Chapter 284 - 277 Lecture_1

On December 8, India and Russia announced an agreement regarding deepening space cooperation between the two nations.

The agreement includes Russia’s participation in the development of the Gagan Yang spacecraft and India’s formal involvement in Russia’s planned 2017 launch of the "Lunar-25" mission.

The Lunar-25 lander is 1.5 tons and will be sent into lunar orbit by a Union rocket; it does not have a rover but does feature a lander capable of on-site sampling.

However, the innovative aspect is that it is the first probe intended to land in the lunar polar regions, and with India’s involvement, Russia will share lunar orbit transfer and landing technology with ISRO.

The combined budget for the Gagan Yang spacecraft and Lunar-25 is 640 million US dollars.

As soon as the news broke, everyone knew that India had definitely been taken advantage of.

After all, although the budget for Lunar-25 has not been disclosed, a reasonable estimate would be at most three billion rubles according to RKA’s standards, equivalent to less than 50 million US dollars, while ISRO paid 140 million.

Even if Russia promised to share technologies, "Lunar-25" is the successor to "Lunar-24," which was launched in 1976. This means India received technology that’s at least 40 years old?

It might even be inferior, considering "Lunar-24" had a sample return capability, bringing back 170 grams of moon soil; "Lunar-25" isn’t even up to the standard of "Lunar-24."

Of course, only those with the capability can mock, and most countries are still envious.

For example, the other half of the Star of Asia: the Island Country.

When Xiven·Samarkand returned from his trip to Russia with two cooperation projects, JAXA immediately became sour.

While India and Russia have a complicated relationship, generally speaking, as long as India is willing to pay, Russia is bold enough to sell, and they might actually teach something useful.

America is different, though, strictly limiting JAXA’s space development, often taking money without performing and intentionally creating obstacles; no matter how much money is given, it’s a bottomless pit.

Detector technology isn’t restricted, but it’s different for rockets—the high failure rates of the H2 and H3 rockets are not unrelated to these factors.

If "Lunar-25" really launches as scheduled, wouldn’t that mean India could truly master the technology of lunar surface landing, making the Star of Asia project a real possibility?

The prospects of the Star of Asia project within the Island Country are not that good, even though JAXA and Mitsubishi strenuously prove that the H-X rocket technology is mature and easy to manufacture. But as to whether the plan can proceed smoothly and whether the Island Country truly has the capacity to participate in the lunar program, there’s a lot of skepticism throughout.

The lower ranks are a bit better off, where most people believe that the Star of Asia project, which seems to have been copied from the Artemis plan’s SLS rocket, plus various pseudo-experts blowing smoke, makes them think it’s time to start selecting astronauts.

The official media also haven’t burst this pleasant bubble, deliberately letting go; the Star of Asia project is very good at boosting national confidence, significantly reducing the voices in society that completely lean toward the neighbor and finally providing a balancing factor.

However, JAXA’s internal assessment of the Star of Asia project predicts that it would require a total funding of 6 to 8 billion US dollars, which means at least 3 billion each, even if shared equally between the two countries.

billion US dollars is not a lot of money, and it’s not too difficult to squeeze it out, but the cabinet doesn’t trust JAXA’s R&D capabilities, especially a lunar rocket like H-X—it just doesn’t seem very realistic.

So the status of the Star of Asia project is now just continuous PPT presentations, but not a bit of actual research work is being done; it’s all a complete mystery.

Mitsubishi and JAXA both feel the warning signs that the plan may fizzle out, but there are also people struggling and trying hard.

"Kishimoto, please take a look at these reports."

Kishimoto Tsu, the president of the ruling party company, took a report submitted by the Chief of the police department, Rumi Yasuhiro, and scrutinized it carefully.

Rumi Yasuhiro: "In the past year, the number of our senior talents going abroad increased by 65%, and two-thirds of these people went to the continent in search of work; amongst the public, the number of supporters for an Asian concept has grown, almost becoming one of the mainstream thoughts."

"If this continues, the nation will cease to be!"

After reading through the report, Kishimoto grabbed his parted hair forcefully.

"Rumi-san, regardless of how their thoughts may change, the choice is not theirs to make, nor is it ours. Moreover, it’s just a temporary trend and won’t affect the normal development of society,"

Rumi Yasuhiro shook his head, "Your Excellency, you’re certainly right, but public opinion will influence the elections! Next year is the 98th election."

It had to be admitted that Rumi Yasuhiro had hit the nail on the head, yet Kishimoto still hesitated.

The former struck again:

"The beauty of the Star of Asia project lies in the partnership with India. Cooperating with them won’t alert the American beasts—it’s purely a civil engineering project. And it can share a large part of the funding; by simply reallocating the budget from H-3, we can support the development of the H-X rocket.

Furthermore, America, Russia, China, and Europe all have their own lunar missions. How can we afford to be left behind? We and India are the emerging forces of the future—we must strike decisively!

If under your leadership, Island Country astronauts set foot on the Moon, your status might only be second to Emperor Meiji, sung about by our people for all eternity!"

Kishimoto knew that Rumi Yasuhiro not only represented the Metropolitan Police Department but also was a symbol amongst the nationalists within the government, naturally hoping for the implementation of the Star of Asia project. Therefore, after much ferment, Rumi Yasuhiro was pushed forward.

He wasn’t wrong; once the Star of Asia project succeeded, his reputation would be matchless.

"Do it, Your Excellency!"

Rumi Yasuhiro suddenly stood up and yelled, bowing his head, which startled Kishimoto to the point his heart lurched and almost sent him off.

After getting Rumi Yasuhiro to sit back down on the tatami, Kishimoto, while massaging his chest, couldn’t help but feel a few degrees of passion stirred within him.

After a while, he lifted his head to meet Rumi Yasuhiro’s fiery gaze.

He hesitated slightly before speaking:

"If JAXA and ISRO can guarantee the completion of the Star of Asia project before 2021, then I can initiate a proposal to convince them."

Rumi Yasuhiro, excited, stood up again and bowed deeply, at an angle greater than 90 degrees.

"Yes! However, that is JAXA’s responsibility. I think you need to organize a more formal consultation. JAXA can definitely give you a satisfactory answer! We look forward to welcoming our astronauts safely back from the Moon during your term!"

Feeling somewhat elated by the praise, Kishimoto was very receptive to the admiration, comparing himself to a figure like Kennedy.

"Then let’s arrange it as soon as possible. As for joining the Artemis program, we shall postpone that plan for now, but if it really becomes feasible, I will call upon our citizens as well."

Rumi Yasuhiro’s eyes lit up, "Rest assured, Your Excellency. Sending astronauts to the Moon represents the rise of our nation. Such a significant action with great influence must be well-publicized. It requires a television address."

"No, a television address is too high-profile," Kishimoto shook his head,

"I think it’s more appropriate to do with street speeches and internet broadcasts. Yes, let’s do it in Nara City—it’s important that the public feels a sense of closeness!"

"Absolutely! The Metropolitan Police Department will ensure the security and order of the event and your safety!"