[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-technology-invades-the-modern-world":3,"chapter-technology-invades-the-modern-world-technology-invades-the-modern-world-chapter-62":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Technology Invades the Modern World",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2269546,4430,"Chapter 62: The Hidden Rules of the Spacecraft Design Competition","technology-invades-the-modern-world-chapter-62",62,"\u003Cp>“Then let’s step back further—spend fifty million first to buy two Atlas rockets from Convair, and then attempt an orbital docking?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Ran mimicked a spacecraft with his hands, clasping them together in midair:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“See, the spacecraft docks in orbit.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No matter which design we choose, if we want to reach the Moon, we can’t avoid rocket docking. If we lead in this technology, NASA won’t be able to avoid us unless they reinvent the wheel.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>John Morgan said: “Bro, think of something else.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The Atlas rocket originated from the SM-65 Atlas intercontinental ballistic missile, deployed by the Air Force a few years ago.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“According to what I know, each unit costs about five million dollars, and if sold, it’d be at least eight million.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Besides, we can’t buy them at all—even though Convair manufactures them, ownership and usage rights are held by the Federal Government.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So forget it. Just get an order from NASA first.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>During this period, Lin Ran visited General Aerospace frequently; the proposal was about to be submitted to NASA, and it would be ridiculous if they didn’t even pass the first round.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the process, Lin Ran met Jim, an engineer recruited by John Morgan from Glenn Martin Company—more precisely, the Chief Engineer, Jim Chamberlin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was also a hugely famous figure, a Canadian.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In February 1959, Canada abruptly canceled the Arrow rocket program, leaving 14,000 employees at aerospace factories near Toronto, Ontario, unemployed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It also drove Jim Chamberlin, chief aerodynamicist of the CF-105 fighter, to leave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He initially worked at Glenn Martin; after their project was rejected, he joined NASA and became chief engineer for the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo manned space programs, seen by Canadians as a symbol of brain drain to America.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because of Lin Ran’s appearance and the split of General Aerospace, Jim’s fate took a turn—he was recruited by John Morgan from Glenn Martin to become Chief Engineer at General Aerospace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Randolph, why did you decide to add thirteen tons of liquid oxygen\u002Fliquid hydrogen propellant and three LR-115 engines, transforming the lifting-body design into a blunt-body reentry design?” Lin Ran had finally come to the company, and Jim seized every moment to talk with him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Previously, when Lin Ran was in Xiangjiang, communication had to be remote, which was terribly inefficient, leaving many questions unanswered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jim Chamberlin’s view of Lin Ran had shifted from scrutiny to admiration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At first, he assumed that as a mathematical master, Lin Ran might only offer advice from a mathematical perspective—he couldn’t understand why other engineers revered him so deeply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this era, earning the respect of white engineers was no easy feat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Later, as remote communication continued and the project progressed, he truly became convinced—Lin Ran was far superior, not in isolated points, but in overall mastery.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The current design was clearly superior in every aspect compared to his original one—even the aesthetic quality of the blueprints was ahead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Ran explained: “We’re designing for a lunar landing mission, not a lunar orbit mission.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The entire spacecraft must land on the Moon’s surface, so the additional thirteen tons of liquid oxygen\u002Fliquid hydrogen propellant and three LR-115 engines provide descent capability.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We didn’t choose the lifting-body design because it requires too many control processes.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“More control processes mean more subsystems, and more subsystems mean more risk. We need to keep it as simple as possible, reducing technical difficulty, not increasing it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This design helps the lander withstand lunar landing impacts, reinforcing the structure of both the command module and the service module.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The entire mission shifts from simple orbital maneuvers to complex descent and potential ascent phases.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Under these conditions, you must consider both descent and ascent simultaneously. A lifting-body design would be not only more complex but heavier, requiring a more powerful rocket.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s another potential point of failure.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Ran stared directly at Jim, his gaze sharp, utterly confident in what he said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was no wonder—he was intimately familiar with the Apollo program.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had read countless historical documents.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was only one step away from having participated himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Even if we pass the preliminary review, future optimizations will require careful propellant allocation to balance thrust demands between descent and ascent phases.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This variant ensures T-410’s reentry is moderately controllable. Look—here we added four aluminum alloy control flaps, and a composite heat shield made of ablative material and high-temperature alloy (to ensure the solar panels remain protected and continue powering the spacecraft in space).”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Pair these two electronic systems with the propulsion module. Besides the lunar landing spacecraft’s electronics, we also need engines and liquid fuel.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ensure T-410 uses the lower stage connected to the rocket adapter ring during its journey to the Moon.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Only then can it truly land on the Moon.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jim looked at Lin Ran with admiration; Lin Ran, meanwhile, thought these details weren’t the real issue—what mattered was gaining the approval of Maxim Faget, Chief Designer at NASA’s Manned Spacecraft Center.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From declassified Apollo landing documents, the unspoken rule of every spacecraft design competition was: whatever Maxim Faget wanted, Maxim Faget got.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maxim Faget held an implicit veto power from NASA.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nothing else mattered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>John F. Kennedy won the election on November 8, 1960.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After winning, he gave a speech.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That Christmas, Professor Horkheimer returned to Germany for the holidays; John Morgan spent the New Year with his family at their villa.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huang Yunji, editor-in-chief of the American Chinese Daily, learned Lin Ran was alone and strongly invited him to celebrate the New Year at his home, saying he was alone too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unfortunately, NASA’s initial bidding round had ended; General Aerospace had advanced to the semifinals, and Lin Ran had undergone the first round of investigation by federal authorities.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the surface, this was the first round, and after it concluded, they explicitly told him that any future travel abroad required prior notification to them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Ran politely declined to avoid causing Huang Yunji trouble, given the sensitivity of Huang’s identity and workplace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had originally planned to go to New York’s Times Square, intending to spend Christmas and the last day of 1960 there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as he had arrived, he would stand at the center of Times Square, under the neon ball marked “1961,” surrounded by countless doors nearby.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he hadn’t expected Fred to invite him to spend Christmas at his place—it struck Lin Ran as utterly fascinating.\u003C\u002Fp>",1062,"2026-06-19T21:37:46.551Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","5aef0af63ca417710ede63408f2bfc2643900fad5c3dcfd894ec989f35687e47","technology-invades-the-modern-world-chapter-63","technology-invades-the-modern-world-chapter-61",162,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Ftechnology-invades-the-modern-world-cover.jpg"]