"The more we fight, the more chaos we get. The entire southeastern coast is in chaos."
In the office, Chen Nian sighed and threw a thick pile of documents on the table casually in his hand.
"There's no way. This kind of thing can affect the whole body. The location of Chiwei Island is too sensitive. If the southeast is to be fortified, that place must be occupied."
"But to occupy Akao Island, the island country must intervene. THAAD is still there to contain it. The follow-up may be more gentle, but it is absolutely impossible to expect them to have no reaction at all."
Li Xiang replied.
"That's not what I'm worried about."
Chen Nian shook his head slightly and continued:
"What I'm worried about is that the situation on Akao Island will have a demonstration effect, especially after the other party passes through the Bashi Channel, the group of restless rebels will all jump up."
“Things that have not been implemented in arbitration before may be restarted.”
"At that time, the pressure we face will really be extraordinary."
"What's even more outrageous is that once the snowball starts rolling, there will always be someone trying to fish in troubled waters."
"On the western plateau, they are already ready to move."
"The northwest side is not peaceful either. Forget it, let's not mention this."
"Let's go out for a meal first."
"Let's go."
Li Xiang, who was on the side, helped Chen Nian pack up the scattered documents. He glanced at the cover inadvertently, and when he saw the words "metallic hydrogen" written on it, he couldn't help but curiously asked:
"How is the progress of metallic hydrogen now? Why haven't I heard anything about it internally for a long time?"
"Is it not going well? Or are the resources giving way to other projects?"
"neither."
Chen Nian took the document, locked it in the safe behind the desk, and then explained:
"The project is progressing very smoothly and is even close to the critical point of producing results."
"According to my prediction, the first metallic hydrogen material may be synthesized within two weeks at most."
"But the problem is, in the early stages, we did keep a low profile on the progress of the project."
"Why?"
Li Xiang asked puzzledly.
In his view, the metallic hydrogen project is a purely scientific research project, and its essence is no different from the basic science projects that are popular in academia today.
Theoretically speaking, once it is born, it will be a huge benefit to the entire world.
Why hide progress? What’s in it for us?
Haven’t you organized global academic seminars before? In such a short period of time, the direction of the wind has completely changed?
Looking at his expression, Chen Nian couldn't help but feel a little funny.
"You haven't read the technical report on metallic hydrogen seriously, have you?"
"Well, I've seen some of them, explosives, room-temperature superconductivity, are there any more?"
"There is certainly metallic hydrogen that is an important energy material."
Hearing this, Li Xiang understood instantly.
No wonder.
Under the current situation, any news that may accelerate the change of the situation will be judged as a high-risk signal, and energy, something that will shake the foundation of the United States, must naturally be dealt with in a low-key manner.
"I understand. So this project is currently being operated under confidentiality?"
"It doesn't count. It's semi-public. Anyway, the purpose is not to irritate the sensitive nerves of the Americans and not to give them a chance to react."
"This is a matter of anticipation. When it is not expected to be implemented, we must ensure that it is kept as confidential as possible - in other words, as long as there is news about this thing, it can only be big news, because the boots have landed. , they won’t have a chance to react.”
"Understood - that foreigner, Isaac, isn't he crazy? He just pointed to this project to become famous."
"Now let him keep the progress in mind, does he have any objection?"
"Who cares about him? First of all, he is a Chinese national and must obey the organization's arrangements. Secondly, let alone him, even if Bush Sr. comes, he has to stand up and toast after eating."
".Okay, reasonable."
The two walked out of the office and walked towards the cafeteria.
On the way, Li Xiang continued to ask:
"So, if we really want to match the military's strategy and seize Chiwei Island in advance, and at the same time complete the deterrence and expulsion of the USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier battle group, what do we need to do here?"
"--I mean, what do you need to do over there?"
"With the existing equipment alone, it is difficult to pose an effective threat to the United States, right? After the upgrade of Burke-class equipment last year, the air defense and anti-stealth capabilities have been improved a lot."
"Let's not talk about whether we can beat him or not, but at least the opponent will not retreat easily."
"Once we are delayed, our plan will be equivalent to failure, right?"
