Chapter 674 - 655: Star Raft

B-class base.

"Take it down, take it down, all these useless things must be completely dismantled!"

Inside the general assembly workshop, the already assembled Typhoon nuclear-powered spaceship was pushed to the central position, undergoing its final modifications before flight.

Xiao Okada climbed into the cockpit of the Typhoon, directing a group of "workers" to dismantle the interior decorations.

Upon hearing his command, several shorter but sturdily built "workers" crawled inside.

A mechanical arm, exposing lightweight, high-strength composite material, reached into a waist bag, pulled out a tool, and began to proficiently work, swiftly removing the decorative soft-pack wall tiles.

With the help of these tireless, skilled, and powerful workers, the entire cockpit interior was quickly stripped down to bare metal boards and various interfaces, with all superfluous elements dismantled.

It wasn’t the first time humanoid robots had entered the production line, but this batch of "workers" were the latest generation "Warrior III," encompassing performance, quality, and price, marking the first time they had replaced manual labor on a large scale.

The first batch of "Warrior III" numbered 100 units, each weighing less than 100 kilograms, standing 1.6 meters tall, possessing thrice the strength of an average human, and boasting an operation endurance of up to four hours. If they ran out of power, replacing a battery would get them working again.

Their primary role was to replace labor-intensive, yet low-tech external labor. Besides increasing efficiency, the most evident benefit was actually the reduction of accident rates.

For large manufacturing enterprises, the equipment handled by frontline workers was often heavy and large, where a slight mishandling could lead to serious accidents, especially during the general assembly phase which requires multiple liftings—accidents were inevitable. New Yuan was no exception, though it had fewer such incidents.

However, the purpose of "Warrior III" was still to achieve full automation of the production process combined with OGAS2.0, and labor would no longer be a factor restricting production efficiency.

For example, the team working on modifying the Typhoon consisted of 25 robots and 7 humans, with the latter mostly undertaking supervisory roles.

Xiao Okada was very satisfied with the current work efficiency; the more weight the Typhoon shed, the more payload it could carry.

The Typhoon’s plan was to set sail in May, and in order to execute a sufficiently long mission, it would be modified "beyond recognition."

All equipment necessary for human survival was completely emptied, and fuel tanks were added to the cockpit so that, combined with the fuel stored in the body, there would be 160% of the previous amount.

The original cargo bay would hold a super-large detector weighing 45 tons, including a main body of 32 tons and as many as six landers, each weighing 2 tons.

The 32-ton main detector was named "Star Raft," yet another patchwork product.

Its detection component was almost entirely transplanted from "Departing Fire," with most parts being spare parts left over from the production of "Departing Fire"; however, to enhance detection capabilities, everything that could be found in the base in a short time was moved on board, including a nuclear reactor.

In addition, it secretly transplanted the laser system from the ground backup of Thousand-Jun Stick No. 1, just in case.

The "raft" in "Star Raft" means a wooden raft, signifying a spacecraft or an extraterrestrial visitor.

The preparation for Star Raft was rushed, and even after two months, the progress was only at 50%. It needed to be completely finished before mid-April, then sent to Saturn.

Besides Star Raft, the remainder of the cargo bay was also packed with two comprehensive Mars exploration satellites, ready to be dropped off by gravity assist as it passed Mars.

The 2018 Saturn opposition would be a "lesser opposition," when Saturn is farthest from the Sun. To reach its destination within one year, the Typhoon would mount two huge fuel tanks on both sides of its body at launch, reaching a total mass of 310 tons and using up a full 230 tons of liquid hydrogen fuel.

The demands of the Typhoon, together with the upcoming launch of CZ-18, once again depleted nearly all of the country’s liquid hydrogen fuel reserves.

Compared to the methodical state team, New Yuan’s every move was so rapid that even they barely managed to keep up.

Xiao Okada had just inspected the progress of the Typhoon and was planning to check on the production status of the six specially expedited landers when he heard the gradually fading roar of jet engines.

An on-site electric vehicle from the direction of the runway drove over and quickly stopped in front of him.

"Harasho, hoo!"

Xie Liaofu jumped out of the car, shouting loudly,

"Let’s go, old Xiao, let’s have a drink together. There’s nothing but endless sand in the northwest."

Xie Liaofu, who had been gone for half a month, seemed to be in a good mood, and Xiao Okada didn’t have to guess hard to know why:

"NPAE test successful?"

"It’s more than successful. Cheng Nankai is a genius. The radiation levels in the exhaust have reached the design’s lowest values and can be used frequently within the atmosphere.

I won’t talk about the other data. The main thing is I’ve persuaded the military! They’re beginning to consider converting two of the remaining three aero-space planes to NPAE.

Let Androff’s Star Factory expand at full blast! We also need to start working overtime to produce two NPAE versions of our own, those bulky spaceships will never need to return to the atmosphere again.

Speed up the production of the XN90; our production capacity is very tight!"

Xie Liaofu spent half of his time away painting a rosy picture for the military. The excellent performance of the nuclear-powered aero-space planes, combined with the good showing of NPAE, succeeded in convincing everyone, and the biggest social obstacle was removed.

Xiao Okada politely declined the offer to celebrate with a drink but was still happy for him:

"Now we have more income. Last year we were worrying about money, but the recent military projects are enough to support us for a long time. The military-industrial complex is really profitable."

"And that’s not all. Oh, Lao Ye has gone to Beijing to find Wu Yunfeng, he told me to pay attention to the base’s security, especially the production sites, and to refuse entry to any unrelated personnel.

We’ve got a big job coming up, those high-energy physicists are incredibly busy."

"What?"

"Controlled nuclear fusion. For the EAST project, we have been eagerly waiting. Previously, old Cheng went there but didn’t get much access, but now it’s their turn to actively approach us.

"The laser and strong magnetic technologies are critical for the ignition devices; we now basically understand the entire EAST project.

If the weak force and gravity group achieve a breakthrough, we might as well start working independently. The Space Research Center might not even start operating until June; everyone is too busy now."

The TEPA accelerator, EAST tokamak reactor, and the upcoming Space Research Center make up the three important lines by which the base would reach new scientific frontiers, practically covering theoretical and practical aspects in various fields.

Even Xie Liaofu himself had begun to earnestly study this knowledge. The era of chemical rockets was coming to an end, and the projects he would lead in the future should at least be interstellar spaceships on the scale of the March.