94: From Technological Warfare to Space Empire

Chapter 138 Ten years is too long, I'll seize the day, let's head straight to the lunar base!

He hadn't even considered the idea of ​​a lunar base.

Is this how top researchers communicate?

Why are you talking about something so high-level?

General Chen remained expressionless, but his gaze towards Lin Yu held a more scrutinizing quality.

It wasn't that he didn't understand the significance of this thing; rather, he knew that a young man like him wouldn't speak without purpose.

Lin Yu stood there, mentally considering the interpretation of each of the questions.

He smiled.

This smile was neither a bitter smile nor a forced, fake smile.

It was a genuine laugh from the heart, a laugh born of a worthy opponent.

A top expert is a top expert.

Even with his memories of the future, he still felt like he was walking on thin ice when faced with questions.

"teacher."

Lin Yu said, "I can answer your four questions one by one."

He walked to the spot where Qian Lao had just stood, facing the world map.

"Let's talk about the location first."

Lin Yu's voice became more resolute.

"The best location for a lunar base is not just any place."

"According to international research, there are several candidate regions: the equatorial region on the near side of the moon, the South Pole-Aitken Basin on the far side of the moon, and the polar regions of the moon."

He paused, then continued speaking, looking at Mr. Qian's encouraging gaze.

"My choice is... the south pole of the moon! The edge of Shackleton Crater."

Mr. Qian's eyes lit up; this was remarkably similar to his own idea.

Moreover, the lunar south pole is precisely the breakthrough point for the first question.

This kid is only 21, but he's not bragging at all.

He said he wanted to build a lunar base, and he's definitely got some skills!

Lin Yu continued, "Why Antarctica? First, energy. There are areas on the moon's south pole called the Everlasting Day Peak."

"Because the Moon's axis of rotation is almost perpendicular to the ecliptic plane, the sun is almost always above the horizon in some high-altitude areas of Antarctica."

"There are more than 300 days a year when the sun shines on us."

"Even in the most extreme case, the darkness will not last more than 3 to 5 days."

He looked at Mr. Qian.

"The 14-day polar night issue you mentioned does not exist in the polar regions."

"Or rather, it was greatly relieved."

Mr. Qian nodded in satisfaction, signaling him to continue.

"Second, water resources."

Lin Yu's tone became even more certain: "International research data has shown that water ice may exist in the permanently shadowed regions of the lunar poles."

"The interior of Shackleton Crater is perpetually dark, with temperatures consistently below -230 degrees Celsius."

"If water ice deposits, it will only be there."

He walked to his desk, picked up the pencil that Qian Lao had just put down, and drew a simple diagram on a blank sheet of paper.

"The significance of water ice is self-evident."

"Electrolysis of water yields hydrogen and oxygen; hydrogen is fuel, and oxygen is life."

"With water, the lunar base can be self-sufficient and will not need to transport water from Earth."

"The weight of the precious fuel can be used for other things."

Third, temperature.

Lin Yu drew a few more circles on the paper: "The temperature variation in the polar regions is much smaller than that in the equator."

"The temperature in the daylight zone is relatively stable, with no temperature difference of 300 degrees."

"This is a huge advantage for the base's structural materials, equipment operation, and personnel survival."

Fourth, communication.

Lin Yu put down his pencil: "The problem with the polar regions is that if the base is built on the front of the polar region, it can communicate directly with Earth; if it is built on the back, it will require a relay satellite."

"But this is not a technical problem. We can solve it by deploying one or two relay satellites in advance."

"While the robots do experience delays, as long as we launch more robots, a little waste of consumables is to be expected."

After he finished speaking, he raised his head and looked at Mr. Qian.

Professor Qian slowly began, "You are very familiar with international research."

Lin Yu's heart skipped a beat. Of course he was familiar with it, because he had read countless documents in 2026 and knew that the final conclusion of various countries' research was that Antarctica was the most suitable.

But he couldn't say that.

"Teacher, I've read some materials."

Lin Yu tried to keep his tone normal.

"For example, a paper published by SAE this year specifically discusses life support systems and site selection for lunar bases."

"The paper concluded that polar bases, when combined with plant cultivation life support systems, are much less expensive and more efficient to operate than equatorial bases."

Mr. Qian nodded in satisfaction: "You read very carefully. You're a good child. Anything else?"

After thinking for a moment, Lin Yu decided to bring out more items.

"There are also questions about lunar surface manufacturing."

He picked up a pencil and drew a simple flowchart on the paper: "In my vision, the first ones to go up won't be people, they'll be robots."

"These robots will first establish an embryonic base at the lunar south pole, powered by solar panels, using lunar soil as a protective layer, and using 3D printing technology to build a basic habitation module."

3D printing technology already existed in 1994, so it was not unfamiliar to Qian Xuesen.

However, its original technical name was Rapid Printing Technology (RP), which was deciphered after Lin Yu gave a simple explanation.

Lin Yu spoke and drew at the same time.

What is lunar soil?

It is a mixture of silicates, iron oxide, and aluminum oxide.

"Using microwave sintering technology, lunar soil can be directly melted into a ceramic-like material to serve as a protective layer."

"Using 3D printing, lunar soil can be piled up layer by layer into an arched structure. The arched structure has strong compressive strength and is most suitable for resisting meteorite impacts and radiation."

"According to international research, the protective layer needs to be 2 to 3 meters thick with lunar soil to reduce the dose of cosmic rays to a safe level."

"At this thickness, it is entirely feasible to construct using robots."

As Mr. Qian listened, his expression grew increasingly focused.

Lin Yu continued, "After the robots build the outer shell of the base, we'll send up a second batch of supplies and then build a life support system."

"The most crucial part here is plant cultivation."

"Humans cannot rely entirely on Earth for supplies if they want to survive on the moon long-term."

"A closed-loop life support system must be established. Plants absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen: human excrement..."

After processing, it can be used as fertilizer for plants; the plants themselves are also food.

"Because there is perpetual daylight in the polar regions, as long as the high temperatures are filtered out, plants can continue photosynthesis without experiencing a long period of polar night dormancy."

At this point, Professor Qian suddenly spoke up: "No wonder they are students of Beihang University; their thinking is truly consistent."

Lin Yu was taken aback: "Beihang University?"

Seeing that Lin Yu didn't know, Old Qian smiled and shook his head: "You don't know?"

"Your school started preliminary research on a lunar base in the late 1980s."

"Back in 1992, they came up with a plan, a prototype concept called Lunar Palace 1."

"It is a closed-loop ecological life support system."

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