[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-you-were-told-to-build-a-tractor-but-you-re-buil":3,"chapter-you-were-told-to-build-a-tractor-but-you-re-buil-you-were-told-to-build-a-tractor-but-you-re-buil-chapter-240":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","You were told to build a tractor, but you're building a rocket?",{"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},1305843,1735,"Chapter 240 - 234 Charter_1","you-were-told-to-build-a-tractor-but-you-re-buil-chapter-240",240,"\u003Cp>September 1st was nearing the opening date for most universities across the nation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the students of New Yuan University system, they all arrived at the campus ahead of time and then congregated at New Yuan’s B-level Base.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most of them were not strangers to this place, but ever since the flight school had moved to Tiger Mountain Airport, few had the chance to come here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When they were still about two kilometers away from the base, the students on the coach could see two massive objects on the airport in the distance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first two An-1250s, jets B4043 and B4143, were parked together on the tarmac, towering like small mountains, their exaggerated silhouettes on full display.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The students on the bus were mostly trainees from the flight school, and of course, they had seen these two planes more than once, but never in the air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whenever an An-1250 took off, the surrounding airspace had to be cleared. Any plane that foolishly got too close and caught in the An-1250’s wake could, with some luck, be blown off course, or, with less, stall and plummet to the ground; this was no joke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Over 70 buses made their way into the airport, and then the students, already versed in quasi-military training, efficiently assembled into formation. They were then guided by base staff to enter the belly of the beast through the wide-open nose of the An-1250.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These two An-1250s had undergone special modifications to transport them to Qiongzhou, where they would stay for two days to watch the New Yuan-2 rocket launch twice as a welcome ceremony for the new and returning students.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the past, they would have traveled by plane, all at once, in two flights.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The internal cargo bay of the An-1250 measured 7.5 meters wide, 6.9 meters high, and 100 meters long.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The floor and walls of its cabin were evenly distributed with screw holes used for securing cargo during transport, which now came in handy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A total of 72 rows of seats were arranged on the cabin floor, with three rows on each side and four in the middle, and a mezzanine with another 72 rows was added, resulting in 1440 seats across the two levels.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The seats were simple steel tube and canvas structures, and the partitions were just layers of composite boards. Installation took one day and one night, and with the existing screw holes, setting up and dismantling were quick.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two planes had a total of 2880 seats. Adding up the students and relevant teachers, there were just over 2700 people, enough for a single trip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Onboard, there were only simple portable toilets and no attendants, but the flight would only last a little over two hours—an endurance they could manage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The students’ flight operation with Xinyuan was very low-key. They only disclosed the charter flight to transport people externally, daring not to say that they were going to transport more than a thousand people on a transporter, lest the parents organize a protest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The students didn’t mind, as they all had entered the flight school. Except for the newbies, almost all had their basic aviation licenses and didn’t see any issue with cramming into the belly of the giant beast. On the contrary, they were ecstatic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the newcomers, it was a similar sentiment. Because of the skyrocketing scores required for majors in collaboration with Xinyuan Company, the number of admissions had dropped considerably. However, their entry experience convinced them that it was truly worth it!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What kind of school-enterprise cooperation could take you to see a giant rocket launch on a transporter before school starts? And everything being manufactured in-house added to the prestige.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although internet communication was forbidden during the flight, the cabin was still chaotic, taking over half an hour for more than a thousand people to gradually find their seats.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for the great Mr. Lin, he would also be going to Qiongzhou with them, only he’d be taking his own ARJ21 (the ultimate enhanced version), opting not to squeeze into the An-1250.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To ensure the safety and breathing of over a thousand individuals, both planes had their air circulation systems significantly bolstered, operating at full capacity throughout the flight. This made the cargo bay of the An-1250, typically known for its quiet and stability, filled with noise. Stuffing inside was somewhat of a hardship.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After more than half a year of construction, the three axial modules of the Forward Space Station were finally completed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These modules set new heights in human spaceflight technology.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a diameter of 14 meters, the colossal modules, two of which weighed 100 tons each, surpassed last century’s 70-ton \"Sky Lab\" of America, becoming the largest single-module segments ever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their manufacturing complexity goes without saying. What’s more important is the array of equipment they carry. As the core of the space station, no one can reside there while the Forward generates gravity via rotation, but these modules have to undertake the space station’s control and propulsion responsibilities, which cost more than expected.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Initially, Androff believed that it would cost between 80 to 100 million to build, but the actual manufacturing price was—390 million.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was a staggering three hundred million more than expected. The majority of the overrun was due to research expenses required for breakthroughs in massive segment technology, while some of the instruments were purchased externally, each costing tens of millions and in low production, essentially custom-made products, naturally expensive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, a lot of the externally purchased equipment required waiting; otherwise, the manufacturing of the modules alone could have been much faster.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, thousands of X32035 chips were used for the control computers, with the potential of the SC09 pushed to the limit, undoubtedly becoming the most powerful flight computer in space.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That saved a significant amount of money. Otherwise, the thousands of space-grade chips capable of withstanding deep-space radiation and interference would have cost a fortune.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Given the considerable mass of the Forward and being in vacuum, as it spun, the center of gravity was always shifting. It couldn’t align with the gravitational center but relied on the powerful SC09 to autonomously use the Hall Thrusters on the future service module, constantly adjusting to avoid veering off course.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The three axial modules: the junction module, navigation module, and utility module totalled 220 tons in mass when launched into space, about the same as the \"Sheila\" space station. Added to the current human-operated space stations in orbit—Tiangong, Sheila, ISS, Forward—the combined mass exceeded a thousand tons.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>ISS was still the heaviest with four hundred tons, but the remaining three stations, with New Yuan Company having manufactured approximately 80% of their mass, now surpassed the ISS.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The three modules were transported to Qiongzhou a week earlier, directly loaded onto two New Yuan No. 3 rockets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The navigation module and junction module were placed on the first-ever dual launch of New Yuan No. 3, not fixed directly but secured by a sturdy truss that weighed over ten tons to the rocket. They would be released and docked once in orbit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The vibration during rocket launch risked damaging the connection, but New Yuan No. 3’s low Earth orbit capability was 247 tons—130-plus tons for the two modules and truss was nothing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The other New Yuan-2 rocket was embarking on its maiden launch, carrying the expensive utility module into space, a feat unmatched worldwide...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two rockets were scheduled to launch on September 2nd and 3rd, with the announcement made public only on August 30th.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While the Forward Space Station project had been disclosed earlier, the rapid progression to launching modules mere months later created a sensation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>NACA was still basking in the joy of China’s three consecutive defeats in spaceflight, when they suddenly saw the news that the three modules, identical to those described in the PPT presentations, were about to be launched.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By September 1st, a glimpse of the assembly building at Qiongzhou Launch Site’s Launch Pad No. 4 briefly exposed to the public. The sight of the New Yuan No. 3 rocket capped by an enormous fairing wider than the rocket itself by three meters could not be fabricated. The launch was evidently imminent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Claire’s brief spell of good mood was over once more.\u003C\u002Fp>",1373,"2026-06-05T18:20:54.444Z",1,"novelbin.me","625a4a7837c1131bf7f09c9c6da650cec33f5ca9289944cd8ce9688a0b5c8bc7","you-were-told-to-build-a-tractor-but-you-re-buil-chapter-241","you-were-told-to-build-a-tractor-but-you-re-buil-chapter-239",804,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fyou-were-told-to-build-a-tractor-but-you-re-buil-cover.jpg"]