Rebirth 99 to become a car giant.

Chapter 966: Explosion and Honor
"This starship is more like a spaceship than a rocket."

Fang Sisi followed Cao Yang here today to join in the fun.

Such a spectacular industrial product appears before our eyes. It would be a shame not to see it with your own eyes.

"The Starship spacecraft has 1000 cubic meters of pressurized space, which is larger than the International Space Station and Chang'e Space Station, and can be equipped with more than 40 cabin spaces."

"So the Starship rocket can indeed be understood as a spacecraft, a space station and an interstellar spacecraft in itself."

“Its pressurized space is almost the same as the International Space Station and the Chang’e Space Station.”

"If we want to build another Chang'e space station, it can be understood that traditional space stations need to be launched many times continuously to be built."

"But we only need to use a starship to launch it, and the efficiency is completely different. After all, our original intention of designing it was to use a starship to carry 100 people to Mars."

“With Starship, the docking problem between rockets and space stations can be omitted, and because the internal space is large enough, it will be able to capture satellites already in orbit for on-site repairs in space or bring them back to Earth for disposal.”

"It is also possible to shift orbits according to customer requirements, such as moving a satellite from its current orbit to another designated orbit."

“Of course, we can also return satellites to Earth upon request of customers who have lost control or have lost control of the satellite but wish to have it returned to Earth.”

"In short, Starship is definitely the greatest product of this era."

There was absolutely no exaggeration in Zhao Siyu's praise of the starship.

After all, its parameters in all aspects are far superior to those of its peers.

Previously, everyone only knew that Venusstar Technology was researching a rocket larger than the Venusstar 9 MAX, but some particularly specific information was not released to the public.

This time the experiment will be officially launched, and some information can be gradually disclosed.

Anyway, for most countries, even if they know this information, there is nothing they can do.

They simply don't have the ability to develop products like starships.

The only possibility is Space Exploration Technologies Corporation.

After all, this is what people have done in history, and Musk had this purpose in mind when he founded the company.

"This starship is so great, the technologies involved must be very complicated."

“We are conducting a live webcast for the first time. Are there any risks?”

Fang Sisi herself works in the media industry, so she naturally knows that publicity is a double-edged sword.

If you are not careful, you will hurt yourself.

Over the past two years, every rocket launch by Venusstar Technologies has been live broadcast.

Internet users across China have become accustomed to Venustech launching a rocket every now and then.

But this time the rocket is naturally different from the previous ones.

"Mr. Fang is right. I also think that the first test may not go so smoothly."

"The number of parts used on the Starship is twice that of the Venus 9."

"Although we have already done some confirmation on the engine before, this is the first time that the overall test of the Starship prototype has been carried out."

"It is not ruled out that there may be some accidents during the operation of the engine."

It is not appropriate for Zhao Siyu to say this, as it would seem that he has no confidence in the product he developed.

However, the situation was different after Fang Sisi took the initiative to bring up this topic.

He continued to raise his concerns along this topic, which seemed much more normal.

"There are definitely risks, but I think it doesn't matter even if we fail."

"Being able to produce the starship is already a huge success."

"Today we conducted the first bench test of the prototype, and we will achieve the first launch this year. We will continue to improve it next year and strive to put it into use the year after."

"As long as our own plans are developing step by step, some failures in the middle are normal."

"It is even possible that our starship prototype will explode after launch when it is tested in the future."

Although Cao Yang was personally involved in the design and production of the starship, integrating so many parts together is something that neither Venustech nor Aerospace Technology, or even aerospace personnel around the world have ever thought of.

Therefore, even if there is no problem with the design, it is normal for some problems to arise during the production process.

As long as we can find a solution and fix it quickly when a problem arises, that's fine.

Anyway, the Raptor engine, the core of the Starship project, has completed major testing and confirmation work, and the technology is already very mature, so there won't be any major problems.

As for other problems, we can only deal with them as they come.

"I'm afraid that if we fail, our competitors will use it to hype us up and dampen our morale."

Fang Sisi could generally understand Cao Yang's thoughts.

