The three people on Extraordinary Journey were somewhat flattered by Paulie's rare concern. Considering that this task indeed required the guidance and help of a professional team, the three naturally did not refuse the invitation of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and even took a flight directly to the capital.
As soon as they left Daxing Airport, they saw several black cars waiting for them at the airport gate.
The leader of the team was a middle-aged man in his thirties. He shook hands with the director, Song Wenbin and others as soon as they met. After some greetings, Song Wenbin learned that this man's surname was Mu and he was in charge of the reception work of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. director.
After the film crew and Song Wenbin got into the car, Director Mu immediately drove them all the way to the city.
Song Wenbin traveled to many countries to film the show, but this was the first time in his life that he came from his home capital. On the way, he looked curiously at both sides of the street. The streets in BJ looked similar to the streets in his hometown, except that the air was much drier. He had been Drinking water with Huo Yu non-stop.
Sutina is from Yining, and the place where she grew up has been relatively dry since she was a child. However, she feels very comfortable here. She has been chattering curiously asking Director Mu of the Chinese Academy of Sciences various questions. From the quantum collider to the Mars landing plan, Director Mu was very tactful and answered her with the same content as what was said on TV.
Due to the complete lack of expertise, Song Wenbin remained silent. It was not until the motorcade arrived at the gate of Beihang University that Su Tina finally stopped asking questions and looked out the window curiously.
The vehicle passed through Beihang University and stopped at an experimental base deep in the campus.
After getting off the bus, Song Wenbin looked around. The tree-lined campus was unusually quiet. Occasionally, students with flat heads wearing glasses hurried past, holding books under their arms and looking intently. Even the air here is filled with the strong fragrance of knowledge, which is a kingdom beyond his understanding.
Hearing the sound of cars approaching, a leader in his fifties walked out of the building accompanied by his secretary, shook hands with the director who got off the car, exchanged greetings and hugged him.
"This is Professor Guo from Beihang University and the director of the Space Laboratory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences." Director Baoli held the man's hand and introduced to Song Wenbin's trio: "He is a very famous expert on space issues in China."
"Where there."
Director Guo said humbly: "We have known each other since Director Bao was at Beijing Film Academy. I was still a young researcher at that time."
The three people quickly took turns stepping forward to shake hands. When it was Song Wenbin's turn, he couldn't help but laugh and said: "Teacher Yan, I heard my colleagues from the Institute of Archeology mention you. They spoke highly of you."
"Don't dare." Song Wenbin put his hands together in a prayer gesture and said very humbly: "Excuse me, do you have any requests or instructions for coming to us this time?"
"Let's talk after we come in first." Director Guo pointed to the research institute behind him and said.
A group of people followed the director into the research institute. After entering the research institute, the quiet and peaceful atmosphere in the university was slightly broken. Some well-informed young researchers heard the news that the extraordinary journey was coming, and they all started from their own They came out of the research room and secretly gathered around the door to watch. Some brave ones even came up and asked to take a photo.
Due to the nature of Beihang University of Science and Technology, most of the researchers here are male. Those who come to take pictures are Su Tina and Huo Yu. Not many people come to take pictures with Song Wenbin, but everyone who sees him wants to take pictures with him. Shake hands and call him "Teacher".
After taking the photos, the researchers did not leave. They followed the trio of Extraordinary Journeys all the way around the institute. Some of them took photos while walking, and more and more people came.
"Honestly, I was scared when Paulie mentioned your challenge. At first, I thought it was the nonsense of some Internet lunatic. But then I heard that Musk had replied to you, right." Director Guo said on the side Ask while walking.
Song Wenbin was ashamed. He admitted that it was indeed the nonsense of a madman.
Sutina was very generous: "Yes, Musk has replied to us. As long as we can complete this challenge, he will come to China to see us!"
The researchers who were following Director Guo all stood in awe and whispered after hearing this.
"Oh I see."
Director Guo nodded and waved to the watching researchers behind him.
The researchers who gathered around Song Wenbin to take pictures held up their mobile phones and reluctantly left.
"Musk said he wanted to see you complete the challenge. Did he say he would provide you with a spacecraft?" Director Guo asked again after the researchers left.
"This...not really."
Song Wenbin said: "He only said that he would come to see us after we complete the challenge. If we don't complete it, the matter will probably be forgotten."
"That's good." Director Guo nodded, "Do you have any ideas about this plan?"
"Yes!" Sutina couldn't wait to say happily: "We plan to find a plane that flies very high, and then do a free fall at high altitude to simulate the feeling of weightlessness, and then finish eating hot pot in that environment. challenge!!"
"Um…"
Director Guo pondered for a moment and said, "It sounds like there's nothing wrong with it, but have you ever thought about what kind of plane to use?"
"I plan to look for a Concorde aircraft. That kind of aircraft can take us to an altitude of 18,000 meters." Sutina said, "It should give us more time to complete the challenge."
