Deep Space Wandering Fleet
Chapter 296 - Chapter 296 Chapter 296 Trial Flight over Kunlun Mountain

Chapter 296: Chapter 296: Trial Flight over Kunlun Mountain Chapter 296: Chapter 296: Trial Flight over Kunlun Mountain Such small-scale nuclear fusion engines, of which there are a total of 21400 in “The Kunlun Mountain,” are distributed throughout various positions in all directions of the Kunlun Mountain. This design brings not only superior mechanical structure but also another benefit–the capability to withstand risks is exceptionally strong.

Even if a portion of the small engines on the Kunlun Mountain were damaged, as long as the remaining parts could be activated, the spaceship could still navigate normally, without losing mobility.

These small-scale nuclear fusion devices were mature technologies of Earth Civilization. They were more efficient in utilizing nuclear fuel compared to the large engines of the past, converting more mass into energy.

The tremendous energy produced by the nuclear reactions was partially converted through special devices in the engine chamber to form high-energy microwaves for propelling the spaceship, while another part used the traditional ion engine method to eject the hot plasma flow.

Only with the dual method of microwave propulsion and plasma propulsion was the Super Carrier, weighing a billion tons, given enough thrust to move forward.

“Has the last group of people returned?” After carefully checking the parameters of each key part, Zhang Yuan asked his assistant beside him.

This young assistant from the secretary’s office, named Li Cheng, was 43 years old. He was proficient in both Physics and Mathematics. At 43, he was still considered young by the standards of this era, and he was also one of the candidates for Deputy Captain of The Kunlun Mountain. It had to be said that throughout the many years of civilization, numerous talents and geniuses had emerged.

“Reporting to the Captain, everyone has returned.”

Now that all matters with the Glizerians had concluded, Zhang Yuan also breathed a sigh of relief, “Then, in six hours, The Kunlun Mountain will officially begin its first trial flight!”

The Captain’s command was quickly relayed, and various personnel on the spaceship became busy.

Of course, this voyage was just a trial flight; the Mother Ship did not carry a large number of personnel or goods. During the first trial flight, many flaws were bound to be revealed, which would need to be improved later on.

Six hours passed quickly, and a beautiful female reporter from the television station was boarding a small spaceship, delivering an emotive live broadcast.

“The Wanderer Plan leads us to touch all kinds of civilizations… Even though the journey may be fraught with hardships, filled with thorns, and we might encounter powerful enemies that pose the risk of total annihilation…”

“But we will not regret it…”

More than ten million people on the surface were witnessing the Mother Ship’s first trial flight. The lively discussions mixed with the sounds from the television station formed a chorus.

As the last second passed, suddenly, a milky white light bloomed in the sky, overshadowing all the clamor. It was as if more than twenty thousand small Suns had suddenly appeared, illuminating the entire Earth!

From the surface, powerful plasma pulses drew visible lines that stretched tens of thousands of kilometers, like daylight lamps.

The power produced by the 21400 small engines was so intense that cameras were filled with a white glare. Even the reporter who was broadcasting live was stunned for a few seconds before she remembered her duty, reducing the aperture of the camera to begin educating the audience about microwave propulsion.

“Ah, even at such a distance, the temperature of our space suits has risen to 300 degrees Celsius… these are truly powerful little Suns… they represent our latest engine technology, the microwave engine.”

“This Energy Engine has a very high specific impulse, possibly reaching the peak of conventional propulsion…”

“Let’s compare the two propulsion methods.”

“The theoretical jet velocity of traditional nuclear fusion engines can reach up to 20,000 kilometers per second. The reverse velocity of the microwaves is the speed of light, roughly calculated to be 300,000 kilometers per second. It seems that the latter’s specific impulse is more than 15 times higher, but unfortunately, such pure energy engines consume a massive amount of energy.”

“The propulsion consumption of the microwave engine is about 100 megawatts per Newton, and for fusion propulsion at a jet velocity of 20,000 kilometers per second, it’s about 10 megawatts per Newton. For the same thrust, the energy consumption of a microwave engine is 100 times that of an ion engine!”

“In simple terms, with a fixed total energy and mass ratio, there’s an optimum value for specific impulse, where material utilization efficiency is highest… Therefore, the combination of the two types of engines enables the spaceship to achieve the highest maneuverability.”

“Of course, for ultra-long-distance interstellar travel, these two types of propulsion are merely auxiliary means, because we have discovered a new way of propulsion using cosmic strings themselves… a new technology from the Human branch of The Golden Sun!”

However, no one paid attention to the educational program from the television station. Engineers, scientists, and students on the surface were all cheering fervently, cheering for The Kunlun Mountain’s first long-distance trial flight.

“I’ll be able to get on the spaceship as soon as I graduate from university! Haha!”

“I really can’t wait!”

A middle-aged person over a hundred years old said, “No, no, you should know that interstellar voyages are actually very boring. Most of the time is spent in the void… sometimes you even have to hibernate, it’s not as enjoyable as you think.”

The young people shook their heads, “But don’t you think this kind of interstellar travel is very romantic? Also, we now have access to new propulsion methods… We don’t need to spend a lifetime to reach other planets.”

“Thanks to the Humans of The Golden Sun, when should we send them a message? Our development is doing quite well too!”

…

Meanwhile, inside the main control room of The Kunlun Mountain, Zhang Yuan and others were nervously observing the changes in various parameters of the spaceship. Honestly, because of the enormity of the spaceship’s weight, it put very high demands on the quality of materials and the mechanical structure of the spaceship itself.

Therefore, the vast majority of the spaceship’s areas were composed of a distributed structure. Since a single keel could not support such a massive weight, it would be more accurate to say that The Kunlun Mountain was not just a Super Carrier but a combination of 36 large spaceships!

Its complexity of navigation and cooperation exceeded that of the “Earth Era”!

“Fortunately, with the productivity of 13 Universal Factories, it would have been impossible to produce so many new materials in just a few decades,” Zhang Yuan watched the various data on the screen nervously. At this time, most commands were executed by Artificial Intelligence, and the portion that Humans could operate was very small.

“The Kunlun Mountain” also used Biological Materials similar to those in the Universal Factory, especially in parts like sensors.