Hearing this, Chen Nian nodded slightly and replied:
"Yes, the military's consideration is to use the Liaoning formation to move forward to suppress and force the Reagan formation out of the combat range. After clearing the sea area and routes, it will cover the East China Sea Fleet's entry into the combat position, and use it when 'necessary' in the follow-up. The North Sea Fleet will make up for the Liaoning ship and maintain balance in the east."
"But this strategy can basically be said to be equivalent to gambling on life. If the opponent does not retreat, then the arrow is on the string and has to be fired."
"The North Sea Fleet is not much better than the East China Sea Fleet in terms of ship configuration and advanced equipment."
"The East China Sea Fleet will be empty, and the North Sea Fleet will also be empty. At that time, the sea surface of the entire Republic will fall into an unprecedented emptiness."
"So, the military's demand for 096 and Wuzhen-9 is really unprecedentedly strong."
"It's too late, right?"
Li Xiang asked.
"It's definitely too late. Even if we organize R&D, testing, and production at the fastest speed, we won't be able to make it in time."
"However, I have an idea. If we are only dealing with a small-scale battle, a short, fast, and effective weapon will definitely be enough."
"What weapon?"
Li Xiang's face was full of curiosity. In fact, he had already discussed this issue with Chen Nian from the moment the situation gradually became clear, but the conclusion at that time was that there could not be a weapon in the world that could be used in the short term. Change the balance of power between the two sides.
Opportunistic things are impossible, especially in the field of military equipment.
But now, Chen Nian said there is a way?
"Metallic hydrogen bomb."
Chen Nian didn't show off, but answered straightforwardly.
"Metallic hydrogen bomb? Can this thing fundamentally change the situation of the war? Modern anti-ship missiles, at the level of YJ-21, don't they have two missiles per aircraft carrier?"
"It doesn't make much sense to upgrade the explosive power of the warhead, right?"
Li Xiang's eyes were full of suspicion, but what Chen Nian said next could almost be said to have subverted his view of "missile confrontation" in modern warfare.
"So here's the point. The core competitiveness of metallic hydrogen bombs is that they don't need to hit."
"Its explosive power can reach more than 25 times that of TNT. In other words, with the same charge, the bomb's killing radius will be greatly increased."
"And this level of improvement will bring another impact that can almost be said to change the way missile operations are conducted."
"That is, the threat level of near-miss bombs and air-burst bombs will increase exponentially."
"Near miss?"
Li Xiang was shocked.
Of course he knew what a near-missile bomb was, but he never thought that the increase in bomb power would have such a bizarre impact.
Everyone is pursuing a hit, and they are all pursuing a shot that goes into the soul, but the direction of near-miss seems to be in the opposite direction?
"You mean we have to think of setting the missile attack off course?"
"That's definitely not possible."
Chen Nian shook his head and continued to explain:
"According to the damage effect test data of the USS America, looking only at near-misses and air blasts, the damage resistance of this aircraft carrier's precision equipment, especially the radar mast, is about 110 kilograms."
"In other words, under an explosion with the equivalent of 110 kilograms of TNT, the ship's radar system will be completely destroyed."
"The damage resistance data of arresting cables, pulleys, and steam catapults are basically not much better."
"Currently, the YJ-21's full charge is 900 kilograms. If a near-missile explosion occurs, it can still cause effective damage to the precision facilities on the aircraft carrier under the premise that the shock wave is attenuated to 15%."
"This attenuation distance is about 250 to 300 meters."
"And if metallic hydrogen explosives are replaced, with the power increased by more than ten times, the same damage distance can reach more than 800 meters - but on the sea, this is not a very long distance."
"So, it is unnecessary to artificially set the yaw. It cannot escape the interception range of the close defense system anyway."
"What we have to do is still to penetrate the defense."
"But, one thing has changed."
"The effectiveness of the shield ship will be greatly reduced, and the so-called saturation interception will basically be ineffective."
Hearing this, Li Xiang breathed a long sigh of relief.
Suddenly there was a familiar feeling in his heart:
The combat method of the metallic hydrogen bomb seems to be very similar to a certain weapon.
None of them require hits, they all rely on range damage, and they can also damage precision equipment.
No wonder it’s called a new type of nuclear weapon
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but sigh:
"Technology will really change a lot of things - but I have a problem. Even if we can synthesize metallic hydrogen in a short time, even if we can create corresponding anti-ship missiles, the quantity will definitely not be enough."
