The nuclear-powered version of H2, also known as H2N (N is the initials for atomic power), has very diverse uses.
The first is the expected round trip between the Earth and the Moon. At first, because NAPE's ultra-high-index base was not confident that it could be completed on schedule, H2N was the backup for the XN90 spacecraft and could be launched directly from the earth to perform lunar landing missions.
The second is that, like H2M, it assists in the construction task of the Advance space station. In this task, except for the difference in power, it can play the same role as H2M.
The third is the envisioned unmanned transportation vehicle within the solar system.
The maximum take-off mass of H2N on the ground is 135 tons. In fact, if it continues to load cargo or an external load bay in space, it can reach a mass of 180 to 300 tons. If it is propelled by three A100s, it only needs 50 tons of fuel to go to Mars.
This also means that it can fly to Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Mercury and many other planets. If it does not carry people on these missions, it can send more than 20 tons of payload (detector) there and fly back.
Since it can enter the atmosphere, it can also complete the most complete renovation on the earth, and continue to serve after adding fuel in low-Earth orbit.
For example, for future Mars cargo transportation missions, small and medium-sized cheap launch methods can be used to launch the cargo, and then H2N can use a little fuel to transport it back and forth, which is much more economical than large rockets.
Especially flying in a vacuum does not affect the most critical body structure of the space shuttle at all, and its lifespan is extremely long.
Three A100s can provide ample thrust of 30 tons. If the mass at departure is 200 tons, the window period between Mars and Earth can be completely ignored. The longest round trip time is no more than 200 days, and the shortest is about 120 days. It can be called the "Mars Logistics Express" ", consumes about 25 to 50 tons of fuel and transports up to 100 tons of cargo.
50 tons of liquid hydrogen costs about 5 million yuan. If liquid hydrogen can be produced in batches on the moon, the price of sending it into space will be very cheap. H2N space flight does not require much maintenance on the airframe, and the price-performance ratio is astonishingly high.
Of course, this kind of high-intensity service must undergo rigorous testing before it can be carried out. Nuclear power technology is also extremely difficult for Xinyuan.
Both A100 and NAPE are future technologies. Even if they can be produced today, they will require a lot of technical research, and the cost and output will not reach the level they should have been in the era when they were designed.
Many advanced processing methods are not capable of being implemented in this era. Although compliant parts have been made through semi-manual manufacturing and increased costs, whether they can achieve the required reliability requires long-term testing.
This also shows the limitations of the base: as the technology mastered becomes more advanced, even if the processing level of the base is among the most advanced in the world, it will still feel difficulties.
Therefore, even now, even though the Qingshan base has started trial production of the NAPE prototype, there is no guarantee that it will be successfully completed before the estimated time.
However, Lin Ju is not impatient, because even with Xinyuan's traditional aerospace technology level, it is enough to lead the world for many years.
For example, the new generation manned spacecraft and lander used in the Long March 10 lunar landing mission are at the same technical level as the SLS program. In terms of technical route, they are even still in the Apollo program period.
The naming of the new generation manned spacecraft has also been collected. Based on the historical origins of the Dawn Project and online voting, it was finally decided to name the spacecraft "Dawn" to echo the Dawn Project.
The cost of the Shuguang spacecraft is similar to that of the Shenzhou spacecraft, but the number of crew members and technological advancement are much higher, and it can be reused. It has been confirmed as the successor of the Shenzhou spacecraft.
The Shuguang spacecraft is currently divided into two models: A and B. Model A is the initial model, which can carry 3-4 astronauts to the moon. It can also be converted into a 7-seat spacecraft with minor modifications to undertake near-Earth round-trip missions.
Type B is the originally envisioned near-Earth multi-crew version, which can carry 11 passengers. The service cabin has also been greatly reduced. It is specially designed for near-Earth round trips, reducing the single-person launch cost to about 20 million.
Type A has already passed acceptance inspection and two ships have been built. Type B is also progressing very quickly and is expected to pass acceptance this year.
If nothing unexpected happens, the Shuguang-2 spacecraft used by the Long March 10 Yao-2 rocket (No. 1 is the first manned spacecraft) will continue to serve after being refurbished until the end of its lifespan.
…
"Faster, faster, can you do it?"
In Claire's eyes, which even brought some vague pleading, Ken Hills, Boeing's SLS system director, shook his head resolutely, and then explained softly:
"Your Excellency, Director, Boeing has done its best for SLS. We also need to ensure the FATS program and other aerospace projects at almost the same time. We told you before that 8 months is the limit for the second SLS rocket. It can’t be any faster.”
The current NACA is not the same as before. Although it still maintains its absolute leadership in space, most of its manufacturing capabilities are still in the hands of the old military-industrial complex. The main contractor of the SLS rocket is Boeing.
When the Long March 10 Yao-2 rocket was erected in Qiongzhou, Claire couldn't believe it.
6 months, a super rocket in 6 months!
And according to the disclosed launch mission, this time the lander and ascender will also be verified. Except that it is not manned, it is almost a high-fidelity rehearsal of a lunar landing mission.
In other words, if the director of CASA is bolder or plans to take more risks, then the next rocket astronauts will not have to fly around the moon, but can directly land on the moon. After all, the prerequisites are fully mature!
When is it 6 months from now? At that time, the second SLS was completed!
What will happen if Project Artemis loses to Project Dawn? An origin can be traced back to 14 years ago. What will happen if the plan to develop subsystems started 10 years ago loses to the plan started two years ago? What will happen if Ami, who has successfully landed on the moon five times, loses the first place to return to the moon?
Claire felt like her throat was being clamped by a big red hand and couldn't breathe, frantically looking for a way to speed up the moon landing plan.
The Falcon Heavy used to send the lander can be directly retrofitted with the existing Falcon Heavy, which can definitely be done before August. This is no problem.
The lander... the lander is not a big problem. Blue Origin of this world line has received a US dollar from Congress and strong support from NACA. Finally, it has not become an old pigeon of the original world line. The ground prototype test of the "Blue Moon" lander It was completed last month. According to the original plan, it can be finalized this year, and it is not impossible to accelerate it ahead of schedule.
What about the Orion spacecraft? Although it sounds risky to land a man on the moon for the first time, after all, it is a mature technology, so it cannot be inferior to the Dawn spacecraft, right? This is not a problem either.
In the end, there was only one thing left to solve: the second SLS rocket.
When Boeing said that the second-engine manufacturing cycle would take eight months, it was an exaggeration to save the manufacturer's face. Eight months is actually relatively tight and difficult to achieve, so when Claire hoped to advance it, Boeing gave a firm no. , they themselves still know it very well.
However, NACA did not dare to bet. The second Long March 10 took 6 months to manufacture, so would the third one only take 5 months or even 4 months? With the Chinese people's desperate overtime work, there will be a crazy labor force gathering, but is it really possible?
(End of chapter)