However, Venusstar Technology's competitors certainly do not want to see them develop so well.

"If we start testing Venusstar 9 now, we will be laughed at if we fail."

"But this time we are testing the world's largest rocket project, so even a failure would be a remarkable achievement."

"As for this prototype of the starship, even if we take out the blueprint data, there are not many institutions that can produce it."

Cao Yang has made up his mind that all bench tests and launches of the starship should be broadcast live to the public so that everyone can feel the pressure brought by the huge size.

And these pressures are a powerful tool to enhance the reputation of Venusstar Technology.

This is just like when Nanshan Semiconductor announced that it had tackled the 3-nanometer process technology, it encountered difficulties and failed in the first tape-out.

Those competitors who have not even mastered the 7-nanometer process technology will certainly not laugh at Nanshan Semiconductor because of this failure.

You may even feel more stressed.

Because the other party has already entered the substantive new product testing and confirmation stage.

Even at the traditional development speed, this product is relatively close to mass production.

Not to mention that Venustech always takes an unconventional approach, which has brought a lot of surprises and pressure to everyone.

"Mr. Cao is right. Our Starship is definitely the most advanced high-tech product in the world. It not only uses a large number of 7-nanometer chip process chips and T1200 high-end carbon fiber composite materials, but also uses gallium nitride power components and various new material processes."

"In this case, the technological sense of the starship is unquestionable."

"Even if there are some unexpected events in our experiments, everyone will only feel that Venustech's pursuit of innovation and development is unmatched."

Zhao Siyu quickly adjusted his tone based on Cao Yang's attitude.

Whatever the boss likes, the people below will naturally follow suit.

There is absolutely no way to avoid this.

"What you said makes sense, so let's continue the live broadcast."

Fang Sisi just mentioned it casually, so there was naturally no need to insist on her point of view.

At the same time, some footage of the pre-test preparations began to be seen by a large number of netizens through live broadcast.

If you just look at the starship, you may not feel anything.

After all, there is no way to directly see its huge size through the screen.

But when some engineers also appeared on the screen next to the starship, a contrast gradually emerged.

Each engineer looks so small against the backdrop of the starship.

At this time, the host put up a comparison picture of the Starship and Venus 9, and everyone finally had a direct understanding of the exaggerated size of the Starship.

"At 120 meters, it's like a 40-story building, taller than the neighborhood where I live."

"With a diameter of 9 meters, it really feels like a building has been launched into space. It's really exaggerated."

"If this thing wasn't produced by Venusstar Technology, I would think that everything on the screen was fake 3D content."

"It is incredible that the Chang'e space station can be launched into space in one go."

"Products from Nanshan must be top quality. I was already captivated by the appearance of this product."

"Mr. Cao, do you really plan to vacation on the moon or Mars in the future? You actually built such an outrageous starship."

"I didn't expect that such an amazing aerospace product was first developed by a Chinese company."

"Haha, NASA must be jealous. The Saturn V, the world's largest rocket they have been bragging about, is not even as big as the Starship from Venus Technology."

"The starship is truly the pinnacle of industrial products created by humans. Even aircraft carriers cannot be compared with it."

“I’m really looking forward to seeing the starship heading towards the moon and Mars.”

"Why do I feel like I might actually be able to leave the Earth and travel in this lifetime? I'm really looking forward to it."

……

Various comments quickly made Starship a hot topic.

At the same time, the official Weibo account of Venusstar Technology also released some official pictures of the starship.

This kind of picture, which is selected from a special angle, will definitely have a huge impact on people.

Many people were already getting restless before the experiment officially began.

"Boss Cao, can I go and see your starship test next time?"

Qian Junfeng regretted not communicating with Cao Yang in advance, otherwise he would have wanted to see it on the spot this time.

"You're welcome anytime!"

"We expect to conduct at least five tests for each of our tests."

It has been broadcast live to the public, so there is naturally no problem if Qian Junfeng wants to come and watch it live.

"Mr. Cao, are the starship data mentioned in the live broadcast our original design goals, or are they the actual product data produced now?"

