Chapter 596 - 584: Rehearsal

The impact range of the first Ground Drilling Bomb was actually far beyond the area of the explosion; in fact, about 70% of Honshu Island felt a significant impact.

This was mainly due to the earthquake triggered by the nuclear explosion. Within just three hours, the authorities of the Island Country detected 11 earthquakes, with the highest magnitude reaching 5.2. At least ten million people felt the tremors, but there was no significant loss of life or property.

However, Nakayama Juji’s mood was still uneasy, even though several hours had passed.

With his status, he naturally didn’t need to squeeze onto the deck with tourists. In fact, the Pacific Fleet had specially invited several top officials from the authorities to board the USS Roosevelt aircraft carrier to observe the entire nuclear explosion process from the most inner circle of the alert area.

Such a show of overwhelming military strength was intended to intimidate and, more importantly, to conduct PUA. Nakayama Juji knew this was a warning from the Pentagon, and he must comply fully with their arrangements.

The IAEA’s decision to adjust the subsequent two nuclear bombs to the yield of Plan B was also quickly relayed to him. Nakayama Juji, along with other high-ranking officials, was extremely angry but utterly powerless to oppose it.

Because the IAEA officials left on a helicopter immediately after dropping the message, the stance of the Pacific Fleet was "uninformed," and there was no way to lodge a complaint.

As for stopping the IAEA’s subsequent actions?

Nakayama Juji glanced at the darker stains on the suits of several men, and the air still carried a faintly discernible smell of blood and dryness.

How could such vermin, who only scurried around in Parliament, possess such courage?

But Nakayama Juji still tactfully expressed his concerns, citing the safety of civilian infrastructure and the induction of earthquakes, and then he heard Captain Brett Crozier reply with full confidence:

"There’s absolutely no need to worry. As long as we shut down in advance and take protective measures, it won’t be a big deal. At most, we’ll lose a few satellites. The Chinese have at least two or three low-orbit satellites over their heads that will be compromised, and we will suffer similar losses."

Nakayama Juji nodded woodenly, then fell into thought as he looked at Brett’s hand resting on his shoulder:

What did he mean by "we will also"?

...

The Forward Space Station.

Guo Fan was floating next to the large panoramic observation window of the "Mouse" cabin, speedily editing a Weibo post on his tablet before passing it to Commanding Officer Li Sheng for approval.

Li Sheng glanced over the tweet and photos, and seeing nothing sensitive, he nodded and handed the tablet back.

The photo primarily depicted the flash of the nuclear explosion taken by the March in space, which wasn’t confidential as long as it didn’t involve the space station itself.

Moreover, the space station’s internet connection went through firewalls and AI review; there was no need for excessive concern.

Photos taken from the space station were far less shocking than those from the ground; under the sun’s illumination, all that was visible was a small point that suddenly brightened for a few seconds. The subsequent observations were more about meteorological changes in the cloud patterns caused by the mushroom clouds.

After posting the Weibo, Guo Fan looked at Li Sheng with some reverence. The latter had always been a very calm figure, but he had shown his military nature half an hour ago.

The March and the Tiangong Space Station had entirely different responses to the nuclear explosion on the ground.

Calculated to be on the opposite side of the Earth 10 minutes prior to the explosion, the Tiangong Space Station would avoid potential electromagnetic pulse impacts, with no need for deliberate orbital adjustments.

The March boldly decided to face the nuclear explosion directly, adjusting its orbit to pass over the Island Country right at the time of the detonation, confronting the blast from the hydrogen bomb head-on.

The electromagnetic pulse is the longest-range attack method of a hydrogen bomb. A 300-kiloton hydrogen bomb’s EMP attack can still maintain certain lethality even thousands of kilometers away.

Most microsatellites were at risk of having their chips destroyed, and the Tiangong Space Station would also be significantly affected, but the Forward was different.

Low Earth orbit satellites and spacecraft naturally have the protection of Earth’s magnetic field, which greatly weakens the radiation from the cosmos and the sun. The Forward, designed to navigate within the Solar System, had specially enhanced countermeasures.

Especially the chips, the key circuits all used ternary chips produced natively, and in theory, they could even withstand small solar storms.

After discussions on the ground, it was decided to use three nuclear explosions to conduct an electromagnetic pulse drill for the Forward, involving all 38 members of the space station.

At this time, the advantage of professional astronauts became apparent, with the military-trained astronauts efficiently allocating tasks, managing personnel with a military system, and meticulously executing all procedures according to a formal military exercise.

Guo Fan had always thought that the importance of professional astronauts would rapidly decrease after the maturity of space travel technology, but reality proved to be quite the opposite—organizational abilities of military personnel were something non-professional astronauts couldn’t match.

Since yesterday, the Forward Space Station seemed to have transformed into the Forward Space Warship with its crew under the command of Captain Li Cheng, jointly responding to sudden emergencies.

The official start of the drill was marked by Li Cheng’s shout over the broadcast system in the navigation cabin:

"Battle Stations~!"

Then, the 8 "maneuver team" members left in the axial cabin module immediately moved swiftly to their respective compartments, and the whole space station flashed with warning lights and urgent bells, creating an atmosphere completely different from before.

This unique experience thrilled Guo Fan, who declared that he truly found the tension one should feel when facing dangers in a movie scenario.

The design of the Forward indeed proved to be outstanding. Except for some external scientific detection devices that were turned off, the space station’s overall circuitry was still operating according to normal standards. Although a significant electromagnetic pulse was detected, there were no incidents of power outages or control system failures, only triggering a very low-level redundant safeguard measure—an overall satisfactory result.

Now, Li Cheng was leading a dozen professional astronauts in preparations to resist the second shockwave, while the film crew members could momentarily rest.

"Old Guo, did you send out that photo of mine?"

Wu Jing came floating over, lying on his side and looking very comfortable.

"Which one?"

"The one where I’m striking as the nuclear explosion goes off."

Wu Jing turned his head to one side and stretched out his fist, striking a punching pose. At that moment, he had seized the chance to pose next to the porthole with the nuclear flash, hoping to create the impression of a "Nuclear Explosion Wolf Punch."

"No, not yet, you can send it yourself; I’ve sent it to you."

"Then I’ll do it myself."

Just as Wu Jing was about to grab the tablet, a piercing alarm bell rang out in the cabin again, and the alert lights started flashing anew.

"Attention all units, the next shock will occur in 35 minutes. All personnel are to reach their stations within 5 minutes, ready for the second strike!

I want to emphasize that the yield of the second explosion will be doubled, and the intensity of the electromagnetic pulse will also increase. Please remember the emergency measures and execute according to plan!"

No sooner had the voice faded than the two hurriedly put away their belongings, with Wu Jing even using his limbs in coordination to crawl rapidly along the cabin walls—a new skill he had just learned.

Rather than being an actor, he now wanted even more to become a crew member of the Forward, perhaps even going on adventures throughout the Solar System in the future.