Su Tina was talking eloquently, but Song Wenbin and Huo Yu could only listen on the sidelines. The topic now was beyond their knowledge, so they could only leave the stage to Su Tina to perform.
Concorde...
Director Guo glanced at the secretary next to him and asked, "Has the Concorde been grounded?"
The secretary on the side quickly replied: "It's grounded, Director. It was grounded in 2003."
"It was grounded more than 20 years ago."
Director Guo looked at Su Tina regretfully and said.
"It's like this. I asked my colleagues in our company to contact us. They said that there are several Concorde aircraft used for flight display in the aerospace exhibition hall in the UK. I was wondering if I could borrow them for use as Challenge." Sutina said uncertainly.
Song Wenbin suddenly trembled for some reason after listening to Su Tina's words. This guy was so excited that he didn't notice that the leader's expression was always serious.
Sure enough, after Su Tina finished speaking, Director Guo seemed to have fallen into deep thought.
Su Tina also wanted to ask the director's opinion, but Song Wenbin quietly held her back, leaned close to her and whispered in her ear: "There are quite a lot of people watching our program abroad now... We still need to pay attention to the impact. If we Using a foreign aircraft to complete the challenge may not have a good impact, especially after Musk’s reply, this is no longer a simple program challenge...”
After Song Wenbin finished speaking, Sutina's face turned a little pale, her lips were slightly opened, and she didn't know what to say.
Song Wenbin coughed softly twice, sat up straight and said: "Director, these are just ideas of my colleagues, and they are far from being implemented. To be honest, Musk's reply was beyond our expectation. This kind of thing We haven't dealt with it before, director, do you think...?"
Hearing what Song Wenbin said, the director showed a smile and said: "I don't think this Concorde is a very good method. First of all, our country's high-altitude aircraft are also very advanced. There is no need to use the kind of aircraft that was used twenty years ago." It’s just the stuff that’s been eliminated, right?”
"That's right." Song Wenbin quickly replied.
"Secondly, I think using an airplane is too conservative. If you want to fly at high altitude, just take a rocket and it's over." The director said calmly: "Flying 20,000 meters will make people laugh when you shoot it, but you have to fly close to the ground anyway. When you go up into orbit, that’s the real space.”
Low Earth Orbit…
Song Wenbin asked Su Tina in a low voice, "How high is that..."
"Two...two hundred kilometers to two thousand kilometers..." Sutina replied softly.
Song Wenbin:......
What are you doing, boss? Is it that easy to go to space? Why do you still want us to go up there? !
He yelled in his mind.
"Rocket? Isn't it...too..." Sutina hesitated to speak. This is too serious, and there seems to be no precedent for commercial flights in China before.
"The cost is too high."
Huo Yu said: "It's too expensive to fly once. We are just doing an entertainment challenge, and we are only a commercial company. We need to consider costs and benefits. If we invest too much, we will eventually lose money. "
Director Guo waved his hand and said: "To be honest, before you, our space laboratory has made many attempts on new space food in recent years and made some breakthroughs, but we have never done any real high-altitude experiments. . Since you have raised this challenge this time, we hope to work with you to conduct a test on space food. If you are willing, we can arrange a low-Earth orbit flight for you."
"Really???"
Sutina exclaimed.
"It's true." Director Guo said seriously: "Since more than ten years ago, we have been preparing for the space observatory and the lunar base. Now the space station has been completed, but the lunar base has not yet been unveiled. The National Space Administration The strategy planned by the side is to build an unmanned detection station in 2027, to achieve manned landing on the moon before 2030, and even to establish a lunar scientific research station. But in any case, the further we go, the more important logistics support becomes. Our laboratory has Specialized personnel are responsible for the research and development of space food, but many of our foods have not been professionally tested. If there are professional volunteers willing to come and help us, I think the country will be very happy to support you in completing this test."
Seeing Director Guo's serious look, Song Wenbin was a little caught off guard. To be honest, he thought Sutina's method was pretty good, but now... is this fucking serious?
Obviously the director was serious. He opened a door in front of him and said, "Please come with us."
The film crew of Extraordinary Journey followed Director Guo and walked together into the laboratory. After passing through many sterilized hallways and sterile workrooms with many strange devices, they came to an inconspicuous laboratory. .
The laboratory is full of white equipment, and some plants and fungi grow in some transparent glass cabinets. Several staff members wearing pure white protective clothing were sitting in the laboratory doing experiments. When they saw the camera crew coming, they all put down what they were doing and stood up.
Song Wenbin looked around curiously. To be honest, he had never seen such a sci-fi place. The instruments and the plants enclosed in glass were almost like they came out of a science fiction movie.
Sutina stood beside him, patting his Huo Yu constantly, reminding them to look around. Her body was trembling with excitement. If she hadn't taken the occasion into consideration, she might have jumped up and touched him at any time.
"This group specializes in the cultivation of space species." After that, Director Guo introduced to everyone in the laboratory, "These three are the hosts of the extraordinary journey. The ones I mentioned to you are the ones who once traveled to the five oceans to hunt for treasures. Several."
