The nuclear-powered version of H2, also known as H2N (N is the initials for atomic power), is very versatile.

First of all, the expected Earth-Moon round trip, because NAPE's ultra-high index base was not confident in whether it could be completed on time, so the H2N was a backup for the XN90 spacecraft, which could be launched directly from Earth to carry out lunar missions.

The second is to assist in the construction of the Endeavor space station, as with H2M, which can play the same role as H2M except for the difference in power.

Third, there is the envisioned unmanned intra-solar system transport.

The maximum take-off mass of the H2N on the ground is 135 tons, in fact, if it continues to load cargo in space or attach the payload compartment, it can reach a mass of 180 to 300 tons, and only 50 tons of fuel is needed to go to Mars when propelled by three A100s.

This also means that it can fly to Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Mercury and many other planets, and if you do not carry people on these missions, you can send more than 20 tons of payloads (probes) to fly over and back.

Thanks to its access to the atmosphere, it is also capable of completing the most complete refurbishment on Earth, refueling it in low-Earth orbit and serving in a steady stream.

For example, in the future Mars cargo transportation mission, the cargo can be launched in a small and medium-sized cheap launch method, and then H2N can consume a little fuel to transport it back and forth, which is much more economical than large rockets.

Especially flying in a vacuum does not affect the most lethal body structure of the space shuttle at all, and the life is extremely long.

Three A100 can provide 30 tons of sufficient thrust, if the mass is 200 tons at the time of departure, you can completely ignore the window period between Mars and Earth, the maximum round-trip time is not more than 200 days, the shortest is about 120 days, it can be called "Mars logistics express", consuming about 25 to 50 tons of fuel, transporting up to 100 tons of cargo.

50 tons of liquid hydrogen is almost 5 million yuan, if liquid hydrogen can be manufactured in batches on the moon, then the price of sending them into space is also very cheap, and H2N space flight does not require much body maintenance, and the cost performance is scary.

Of course, this kind of high-intensity service can only be carried out after rigorous tests, and nuclear power technology is also extremely difficult for Xinyuan.

Both the A100 and NAPE are futuristic technologies, and even if they can be produced today, it will require a lot of technical research, and the cost and output will not be as high as the era in which they were designed.

Many advanced processing methods are not possible in this era, and although it is possible to create compliant parts through semi-manual manufacturing and increased costs, it is necessary to test whether or not they can achieve the required reliability.

This also shows the limitations of the base: as the technology is mastered, it can still be difficult to achieve the level of processing at the base, which is among the most advanced in the world.

Therefore, even now, the Aoyama base has begun the trial production of the NAPE prototype, and there is no guarantee that it will be completed before the estimated time.

However, Lin Ju is not impatient, because even with Xinyuan's traditional aerospace technology level, it is enough to lead the world for many years.

For example, the new generation of manned spacecraft and lander used in the Long March 10 lunar landing mission are at the same level as the SLS program, and even stay in the Apollo program period in terms of technical route.

The naming of the new generation of manned spacecraft was also completed, and according to the historical origin of the Dawning Project and online voting, it was finally decided to name the "Dawning" spacecraft to echo the Dawning Project.

The cost of the Dawning spacecraft is about the same as that of the Shenzhou spacecraft, but the number of crew members and the degree of technological advancement have increased a lot, and it can be reused, and it has been confirmed as the successor of the Shenzhou spacecraft.

The Dawning spacecraft is currently set in two models, A and B, and Type A is the initial model, which can carry 3-4 astronauts to the moon, or it can be changed to 7 after minor changes to undertake near-earth round-trip missions.

Type B is the originally conceived version of the near-earth multi-manned version, which can carry 11 passengers, and the service cabin has also been greatly reduced, designed for near-earth round-trip, reducing the cost of a single person to about 20 million.

Two Type A ships have been built through acceptance, and the progress of Type B is also rapid, and it is expected to pass the acceptance this year.

If nothing else, the Dawning-2 spacecraft used by the Long March 10 Yao-2 rocket will continue to serve until it reaches the end of its lifespan after being reconditioned.

……

"Faster, faster, can you do it?"

With Claire even looking at her with a hint of implication, Boeing's head of SLS systems, Ken Shears, shook his head resolutely, and then explained softly:

"Your Excellency, Boeing has done its best to the SLS, and we will guarantee the FATS program and other space programs at almost the same time, before we told you that the second SLS rocket 8 months is really the limit, it can't be faster."

Today's NACA is not what it used to be, although it still maintains absolute leadership in space, but the vast majority of manufacturing capacity is still in the hands of the old military-industrial complex, and the main contractor of the SLS rocket is Boeing.

When the Long March 10 Yao-2 rocket was erected in Qiongzhou, Claire couldn't believe it.

6 months, 6 months a super rocket!

And according to the disclosed launch mission, this time the lander and ascender will also be verified, in addition to not carrying people, it is almost a high-fidelity rehearsal of a lunar mission.

That is to say, if the director of CASA is bolder, or intends to take risks, then the next rocket astronaut does not need to fly around the moon, but can directly land on the moon, after all, the preconditions are fully ripe!

When is 6 months later? At that time, the second SLS was made!

What happens if Project Artemis loses to Project Aurora? One origin goes back 14 years, what happens when a plan that started subsystem development 10 years ago loses to a plan that started two years ago? What happens if Aramco, who has successfully landed on the moon five times, loses the first place to return to the moon?

Claire felt her throat clamped by a large red hand and couldn't breathe, frantically searching for a way to speed up the moon landing.

The Heavy Falcon that sent the lander can be retrofitted directly with the existing Heavy Falcon and will definitely be able to catch up before August, which is no problem.

Lander ...... The lander is not a big problem, the blue origin of the world line has taken the American knife of Congress and the strong support of NACA, and finally did not become the old pigeon of the original world line, the ground prototype test of the "Blue Moon" lander was completed last month, according to the original plan This year is in time, and it is not impossible to accelerate in advance.

What about the Orion spacecraft? Although landing on the moon for the first manned time sounds quite risky, after all, they are all mature technologies, so it can't be inferior to the Dawning spacecraft, right? That's not a problem either.

In the end, there was only one left to solve: the second SLS rocket.

At the beginning, Boeing said that the second engine manufacturing cycle is 8 months, which is also an exaggeration of the manufacturer's good face, and 8 months is actually relatively compact and difficult to do, so when Claire hoped to be able to advance, Boeing gave a firm denial, and they themselves are still very clear.

However, NACA did not dare to bet that the second Long March 10 took 6 months to manufacture, so will the third Long March 10 only take 5 or even 4 months? With the kind of Chinese people who work overtime like they don't want to die, they will go crazy and gather labor, but maybe they really can't be said?

(End of chapter)