Chapter 698: Don’t play by the rules

 The first one to respond was NASA. After all, after Lao Maozi gradually declined, they became the leader in the aerospace field. As for the European Space Agency? An organization that doesn't even have a manned spacecraft is not worthy of their attention. The United States and Russia are first-rate, and the rest are second-rate!

“What are the Easterners doing? Are they going to create space junk? If tens of thousands of satellites are launched into the sky, the entire space will become a garbage dump!” Nelson said angrily: “They really dare to brag, tens of thousands of satellites!”

"That's right, that Max went to the East and learned the exaggeration of Easterners, who often launch satellites!" Howard Hu followed up: "If they really do this, it will bring huge risks to our aerospace industry. , every time we launch a spacecraft into the sky, we need to avoid these numerous Starlink satellites. Originally, the space junk was enough for us to worry about, but now there will be several times more!"

 Before the first artificial earth satellite was launched into the sky, there were at best some meteorites around the earth, and then they entered the atmosphere and turned into meteors. However, with human space activities, there are more and more garbage outside the earth.

After satellites are launched, they will expire in a few years. Some will enter the atmosphere and crash, and some will continue to fly uncontrolled in space. These will become garbage. Of course, these large pieces of garbage are relatively easy to observe, and those small pieces Garbage is a huge threat. The fairing and other parts of the rocket during launch are all garbage. The most important thing is the possible satellite collision.

Space is very vast, and space is also very narrow. In the vast space, two satellites collided. I don’t know whether it is lucky or unfortunate.

 The first recorded satellite collision occurred in 1991. At that time, a flood washed away the Dragon King Temple. A retired DaMao navigation satellite Cosmos 1934 was smashed in half by a fragment of its sister satellite Cosmos 926. This was a witness to the domestic chaos of DaMao at that time and was not intended to conduct space experiments.

However, the one that happened in 2009 was a bit emotional. The US communications satellite Iridium 33 collided with the retired Da Mao satellite Cosmos 2251. The collision was so tragic that a year later, the number of debris detected was As many as 1,740 pieces, these fragments are orbiting near the collision airspace, making any other satellites that may pass through this airspace terrified, and they may be hit at any time!

This is only based on the fact that the number of satellites in outer space is only one or two thousand. If there are tens of thousands, that would be great!

“Could this be a conspiracy by the Easterners?” Nelson said: “They are trying to use this method to disrupt the entire space and occupy a large amount of orbital frequency resources?”

After complaining, I began to consider the impact of this matter. Tens of thousands of satellites will occupy a large amount of orbital resources. Moreover, the frequencies used by these satellites cannot be used by other satellites. Internationally, these They all operate on a first-come, first-served basis. The Starlink project occupies so many resources, what should other countries do?

 “It’s very possible!” Howard Hu nodded.

At this moment, the door was suddenly pushed open.

Bill, the head of Gaoming Company, walked in in a hurry.

“Everyone, do you know the recent news from Starship Company? I suspect that this project is aimed at us!”

 “Aimed at you?”

"Yes, the medium orbit data they released is 20,000 kilometers, and the orbit altitude of our GPS navigation satellite is 20,200 kilometers!" Bill said: "If their orbit deviates, it is likely to be different from ours." The navigation satellites are at the same altitude, so the risk of collision will be greatly increased!"

 Everyone was stunned.

 Nelson and others did not first think of the navigation satellite project. This is because their eyes are on all satellites, while Gaoming Company is engaged in GPS terminals, and their first concern is their own interests.

In order to prevent Beidou from appearing as a competitor, they began to behave at international radio conferences. They were also looking at the countermeasures of the Easterners, and now, the countermeasures are here!

They curbed Beidou, and the people in the East will also curb their GPS. If I don’t have it, you might as well not have it, and let’s finish it together!

This is totally not playing by the rules. They have thought about many other situations, such as the Orientals will join forces with Mao to protest internationally, etc. They have backup plans, but now, they did not expect that the Orientals would be so ruthless. !

“No, this project was not officially released by the Oriental Space Agency, but by the private starship company. There is no connection between it.” Nelson shook his head: “That Max, has he become a lackey of the Oriental people?”