Obviously, Qian Junfeng felt that the data he saw were too exaggerated.

Compared with the Starship, the Long March 5 that they are developing is totally inadequate.

There is no one-size-fits-all approach, either in terms of recyclability or in terms of various sizes.

The key point is that their Long March 5 has been in development for many years, but has not yet been officially put into commercial launches.

However, the starship is planned to be officially put into use the year after next.

“Naturally, it’s the actual production data.”

"After today's test, we will produce the second Starship prototype in the second quarter. You can come and visit and experience it then." "Who knows, one day we can take a Starship to the moon or Mars together."

What Cao Yang said was not entirely a joke.

Although the main purpose of the starship is to march to Mars, there is definitely no problem in using it to land on the moon.

When the lunar base is built, we can use starships to carry passengers from Earth and land directly on the moon.

If such a journey were really realized, the development pattern of human beings in outer space would be completely overturned.

Now it seems that this day is not so far away.

"Then I have to come."

"Mr. Cao, I think the cooperation between Aerospace Science and Technology and Venusstar Technology can be further deepened. Both sides can leverage their respective strengths and jointly advance into the moon."

Qian Junfeng must be feeling a sense of crisis now.

The gap between the two sides is getting bigger and bigger, and the living environment of aerospace technology will become worse in the future.

Not to mention how the relevant departments will view this issue, just on the Internet, there are many people who compare Aerospace Technology with Venus Technology. Needless to say, the final conclusion is that it will definitely make people in Aerospace Technology very unhappy.

Some people even directly said that Qian Junfeng and his team wasted taxpayers' money.

This kind of pressure was relatively rare in the past, but with the rapid progress of Venustech in the aerospace industry in the past two years, the situation is completely different.

"No problem. Mr. Qian can arrange a professional technical team to come over, and we can discuss ways to cooperate."

If you want to get Venusstar Technology for free, that’s definitely not possible.

However, some cooperation can be carried out.

Cao Yang even thought that some business could be further outsourced to Aerospace Science and Technology.

In the future, Aerospace Technology will simply assist Venusstar Technology in the aerospace field.

Of course, the other party probably wouldn't want to.

Cao Yang exchanged pleasantries with Qian Junfeng for a few minutes, and then listened to Venusstar Technology's report on the preparations in various aspects.

Soon, the test will officially begin.

Since the starship has been fixed on the launch pad, this is just a pre-launch ignition test, which will not last long.

All the necessary preparations had been completed, so Cao Yang asked Zhao Siyu to start the test according to the established process.

Whether it is for aircraft engines or rockets, the first "test run" is a relatively important matter.

Only after this round of testing is successfully passed, can the project see the dawn of mass production.

The first stage of the starship has a super booster composed of 33 Raptor engines. At the moment of ignition, the blue light emitted by the engine gives people a very mysterious feeling.

All the engines ignited smoothly, which was a smooth start.

But this is just a beginning after all.

Soon, the technicians began to increase the thrust, and through the camera, it could be seen that the flames emitted by the Falcon on the gantry were becoming more intense.

This situation lasted for twenty seconds, and then the maximum thrust performance was tested.

But this time, Starship's luck seemed to have run out.

After the engine thrust was adjusted to the maximum value, just a few seconds later, one of the engines malfunctioned and stalled.

Then a nearby engine suddenly caught fire.

Warning signals lit up on many screens in the flight control hall and alarm bells rang.

Without Zhao Siyu saying anything more, Cao Yang knew something was wrong.

At this moment, a loud noise was heard, and the starship on the platform exploded directly.

Although everyone had prepared themselves mentally and taken some precautions against the starship explosion.

But when it really explodes, it will definitely affect everyone's mood.

Especially Zhao Siyu, his entire face turned pale.

"We were able to complete all the previous tests, but there was a problem during the final stage of the maximum thrust test. This has proved that there is no major problem with our design, but there is a flaw somewhere. We can find the problem, improve it, and then retest it."

Cao Yang took a deep breath.

What the team needs at this time is definitely encouragement, not blame.

There is no point in making unnecessary accusations and losing your temper.

