Chapter 362: Academics
Although the payload of the Apollo-class launch vehicle is already very strong.
But Li Qingye was not very satisfied with this.
The reason is very simple. The payloads of the Apollo-class launch vehicles are: 150 tons for low-Earth orbit, 100 tons for synchronous orbit, and 63 tons for the moon.
According to Antonio's introduction, Li Qingye understood that the current Apollo-class launch vehicles were all designed based on manned spacecraft.
Although the cargo launch vehicle of Sapiens can lift a payload of about 20 tons, the overall payload is still very small.
In order to complete the Guigong Project within two to three years, the payload of the launch vehicle must be increased by an order of magnitude.
Now, Sapiens uses giant cannons to launch satellites and unmanned equipment into outer space.
The slow-moving launch vehicle is indeed difficult to compete with the cannon launch system in terms of launch efficiency.
The launch vehicle project that the Sapiens company is investing in now is mainly for the purpose of serving manned space flight, and the transportation of cargo is only incidental.
After all, a giant cannon can launch hundreds of tons of supplies into low-Earth orbit in a day. No matter how fast the carrier rocket is, it is impossible to launch one launch a day. One launch a week is the limit, and it also depends on weather conditions.
Compared with the blueprint of the Guigong Project, the carrying capacity of this carrier rocket seems to be a drop in the bucket.
Fortunately, Sapiens has advanced biotechnology. After arriving on the lunar surface, it can use bio-enrichment technology and bio-synthesis technology to obtain materials locally on the moon, thus avoiding wasting precious payload on materials such as building materials.
Antonio also knew about the Gui Palace Project, and he certainly understood that the Apollo-class launch vehicle could only carry people and a small amount of precision equipment to the moon.
"Mr. Chairman, I think we should build a near-Earth space station first."
Li Qingye stroked his prickly stubble and said, "Is it because of the environmental adaptation issues of bio-enrichment and bio-synthesis technology?"
Antonio nodded. "As the chairman said, the company's biotechnology is definitely designed based on the Earth's environment. I'm worried that if we use it directly on the moon, it will not be able to adapt to the local climate."
"Your concerns make sense. It seems that we really need to build a near-Earth space station first."
Antonio quickly suggested: "Mr. Chairman, if we want to build a space station, we can first use the Ape-Eagle-class launch vehicle to launch several cabins directly up, and then use the giant cannon to replenish some fuel and culture medium."
"First, you should set up a space station design team, and then prepare a plan. Then you can send it directly to the Ministry of Space for review."
Antonio nodded.
This is one of the reasons why he likes to stay in Homo sapiens.
As a scientific researcher, Antonio is a typical straight man in science and engineering. He is extremely fed up with the internal social interactions full of intrigues.
In order to get a little research funding, we have to please those who manage scientific research funds. Originally, Lucia's scientific research system is like an old man in his twilight years. Under this poor management model, it can only do some archaeological scientific research.
After Antonio arrived at the Sapiens Company, he found that this was a paradise for scientific research.
There are a large number of high-quality talents, sufficient resources, various unique advanced technologies, and an almost transparent internal operating system.
Talented people will quickly stand out.
Antonio's performance in Lucia's research institute for many years has been that of a second-rate researcher.
However, the reason why he was like a salted fish was that he did not want to beg others in a humbly manner, and there were several times when his research results were taken away by the head of the institute.
After coming to work at Sapiens, Antonio seemed to have been reborn .
With sufficient resource support and a large number of new employees in the aerospace field, he has developed a number of high-value aerospace technologies.
For example, the first-stage launch vehicle cold recovery system developed by Antonio.
This technology is different from the heat recovery of the Falcon launch vehicle. After the first stage of the Apollo-class launch vehicle separates from the second stage, it will directly open the unpowered glider device, and then use the motor to adjust the glider to allow the first stage to fly back to the recovery airport near the launch site.
Using this technology, the disadvantage of the Falcon launch vehicle, that is, the problem of the payload being squeezed by the recovery system, can be avoided.
Sometimes the impact of the scientific research environment on scientific research is greater than the impact of funding on scientific research.
In a system like that of Homo Sapiens, only truly talented people can come to the fore, while those who just sit there doing nothing will basically have no say.
It seems very cruel. It is a typical example of judging people based on their academic ability only, without any human touch.
But this is the core philosophy of Sapiens Science Division.
Science is science. Science is either black or white. There is no ambiguous gray.
To stand out in the management system of the science division, the first factor is scientific research ability and academic achievements. Other factors such as years of work experience, who the teachers are, and what international awards have been won are actually irrelevant.
Even if you are a Nobel Prize winner, you may not be able to get ahead in a company run by Homo sapiens.
There is a very critical issue here, that is, most of the scientific researchers at Sapiens are in their twenties or thirties, and only a few are over 40 years old.
Antonio is only 38 years old this year.
Many winners of international awards are in their fifties or sixties, which means they are already old. They are okay as teachers, but they cannot compare with young people in scientific research.
What’s more, the Nobel Prize is not recognized within Sapiens, and the academic community of Sapiens, which has become an independent entity, has a very serious gap with the international academic community.
In particular, the two things of creating scientific terms and writing papers in a mixture of multiple languages almost separated the academic community of Sapiens from the international academic community.
Antonio despises the international academic community. Ever since he came to work at Sapiens, he has firmly believed that only within Sapiens is there a pure academic community.
Many of those guys in the international academic community rely on nepotism and teacher-student relationships. Add to that the factionalism in various regions and the secret manipulation of various capital forces, and things have long been in a mess.
For those who are truly devoted to scientific research, it is actually very difficult to succeed without the support of teachers, classmates and bosses behind the scenes.
Antonio is a living example. After his teacher passed away, he was marginalized by the institute.
In the Smart People Company, as long as you are capable and work hard enough, you can be promoted even if you don't please your superiors and colleagues, and you don't have to worry about other problems.
Antonio was able to become the chief engineer of the Puerto Ramon Space City thanks to his talent and hard work.
He took note of Li Qingye's arrangements and continued to take Li Qingye to inspect the assembly workshop of the manned spacecraft.
Because Sapiens' biotechnology is so advanced, the design of manned spacecraft is actually simpler. After all, the special equipment made by biological cells has the ability to self-repair.
Conventional spacecraft, despite their triple redundant design, have electronic chips and precision instruments that are unable to self-repair, and failures are inevitable over time.
On one side of the manned spacecraft assembly workshop is an auxiliary training ground, which is specially set up for astronauts to test manned spacecraft.
More than a dozen astronauts are wearing special space exoskeleton equipment, with several layers of equipment inside and outside. These space suits also have self-repair capabilities.
They are now wearing special space suits and lying at the bottom of a 5-meter-deep swimming pool, simulating the impact of a microgravity environment on their movements.
