As a highly respected senior scientific researcher, Wang Luoyi has a high degree of freedom and authority in the Institute of Optics. However, he did not use any manpower or material resources. He just immersed himself in the database every day, constantly thinking, constantly checking information and documents, or communicating with colleagues.
He was looking for a new idea, a brand new method of manufacturing very large space telescope lenses.
Optical telescopes made with traditional lens manufacturing methods have proven ineffective in searching for the dwarf planet near Sedna. So, there has to be a completely new path.
However, back on the earth, human civilization in its heyday, with tens of millions of scientific researchers, was not able to do this. Now, with a total population of less than 2 million, relying on this Is it possible for a scientific research institution with two or three big cats and kittens to accomplish this?
It seems impossible to analyze from common sense. But after careful thinking, Wang Luoyi believed that this was possible.
The main reason lies in the difference in environment.
People in the earth age did not have the conditions to enter and exit space as conveniently and quickly as they do now because the earth's gravity is too high. In Earth's time, people would think that building factories in space was a fool's errand unless there was a special need. For the new human civilization, building giant residential bases and giant factories in space is just a routine operation.
This does not mean that the level of technology is high or low, it is just that the environment is different.
What people couldn't do in the Earth Age may not be impossible now.
Of course, this road is still very difficult.
Wang Luoyi kept thinking and exploring. And this is not easy for an old man. He had thought about giving up countless times, but every time he remembered that his daughter could not even attend science experiment classes, and that even leader Zhao Changxing had cut his own resource rations, like himself, he could only take a shower once in five days and once in three days. clothes, I felt like power was born out of thin air in my body.
During this constant thinking and exploration, an idea slowly emerged in his mind.
After submitting the preliminary idea, his idea quickly received support from Zhao Changxing. To this end, Zhao Changxing specially dispatched a cargo spacecraft, carrying the tools he needed, and sailed a full 10 million kilometers, conducting experiments in a place that was almost unaffected by the gravity of any star.
In the dark cultivation cabin, some specially processed raw materials were put in. In it, in extremely low temperatures, almost zero radiation environment, and an environment extremely close to a vacuum, some strange reactions are slowly taking place.
This reaction is usually called crystallization.
The experiment Wang Luoyi conducted this time was to try the possibility of manufacturing ultra-large space telescope lenses through crystallization.
This is a completely new path. This is a path that no one has ever tried before.
The trial lasted five days in total. Five days later, when Wang Luoyi got the concave "glass" that was completely transparent and only about 9 centimeters in diameter, he was not only happy but also worried.
He didn't know whether this crystal, which looked like glass but was not actually glass, could have the properties he needed.
He hurried back to the optical laboratory in Science City.
The final test result was that the various indicators of this crystal were seriously lower than the requirements for space telescope lenses.
Transparency, reflectivity, flatness, etc., none of them are qualified.
But Wang Luoyi was not depressed at all. Instead, he completely let go and his heart was filled with joy.
So what if I fail? After all, this is just the first experiment. In fact, the performance of the first crystallization is far beyond expectations.
This presented a whole new world to Wang Luoyi. When he published the data of this study, the optical research community was almost instantly detonated. For a time, countless experts began to devote their attention to this new method.
Even Zhao Changxing was alarmed and even issued special instructions, requiring all departments to fully cooperate with Professor Wang Luoyi's experiments and do their best to meet all needs.
Under this circumstance, the second and third experiments were carried out one after another. In this almost zero-gravity environment, far away from any stars, in secret rooms one after another, crystal "seeds" are slowly developing one after another.
This experiment lasted for more than a year. When the signs of resource depletion on the two planets, Sedna and Deep Sky, became more and more obvious, the first optical telescope main lens with a diameter of 19.6 meters was finally manufactured.
It is formed in one piece and is not assembled from many small lenses. Although space telescopes in the Earth era are generally assembled from small lenses.
This was on Sedna, a planet with easy access to space, so there was no need to do that.
According to estimates, its various performances will surpass all optical telescopes made by humans in the past after all other supporting facilities, such as lens tubes, supports, etc., are in place.
