throughout the universe!

His words resonated deeply.

"This is not an easy journey; it is another leap forward for mankind."

It tells us that humanity's future in the universe will arrive sooner than we imagine.

We will establish our outpost in space, from where we will set off to explore the more distant parts of the universe.

This is a victory for freedom, a victory for humanity.

Nixon paused, his gaze fixed on the distance, as if piercing through the clouds to see the Freedom space station gleaming with metallic light in space.

"For centuries, our people have been exploring new horizons."

Our ancestors crossed the Atlantic Ocean and conquered this continent.

Today, our astronauts are conquering a completely new ocean—a boundless, endless cosmic ocean.

He turned around, facing the crowd below the stage, his voice filled with passion.

"I assure you, the United States will not stop its exploration."

We will continue to invest in space, and we will continue to push the limits of science.

Because we know that the conquest of space is not only for science, but also for the future of humanity.

It will bring us new technologies, new energy, and new lifestyles.

It will give our people a better future.

Today, we are witnessing the birth of a new era.

We have witnessed human courage, wisdom, and determination.

We have witnessed that human dreams can transcend any boundary.

He waved to the crowd, feeling incredibly relaxed. The Vietnam War was progressing well, and soon he would be able to lead his soldiers back to Washington for Christmas.

North Vietnam was easily defeated.

The space station has been launched again, possessing its own territory in space, something even the Soviet Union couldn't achieve.

"Thank you, and may God bless America!"

(End of this chapter)