"Mr. Cao, I will immediately organize a technical team to analyze the cause of the explosion, try to identify the problem within three days, and then start to make corrections immediately."

Zhao Siyu took a deep breath.

The boss didn't get angry, which was a good result.

However, he must take everyone to find out the problem as soon as possible.

Fortunately, judging from the current test results, there should not be any major problems with the overall design of the starship, and only some specific details need to be changed.

For example, the installation parameters or angle of a certain part on the Raptor engine, or the adjustment of the design plan.

No matter which one it is, it is not that difficult to match them.

However, from this perspective we can also see the investment risks in the aerospace field.

A problem with a small part may result in billions of investments being wasted.

The cost of producing the starship alone would be staggering if one more test was conducted.

This is the cost without amortizing R&D expenses.

If the development costs were amortized, it would be even higher.

Since there were various contingency plans before the test, even if there was an explosion, it would not cause everyone to panic.

All departments need to do is respond according to the plan.

Even the official Weibo account of Venustech Technology immediately sent out the prepared manuscript.

[Although it exploded, it is still a glory], these four simple words, combined with various pictures of starships, can be regarded as an explanation for today's explosion.

Cao Yang also said on his Weibo that today's test results met expectations, and that in the next stage they would find the problems as soon as possible, make corrections, and then restart the test.

The plan to put the Starship into service next year will not be affected.

Of course, to some people, these words may be seen as covering up failure.

When they saw the scene of the starship exploding, they were happier than anyone else.

"Musco, it seems that the progress of the starship development of Morningstar Technology is not as smooth as we thought. We still have a chance to catch up."

Gryffin felt that the air was particularly sweet today, as if everything had become much smoother.

In the past two years, Venusstar Technologies has brought considerable pressure to NASA.

Relevant departments in the United States also often accuse NASA of inaction, believing that NASA is wasting taxpayers' money.

Now, Venus Technology's starship exploded directly during the testing process, which is definitely good news for NASA.

Over the years, Venusstar Technology has conducted so many rocket tests and launches, and there has never been a mistake.

This kind of scene of explosion during live broadcast has never happened before.

Now this record has been broken.

"Although the starship exploded in the end, judging from the live broadcast, most of the tests were completed as planned."

"The problems they encounter may not be as many as we think."

Musk was not as happy as Gryffindor.

In his opinion, Venusstar Technology already has the conditions to test-launch a starship.

The problem only occurred at maximum thrust, and the front engine had been running continuously for nearly a minute.

If the starship had been tested directly without any grippers, it would have already flown high into the sky.

Even if it exploded in the end, the meaning would be very different.

"This is the ideal situation, but the actual situation may not be that good."

"Especially because the various parameters of the starship are designed to be so exaggerated. Not only is it the largest in the world, it is also designed to be recyclable."

"This difficulty is absolutely unprecedented. Even if the problem this time is solved, some new problems may arise in the future."

Gryffin gave his own judgment with certainty.

How could such a groundbreaking product succeed so easily?

It is in line with the law of development that problems arise every now and then.

"Whether they have problems or not, at least they have come up with a version of their design and even a prototype has been produced."

"This alone is two years faster than us."

"We have to speed up our research and development."

Musk attaches great importance to the development of SpaceX's starship products.

The company officially launched the project a few days ago, but their starship was simply added with a suffix, called a starship spacecraft.

"We are also communicating with the relevant departments regarding the construction of the space station and the moon landing."

"There is no problem with the construction of the space station. We have already discussed it before."

"But the moon landing project still needs to be evaluated, and the official launch is expected to be in the second half of the year."

"I hope that SpaceX can also make some preparations. When the time comes, we will give priority to using your Starship spacecraft when we use our rocket to land on the moon."

Gryffin failed to convince Musk last time, so he naturally didn't give up.

However, NASA's internal assessment believes that the Starship spacecraft can also be used to land on the moon, so he does not object to SpaceX's focus on developing the Starship.

After all, there is an obvious intersection between the two key points, so everything will be easy.

In the future, we may be able to achieve another moon landing before China.

(End of this chapter)