"No, I understand him. Max will not do this. He is only thinking about how to land on Mars. He is not interested in other things." Howard Hu said.

"Won't do that? Now he's in big trouble, and you actually said he wouldn't do that?" Nelson said he didn't understand.

“No, he must have been manipulated by someone else. Don’t forget, Starship Company belongs to the Mingzhou Group, and Mr. Qin of the Mingzhou Group has always been a very powerful person.”

 Mingzhou Group, Mr. Qin?

 Howard Hu stood up: "I need to go to the east, and I want to talk to Max in person. Bill, do you want to go with me?"

Bill hesitated for a moment, and then nodded. This matter was directed at them, so of course he had to go along.

 The next day, Qiongzhou.

“Report, there was a problem with engine No. 16 during the test!” a technician shouted to Max.

"What? Something went wrong? Damn it, what was the problem? Why wasn't it discovered in time?" Max was in a bad mood.

 There will be a launch window in ten days, and they are already ready for launch. Who would have thought that something would go wrong at the critical moment!

“The fuel pump is faulty and may not be able to deliver full power.”

“Does it mean it will be dismantled? Can we catch up with the launch window?”

“Report, we can only dismantle it. It is expected to take a month.”

"No, we absolutely can't take so long!" Max said angrily: "If we miss this launch window, we have to wait two months for the next window. We can't wait that long! Moreover, President Qin is still here!"

 What should I do if I don’t dismantle it? The technicians were worried.

“Shield this engine. Our first-stage rocket has eighteen engines. Even if one of them fails to ignite, it will not have any impact. Just modify it in the control software!”

 Share the engine? So casual? This is a space launch!

During the Chang March 2 experiment, the launch failed just because there were a few extra welding slags in one of the cables. Now, here at Max, a broken engine has to be shielded at will?

“This may be very dangerous,” the technician warned.

"Our biggest danger is time. We can't continue to waste money. We have to have a successful launch to prove our strength! Do as I say, shield the broken engine, and then ensure that it can successfully make its first flight!"

"If we want to shield it, we will not only shield one, but also the other two, so as to ensure a balanced thrust output." The technician thought about it and gave this answer.

The layout of 18 engines allows for just three to be dismantled, thus forming the three vertices of an equilateral triangle, which will ensure stability.

“Okay, let’s do it. Anyway, there is no payload for this launch.” Max decided like this.

He must ask Mr. Qin to watch the launch of Starship MK1 as soon as possible while he is still here, so as to interest Mr. Qin and provide them with more funds. Their project is a waste of money!

“Mr. Marks, someone is looking for you outside and says he is your good friend at NASA.”

"Good friends?" Max shook his head: "I don't have any good friends at NASA...forget it, invite them to the office."

For Max, there really are no friends, only work relationships and interest relationships. He originally didn't plan to meet him, but now that he thinks about it, if he develops Starlink next, he will definitely need to continue to fool a group of technical personnel to work. , after all, different people build rockets and satellites.

Even though the guests were invited, Max continued to work for half an hour, arranging various things, and then walked to the office.

 When he walked in, he found that the guest was looking at the oil painting on his wall.

His office is very simple, with a desk, a computer, two sofas and a coffee table in front of it, that's all. However, there is a large-scale oil painting hanging on his wall.

 It was the surface of a red planet. You could see the curvature of the planet. There was a rocket with a shiny stainless steel shell on it. Next to the rocket, there were several astronauts.

This oil painting was painted by Max himself. The content of the oil painting is his ideal: landing on Mars.

At this time, the two guests who were looking at the oil painting heard the footsteps, turned around, looked at the door, and then smiled.

“Max, you are here. I am Howard Hu. We have met at an aerospace conference and had drinks together. Do you remember me?” Howard Hu asked.

"Of course." Max nodded: "You are working on satellites at NASA, and Iridium has been helped by you. Howard Hu, are you here to help me?"

 Howard Hu Yi was stunned, help? Why should I help you?

He hadn’t even introduced Bill next to him, but Max was already explaining it nonstop.