Several researchers in the laboratory stood up and shook hands with the three of them. However, when Song Wenbin shook hands with one of the pretty female researchers, the female researcher who looked young suddenly asked: "Do you like eating bugs?" ?"
What? Song Wenbin didn't react for a while.
The girl picked up a petri dish from the shelf nearby and put her finger in it. Soon, when she took it out again, she found a yellow-brown worm crawling on her finger wearing a thin plastic glove.
"Do you like eating bugs?"
The girl asked again.
Song Wenbin looked at the researcher's fair and delicate face, then at the worms crawling on her fingers, and didn't know what to say for a moment.
Su Tina and Huo Yu also came over, eyes widening curiously.
"What kind of insect is this?" Sutina asked curiously.
"Mealworms are delicious." The female researcher said with a smile.
"I heard that you and Musk agreed to go to space to eat hot pot, right?" Director Guo asked from the side.
"Yes, it is…"
Song Wenbin stammered in reply.
"You have to boil the meat to eat hot pot, but beef and mutton may not appear in space in fresh form for a long time. But I think you can rinse the bugs."
Director Guo said seriously: "In the future lunar science base, this will be our source of protein for a long time."
Song Wenbin:......
Sutina:......
Huo Yu:......
"Astronaut, do you eat bugs?"
Song Wenbin asked cautiously: "I've never heard of it. Who are those in the sky now?"
"Oh, are you talking about the people on the Tiangong now? They don't eat. They eat supplies brought up from the ground. But after all, they are still in the near sky, and supplies are convenient. If you want to go as deep as the moon If we are empty and want to survive in the long term, we must consider the issue of sustainable and circular development. Xiaowen." The director shouted.
The female researcher used tweezers to put the squirming mealworm back into the bottle, stood up, and said with a smile: "Please follow me."
The female researcher took Song Wenbin to a fully enclosed white capsule next to it. She pressed the code lock and opened the hatch. After the faint white smoke dissipated, the female researcher led the three people into this strange white capsule.
Song Wenbin is relatively tall and had to bend down slightly when entering. After entering, he felt as if he had entered a space version of the Hobbit house.
There was a white or purple glimmer all around the walls, and various plants grew in the high-tech glass cabinets under the glimmer. Some of them Song Wenbin recognized, including vegetables, lettuce, cabbage, potatoes, tomatoes, and so on. He didn't recognize them at all, but they looked like various fungi. The capsule is divided into several rooms, and each room is full of greenery. After walking to one of them, the female researcher stopped. In this transparent compartment, there is a transparent glass cabinet, which is densely covered with brown Mealworms, they are eating a pumpkin and vegetable leaves, making people's scalp numb just looking at them.
"This is our Eco-Five simulation system."
The female researcher introduced to the three of them: "It can simulate a real environment 90%, including microorganisms, animals and plants, and simple ecological chains. Here, future astronauts can plant simple plants and mealworms." Without any interference from external factors, this ecosystem can support an astronaut’s self-sufficiency for half a year without any problem.”
Director Guo on the side added to the trio: "This is something no other country in the world can do. They also have ecological simulation systems, but they have basically failed."
There is no doubt that this is the most cutting-edge technology Song Wenbin has ever seen. He has never seen a place where technology and nature are integrated so well. Even though he is not very well-educated, he can't help but want to see this room. In a word, it's natural and miraculous.
Obviously, the other two colleagues had similar feelings. They looked around in the capsule and made exclamations of admiration from time to time. However, after looking at it, Sutina couldn't help but asked in confusion.
"I... have a question, Director."
"Excuse me."
"Why not raise chickens?" Sutina asked: "Since we can cultivate bugs, if we can solve the radiation problem, and there are vegetables and grains, then why not raise chickens? I mean, chickens can eat bugs, and people can Isn’t it better to eat chickens, which can also lay eggs?”
When Su Tina said this, Song Wenbin also became curious. There were all kinds of plants in the capsule, but the only moving animals were insects. This made people confused. As a child who grew up in rural areas, Song Wenbin felt that raising chickens was a natural thing. Thing is, even if you go to the moon, there's nothing wrong with raising some chickens.
"It was something we considered very early on."
The one who answered Sutina was the female researcher next to her. She said: "This is technically no problem. Not to mention raising chickens, rabbits can also be raised. But later, after many of our ground tests, we found that in long-term confined spaces It is easy for astronauts to develop feelings of loneliness, especially when they really arrive on a deserted alien planet hundreds of thousands of kilometers away. Even astronauts who have received the most professional training cannot help but feel attracted to the space they have cultivated with their own hands. Animals have emotions. If they are allowed to kill the animals around them for food, it will cause unnecessary harm and burden to the astronauts' spirits. Therefore, after careful consideration, in the early days of our lunar base, at least before there were too many people, We all only use bugs as a source of protein."
(End of chapter)
