Moon, South Pole, Aitken Basin.

In the Artemis lunar module, two NASA astronauts, Smedley Moore and McAdam Julia, are waiting in the lunar module with a restless expression.

Nearly ten hours have passed since that adversary asked them to open the data of the lunar module.

In a normal day, ten hours of sleep would have passed, but for them trapped on the moon, it was an incomparably long process.

In particular, the volume of the lunar module is not large, and it is almost close to the limit to accommodate two people.

In this case, being trapped on the moon and waiting for the oxygen to be consumed little by little is undoubtedly more torture for the two of them.

If they can't wait for rescue, for them, it's watching the time of their own death get closer and closer.

The restless atmosphere permeated the lunar module, and at this moment, a clear voice suddenly sounded in the ears of the two of them, like a heavenly sound, pleasant to the ear.

“. Friends of NASA, this is the Huaguo Xinghai rescue team, we have arrived near the Artemis lunar module, are you okay? ”

The voice in his ears sounded, and Smedley Moore was shocked, quickly pressed the contact headset, and replied quickly: "Have you already arrived?" Oh God, please help us, there is not much oxygen left in the lunar module"

With the sizzling of electricity and the delay of the call, the voice on the other end of the communication was transmitted again.

"Yes, we have arrived outside the Artemis lunar module and seen your situation. However, the gangway was also warped into the air due to the angle of inclination, and we could not go up for the time being. ”

"But don't worry, the relevant photos and information have been transmitted back to Earth, and the command center is trying to find a way to solve it, please be patient for a while."

After several laps around the Artemis lunar module, Zhai Zhigang finally figured out why NASA's moon landing had an accident.

I have to say that this time the people of the United States are really unlucky.

Artemis landed in a long, narrow gap in the moon. (There is a gap on the moon, the cause of the formation is not known for the time being, and the more reliable theory is that the lunar core is cooled and torn, just like the ground is torn by thermal expansion and cold contraction.) ）

And more importantly, this lunar crevice is covered in lunar dust, which was not discovered by earlier exploration sites.

As a result, two of the four landing gears of the lunar module got stuck in the gap, and one of them was damaged due to severe force, twisting the mechanical connection at the joint, causing some parts to be damaged and the hatch to jam.

This level of bad luck can only be said that the probability of winning five million in a lottery ticket is higher than this.

After briefly calming the two astronauts in the lunar module, Zhai Zhigang switched the communication channel to the ground command center and reported:

"This is a rescue team, and the situation in the Artemis lunar module is not good. It had two landing gear feet inserted diagonally into the loose lunar soil, where there was just a lunar slit that stuck the landing gear of the lunar module, causing the lunar module to tilt and the lunar gangway away from the ground, and we could not climb it. ”

As for how to rescue the two astronauts trapped in the lunar module, Zhai Zhigang and Chen Dong did not have a good way to go around in a circle.

Although the lunar module is a small piece of equipment in space facilities, the Artemis lunar module is currently in a state where the lander and ascender are connected, and its altitude has reached five or six meters.

With the gangway tilted away from the ground, they were unable to get close to the hatch, and rescue methods were yet to be discussed.

Moreover, the overall weight of the lunar module is as high as more than a dozen tons, and even on the moon, they do not have such strength to carry it.

If you have a jack, you can try it, but whoever goes to the moon doesn't have to carry a jack.

"The ground command center has received it, and we are discussing a solution."

At the same time, in the general control room of the manned lunar landing project of the Xiashu Space Center, Xu Chuan, Chang Huaxiang, the aerospace group, and the technicians of NASA who were talking remotely formed a temporary small meeting to discuss the corresponding rescue plan.

"My suggestion was to cut off the damaged landing gear and allow the module to tip further in its entirety, and then the cutting equipment would break open the door of the lunar module and rescue the two astronauts."

In a small meeting, on the NASA side, a technician with a thick beard who is an aerospace expert directly proposed the most concise rescue method.

When you can't get through the ascender, this is the quickest option.

Moreover, because of its scientific research work, Xinghai happened to carry cutting equipment for mining lunar rock, which was not very difficult for breaking the lunar module.

In the conference room, Chang Huaxiang shook his head and objected: "Forcibly cutting off the landing gear will seriously disrupt the balance of the lunar module, and once the lunar module is dumped too quickly, it may pose a threat to the lives of the astronauts inside." ”

This time the lunar rescue operation is being watched by countries all over the world, and the heat is extremely high.

Therefore, they need to ensure the personal safety of the two astronauts in the United States, otherwise if there is a problem, they may be beaten up by NASA and the United States, saying that because of their problematic rescue methods, the astronauts will be killed. Public opinion will be absolutely the opposite for them then.