"Our Starlink plan has been announced to the public. You must have been shocked by the scale of this plan, so you took the initiative to join us, right? Don't worry, you will definitely play an important role when you come here. Your salary and your It’s the same as before, but the work is completely different. We are a private aerospace company. The future of space must be conquered by us. NASA has become increasingly useless.” Max said: “Now, let me tell you about our satellite program. .”

"Mr. Max..." Seeing Max start to cheat, Bill became anxious. Are you taking it for granted? How can we come to join your Starlink project? Are we here to protest this plan?

However, before he finished speaking, he was stopped by Max's stern look: "How did you become a secretary? When we big shots are talking, you, the secretary, don't interrupt!"

Bill almost spat out a mouthful of old blood. Am I the secretary? I am the CEO of the leading company in the field of satellite navigation!

However, Howard Hu patted him on the shoulder: "Let Max speak first."

 He knew that there was no way to stop Max's desire to talk now, so he might as well let him talk for now.

"Our Starlink serves the entire earth. There are currently six to seven billion people in the world. We use the most conservative estimate that one in a thousand people uses our Starlink terminal. How many customers are that? Six million customers ! If each customer spends one hundred dollars for a monthly subscription to access the Internet, then our Starlink company’s monthly revenue will be 600 million, 600 million! That’s more than 7 billion a year! Of course, with those large companies with an annual output value of tens of billions It’s incomparable, but as long as we deduct the initial launch costs, the rest is pure profit! As long as the first two or three years have passed, our company’s annual net profit will be more than five billion US dollars!"

In the 1990s, the top ten multinational companies in the world had a total production value of tens of billions, but profits of only a few hundred million. Once the Starlink project succeeds, the profits will continue to flow, and they will even become the most profitable company in the world!

Speaking of this, Max spitted stars, which was very exciting. Even if Starship Company is burning money now, its future profits will exceed all other profits of Mingzhou Group and become the most profitable.

 With this confidence, Mr. Qin can continue to invest money in them!

"Others say we are fanciful. If we want to land on Mars, we need to consume huge resources. It is a project that cannot be supported by the country, and even private companies like us cannot support it. But now, our Starlink project will It will completely make those people understand that space projects can make money. We use space peacefully to benefit mankind and gain huge profits. These profits will be invested in the starship project and eventually form a virtuous circle. We will definitely be able to board the Mars!"

When saying these last words, Max looked at the oil painting: "At that time, I will be the first person to land on Mars!"

"Wake up, Max, don't let others take advantage of you." Bill couldn't bear it anymore. This pie was really big. The question was, can it be realized?

"Hey, you, the secretary, are not qualified to make irresponsible remarks here! Howard Hu, should you tell him to leave, or should I drive him away?" Max said angrily.

"No, I am not his secretary, I am the general manager of Gaoming Company." Bill said: "I am here to protest that your Starlink plan may interfere with the operation of our GPS satellites."

 Howard Hu’s expression changed, he couldn’t talk to Max like that! Wouldn't saying this make the other party angry?

 Sure enough, Max was annoyed.

"Interfering with your satellite? How could this happen? Our satellite's altitude is 20,000 meters, your satellite's altitude is 20,200 meters, and we are 200 meters apart. This is already within the internationally permitted range. It’s not that you occupy the space first, the entire space is yours, and our private enterprises should also have a place in space!”

"No, Max, that's not what he said." Howard Hu said: "You want to deploy this kind of Internet satellite to benefit mankind. We welcome it, but are the number of satellites you launch too much? This will make the earth The nearby space orbits have become extremely crowded, greatly increasing the risk of satellite collisions. Space does not belong to NSAS, but it does not belong to your Starship Company. It belongs to all mankind. You cannot let your Starship Company occupy all the orbits. Yes."

"What do you mean we have all occupied it?" Max's face also became serious: "Internationally, the acquisition of orbits and frequencies is based on the first-come, first-served principle. What happened to us occupying it first? Has it affected you? Yes? How dare you launch so many satellites? I thought you were here to participate in the Starlink project, but it turns out you are here to cause sabotage. Come and see your guests off!"

