Genius of the Rules-Style System

Chapter 1387: Chapter 660 The Most Tense Moment_3

When no similar situations had arisen, all they could do was wait.

The astronauts were even more anxious than anyone else because they were the direct participants. Only Zou Yongcheng and Lu Xiaowei had taken part in the tests related to the spacecraft’s launch.

That time, it was an experiment for the spacecraft’s launch, which ascended only fifty kilometers above Earth’s surface. The gravity and atmospheric data on Mars were different from Earth’s, so there were bound to be some discrepancies.

For instance, for Mars, ascending over fifty kilometers is roughly considered ’space,’ but the definition of space in relation to Earth is a distance of one hundred kilometers above the surface.

The Mars-1 spacecraft was ascending slowly. The ascent was in a straight line. Close to the surface, lateral acceleration wasn’t possible due to atmospheric resistance— the spacecraft was equipped with an air density detector. Only when the detector indicated that the air density was low enough to have minimal impact on the spacecraft could lateral acceleration be performed.

The method of accelerating the spacecraft was simple: tilt the central propulsor, which would cause the spacecraft to tilt, allowing it to slowly accelerate in one direction while continuing to ascend, thus getting higher and faster.

The calculated data for the mission indicated that the spacecraft would circle Mars for half an orbit before accelerating enough to break free from Martian gravity.

Once it had escaped Martian gravity, by continuing to orbit Mars for about four rounds, the spacecraft could utilize solar energy transmission to fully charge its batteries. Then, using the remaining solid fuel, solar energy, and battery power, it could activate the space shield and enter into the Z-wave satellite’s released space corridor to return to Earth.

——

The spacecraft’s ascent was slower than expected. It took seven days before ground control received a message from the ship stating that they were thirty-five kilometers away from the Martian surface and that all safety checks were okay to start acceleration.

The message from the ground command was, "For everything, use your own judgment."

"Everyone believes in you!"

These words were ones of encouragement.

Actually, at this moment, all the astronauts were incredibly nervous because accelerating the spacecraft wasn’t a simple control task. A tilt in the spacecraft could easily lead to problems, even a direct crash.

As the captain, Zou Yongcheng was very tense; his cheeks were drenched with sweat, his expression grave, as he addressed the others, "Now is the time!"

The others nodded resolutely.

Lu Xiaowei said, "Captain, you decide!"

The rest echoed, "We trust you, Captain!"

"Captain, no problem!"

"Everything is as planned. The spacecraft’s ascent was a bit slow, but it’s within normal parameters. No problem!"

The crew, speaking confidently, joined hands as a way of encouraging one another.

Zou Yongcheng took a deep breath, looked down at the control stick, then up at the others, took another deep breath, closed his eyes, and yanked the stick with all his might.

"Bang!"

The spacecraft shook suddenly and quickly tilted to one side.

Lin Sheng’s scream could be heard in the control cabin; the others were extremely tense, all gripping the safety handles tightly.

They felt the spacecraft suddenly dip as if it were falling, but fortunately, after a brief moment, it merely tilted slightly and stabilized again.

"Phew—"

All of them calmed down somewhat, then stared at the detection data again, feeling as if they had been given a new lease on life.

"No problem!"

"It’s safe! Success!"

"Ha-ha, I told you there’s no problem!"

"Who was the one who screamed just now? You gave me a fright!" Suddenly several eyes turned towards Lin Sheng.

Lin Sheng opened his mouth awkwardly, even feeling an urge to flee, but thankfully the others had gotten used to it. They couldn’t expect a regular technical engineer to have the psychological capacity of a standard astronaut, especially in the face of life-threatening danger, when even they would struggle to remain absolutely calm.

Zhang Liping promptly started to establish a link with the ground and excitedly reported, "Report!"

"This is Mars-1 spacecraft, thirty-five point seven kilometers above the surface, tilted at thirteen degrees. Acceleration of the spacecraft was successful!"

"Hoorah—"

At the same time, in the spacecraft’s control cabin, the noisy electronic sounds converted from the other end could be heard, a chaotic commotion symbolizing the excitement and joy of the ground control room.

The commander of the Aerospace Bureau’s Mars Mission said with an excited tone, "Congratulations to you, heroes of the journey to Mars!" ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm

"You have all passed the most dangerous moment; from now on, as long as you follow the original plan, you will surely make a successful return!"