"But we are running out of time, and the oxygen reserves on the lunar module are less than ten hours left. Moreover, the two astronauts have not eaten and hydrated for more than 36 hours, and if they are not saved as soon as possible, their lives are also at risk. ”

In the conference room, there was a lot of discussion.

At this moment, the voices of two astronauts on the moon were heard. "This is a rescue team, and after careful observation, we may have a way to complete the rescue work."

While discussing the rescue plan on the ground, Zhai Zhigang and Chen Dong were also observing around the lunar module.

Compared to the ground command center, which can only watch the videos and photos they took back, it is easier for them to find some solutions on the spot.

"Ground command center received, please report your plan."

"Through observation, we found that there are corresponding storage materials on both sides of the damaged landing gear, and we are going to separate these materials or equipment to see if we can rebalance the attitude of the lunar module."

Hearing this, the expression on the face of the NASA expert on the other end of the communication changed instantly.

The equipment carried on the Artemis lunar module was obviously something they did not want to give China access to.

They would rather have their opponents dismantle the landing frame than consider this option.

In particular, the side stuck in the lunar soil has their most advanced lunar exploration rover, communication equipment, and experimental kits and equipment for lunar exploration.

These are the crystallization of their most advanced technology, and even a glance at the Chinese is a huge loss for them.

But it is clear that this is the safest and most effective way to rescue from the moon.

In the conference room, Xu Chuan glanced at the NASA expert on the other side of the video call, with a hint of amusement in his eyes, and said: "Approve the plan, please ensure your own safety." ”

"Roger."

After a short delay, Zhai Zhigang and Chen Dong on the moon had already launched an operation, untying the materials stored on the side of the landing shelf.

A brand new lunar rover was quickly assembled on the lunar surface.

This brand-new lunar rover, designed by NASA and has not yet started any missions on the moon, has been directly groped clean.

If it weren't for the mission, Chen Dong would even want to drive it twice on the moon to test the instruments inside.

After all, the Artemis lunar module's database is currently open to them, and every piece of data transmitted back can be intercepted by them.

On the lunar surface, Zhai Zhigang and Chen Dong groped for the lunar exploration rover and communication equipment on the Artemis, and quickly untied the materials stored on the other side.

As the experiment bag and equipment box for lunar exploration fell to the surface of the moon, the Artemis in front of him also shook, as if it was pulled back to balance by the counterweight on the other side.

Unfortunately, this counterweight was not enough for the stuck lunar module to pull it back into its normal position.

Moreover, the lunar soil gap zone of the landing gear of the landing module of the Artemis lunar module seems to be stronger than expected.

Looking at the lunar module stuck there and unable to move, Chen Dong took a shovel from his own lunar rover, which was the tool they used to collect lunar soil.

He was going to dig open the cracks in the lunar soil of the main lunar module to see if he could rebalance it.

After peeling off the thin layer of moon dust on the outside, he dug with a shovel for a while, and he was tired and panting, but only shoveled out a few pieces of moon rock.

On the side, Zhai Zhigang walked over, picked up a piece of moon rock from the ground, and observed it through the tempered glass mirror of the spacesuit.

"This is, a mixture of metal and rock??"

Looking at the moon rock in his hand, Zhai Zhigang was stunned for a moment, and after the gray moon rock shook off the moon dust, it unexpectedly revealed a slight silver-white metallic luster, and it could be clearly seen that the rock layer was mixed with metal.

"There's a metal mine here?"

An idea quickly crossed his mind, and he quickly picked up a few other rocks on the ground. Just as he expected, the moon rock in his hand had a silvery-white metallic luster.

"Captain, what's wrong?"

On the side, Chen Dong came over curiously, looked at the moon rock in his hand, and the whole person was stunned for a moment.

"It's golden."

Looking at the moon rock in Zhai Zhigang's hand, Chen Dong stammered in surprise, and the whole person was surprised.

"Shh

Making a silent gesture, Zhai Zhigang shook his head, quickly put away a few moon rocks in his hand, and put them into his own lunar rover.

Judging by the reflected metallic light, and the most abundant metal on the moon, it is highly likely that this is a titanium ore. And it's an absolute bonanza, because the few stones he just picked up have almost a third of the metal content.

This is definitely great news for them.

After all, they are already preparing for the development of the lunar surface, and picking up a titanium metal ore for nothing can greatly save the construction time of the subsequent lunar base and the transportation of materials from the earth and the moon.

Thankfully, they haven't passed these images back now, and they can keep the secret alive.

Thanks to Artemis, thanks to NASA, if it weren't for them, this metal deposit would certainly have nothing to do with them.

PS: Make up for yesterday's second watch, Kavin, mainly to find a reasonable reason for the crash and how to quickly develop the moon in the follow-up is more difficult, and it took a long time to come up with it.

(End of chapter)