At this moment, even Zhao Changxing sent a special congratulatory message to express his heartfelt appreciation.
Various supporting facilities were quickly built in the space factory, then transported to a place more than 10 million kilometers away from Sedna, and assembled here.
Yes, this space telescope with unprecedented performance will eventually be placed here, not somewhere closer to Sedna.
The main reason for this is that although the performance of this lens is high, it is also too precise and too fragile.
Its manufacturing process and subsequent operating environment must be carried out at a temperature below 10K throughout the entire process, and the temperature fluctuation during the entire process cannot exceed 0.02 degrees Celsius, otherwise the internal density will change, resulting in a significant reduction in light transmission performance.
Manufacturing and operating environments must be extremely pure vacuums because dense gas molecules can also cause damage.
It cannot get close to any large gravitational source, otherwise it will deform itself. In theory, even a spacecraft with a mass of more than 1 billion tons cannot get close - of course, humans do not have such a large spacecraft at this stage. .
At the same time, it cannot even be illuminated directly with a strong light source. Shining a strong flashlight directly onto its lens may cause irreparable damage.
Its manufacturing and operation processes are inaccessible to humans. Because the human body is also a powerful source of infrared radiation, which can damage its structure.
The impact of interstellar dust clouds will also significantly reduce its performance.
The final plan that people decided on was to build it like the Hubble Telescope of the original Earth era. In other words, build a large, deep empty bucket, install the lens at the bottom of the empty bucket, and rely on the barrel body to provide it with as complete protection as possible. If necessary, the empty bucket can be closed directly to completely protect it.
Such high requirements make its final assembly difficult. However, people finally overcame various difficulties and assembled it.
When its first real-life picture was sent back to the Institute of Optics of Science City, everyone was excited.
For its first observation, its chosen target was a distant star. As a result, people could see the corona structure of the star very clearly. In fact, after blocking the star's light, people even directly saw the existence of a planet orbiting it.
This planet is probably slightly smaller than Jupiter, and what is shown in the picture is just some pixels, and a more precise appearance cannot be seen at all. But this is already an extremely astonishing discovery.
You know, before this, the human world has never directly taken pictures of planets equivalent to Jupiter or smaller than Jupiter in other star systems! It can't even render a single pixel.
This is undoubtedly a historic breakthrough.
Facing the tide of congratulations from everyone, Wang Luoyi felt a sense of relaxation coming from deep within.
"Finally, finally... the search for the dwarf planet near Sedna is finally possible."
Zhao Changxing came over and held his hand tightly.
"On behalf of all civilization, thank you for your contribution."
Wang Luoyi looked at Zhao Changxing, who was obviously much younger than himself, but his actual age was several times his own, and squeezed his hand tightly as well.
As a scientist, Wang Luoyi also has his own thoughts on some things.
He knew that in the past dispute over whether to divide humans and sub-humans, Zhao Changxing could almost be said to have single-handedly changed the direction of the entire civilization.
Wang Luoyi believes that for a normal civilization, that is, a civilization with a normal cycle of life and death, when facing the dilemma of resource depletion, making the decision to divide humans and sub-humans is a historical trend and an unstoppable trend. .
After all, this choice has too many rationalities and too many benefits.
If Zhao Changxing dies early, and human civilization continues to change leaders like a normal civilization, then in this constantly evolving social environment, it is very possible, no, not extremely possible, but a new leader We will definitely follow this historical trend and complete the division between humans and sub-humans in human civilization.
But Zhao Changxing can live forever. He connects the old human civilization and the new human civilization. Deeply influenced by the concept of equality for all in the old human civilization of the Earth Age, he was like a needle that fixed the human civilization on the path of "equality for all", making it impossible for it to develop in other directions.
And this may be the only fundamental difference between human civilization and other civilizations in the universe.
Only in this way will human civilization be one that we are familiar with, one that we love, and one that we are willing to sacrifice everything for...
"You are a good leader. I hope that our civilization will become stronger and stronger under your leadership."
Wang Luoyi said this sincerely.