"We still can't cause effective damage to their aircraft carrier formation. After all, their four shield ships have 800 rounds of optical anti-aircraft missiles. It's not that easy to break through, right?"
"We don't need to break them, we break ourselves."
"Defend ourselves? What do you mean? Drill."
"That's right, for the drill, as long as we take out this equipment, it will be effective. They know that we have it. This is enough."
"Understood"
Li Xiang nodded slowly, he already understood what Chen Nian meant.
Yes, the YJ-21 missile with metallic hydrogen charge is just like the mushroom cloud in the desert back then.
Whether you have it or not is very important.
But how many is not important.
Because, no matter you have one, ten, or a hundred, your opponent will treat it as if you have a thousand.
This is the most basic logic in modern warfare.
The situation is clear.
When China comes up with an anti-ship missile that can destroy the core functions of the fleet when it shines close and explodes, do you dare to bet that the charge of the next missile is just conventional TNT?
Even if your aircraft carrier can withstand it, can your shield ship withstand it?
An aircraft carrier without a shield ship is simply a living target.
"Can this thing be used in multiple scenarios? The DF-21 on the southwest island can also be modified into a metallic hydrogen charge, right?"
"Theoretically yes."
Chen Nian sighed and continued:
"But you also know that the production of metallic hydrogen is limited. Frankly speaking, it is impossible to make up a YJ-21 charge - let alone YJ-21, in the short term, YJ-83 needs We can’t even get enough of the charge.”
"So, don't think about running away before you learn to walk. Let's get over the most urgent crisis honestly first."
Chen Nian was telling the truth. Although the technology for industrialized manufacturing of metallic hydrogen has been exported, even if it is combined with electrochemical processes, the resources required to synthesize a sufficient amount of metallic hydrogen are staggering.
According to his estimate, the first laboratory experiment can be completed in two weeks.
In the following week, high-voltage laboratories across the country went into full swing to build and modify equipment, so that they could complete "abnormal" industrial production preparations in a short time.
In another week, considering the total number of high-voltage laboratories, which is about 40, and each laboratory has an average daily production of 500 to 600 grams of metallic hydrogen, the total amount of metallic hydrogen material that can be obtained in the end should be about 140 kilograms.
There is still a certain distance between the explosive charge of YJ-83, but the solution is to add more oxidants to the explosive, as well as the total nitrogen anion salt that has been mass-produced on a small scale before.
Speaking of which, it seems quite luxurious.
Materials that have the potential to subvert the entire industrial system are actually used to set off fireworks.
But there is no way, if we don’t set off this fireworks, we may lose the opportunity to put it to good use.
Chen Nian told Li Xiangyi his calculations, and the latter scratched his head and said helplessly:
"I thought the so-called industrial mass production was measured in tons, but I didn't expect it to be measured in grams."
"This is already good, what else do you need a bicycle for?"
Chen Nian rolled his eyes at Li Xiang. This guy is just a man who is full and doesn't know how hungry he is.
You know, when Lao Mei claimed to have synthesized metallic hydrogen, the weight was calculated in milligrams.
But then I thought about it, and what Li wanted to say was indeed a problem.
This kind of output is really too low compared to the demand for room-temperature superconducting materials in the entire industrial system.
In the power system, wires require metallic hydrogen, generators require metallic hydrogen, and energy storage batteries require metallic hydrogen.
In terms of transportation, every electric vehicle requires a huge amount of metallic hydrogen.
Not to mention the semiconductor industry. After the technology matures, this will definitely be the world of metallic hydrogen.
How to increase the production of metallic hydrogen to be equivalent to today's steel production is the core issue for the further development of this material.
The road is long and we can only take one step at a time.
After dinner, the two of them walked towards the office. Time is tight now, so overtime is inevitable, but fortunately, it is basically not to the level of 007, at most it is 997.
However, just as he opened the office door, the phone on the desk suddenly rang.
The caller was actually Isaac.
"Chen! We succeeded!"
As soon as the call was connected, Isaac on the other end shouted at the top of his lungs.
"This is a historic moment! I knew I was right to choose you!"
"Chen! The fate of mankind has been changed by us!"
"This is the first room-temperature superconducting material on the planet! We succeeded!"
(End of chapter)