“Max, aren’t you afraid of arousing the resentment of the entire international community by doing this?”

“I am here to benefit all mankind, so how can I arouse the resentment of the international community?” Max despised: “What I arouse is only your hostility, because you regard space as your own, not that of all mankind!”

This time, the intention was not achieved, but it was completely deadlocked!

 Howard Hu was a little helpless, and Bill would not give in: "We will sue you internationally!"

"We have not violated any international laws, and we are not afraid." Max said: "If you modify international norms because of our Starlink project, then the whole world can see your ugly face! You suppress our most promising private aerospace company. , just afraid that we will crush you! Humph, what a NASA, what a brilliant company, bullshit! Shit!"

This contact ended on bad terms. Later, Qin Tao, who was accompanying his wife on vacation at the beach, also received the news.

"The Americans have hit a wall." Zhao Ling said: "Max resolutely rejected these people's requests. Will conflicts be planned next?"

“That’s right, the International Telecommunications Union is going to be lively next, so we’ll just watch the excitement.” Qin Tao said.

 Watch the excitement!

Zhao Ling glanced at Qin Tao helplessly: "Brother Tao, have you never regarded Max as one of your own?"

Qin Tao nodded: "Of course, if you are not of my race, your heart must be different."

"No, you don't think so. When the Red Empire collapsed, you brought so many old men back." Zhao Ling said, "You have never had racial prejudice, and those people did a good job in our Mingzhou Group. You treat Max differently than you treat those guys.”

"Well, the answer just now is not objective. The real reason is that the country of those old men has declined. They can have happiness in the east and they will not have ambitions. But Max is different. Now I give him what he wants. Yes, let him work for me with peace of mind. However, people like him are not just in the pool. I don’t know when he will stand on his own and become the opposite of us. Therefore, I just use him, but I will never really trust him. .”

 Zhao Ling nodded, understanding Qin Tao's words.

"Now, in our hands, he has started the Starlink project. This plan will eventually be aborted. In this way, when Max sets up his own business, if he still wants to start Starlink, then look at the current opposition. What should people do? They are the ones who blocked the door for Max." Qin Tao said: "If they go back on their word, they will become clowns internationally."

Qin Tao does not agree with Starlink in his heart. This project will create a lot of space junk. Starlink is a small satellite of two to three hundred kilograms. If there is a danger of collision with other spacecraft, they will not adjust it. Orbital, if it hits, it will hit. Anyway, it can launch dozens or hundreds of missiles at a time. If it is lost, it is lost. At worst, it will be launched again.

 The spacecraft on the opposite side did not dare to do so because it was too expensive, so it had to change its orbit by itself.

After the completion of Starlink, this kind of thing happened more than once. Starlink can be used without any scruples. In times of war, this kind of satellite will even become the main force in space wars.

From an application point of view, the East is a country with big infrastructure. It can obtain sufficient Internet transmission capacity by relying on the ground optical fiber network. There is no need to use satellites at all. That thing is simply not practical. Indoors and underground, it is difficult to guarantee the communication quality. .

If this plan succeeds, it will be a project of the Mingzhou Group and he will support it. If it fails, whoever wants to do this in the future will expose the double-facedness of some people.

“Fortunately, our Beidou satellite is in geosynchronous orbit.” Zhao Ling said, “So, only the Americans are anxious, and we can just sit back and watch the show.”

The orbit of Starlink will affect GPS, because the difference is only two hundred meters, but it will not affect Beidou, because Beidou-1 is a dual-star positioning, all in synchronous orbit, and Starlink satellites definitely do not need to fly that high.

Qin Tao nodded: "Yes, we will also join the American army!"

“Damn it, that Max is such an idiot. Has he forgotten which country he is from?” Bill also kept complaining on the plane.

“He never thought about which country he was from.” Howard Hu said: “In his mind, the only thing he could think about was landing on Mars. Now, we can only go to ITU.”

ITU is an international organization in charge of information and communication technology affairs. It is responsible for allocating and managing global radio spectrum and satellite orbit resources, formulating global telecommunications standards, providing telecommunications assistance to developing countries, and promoting global telecommunications development.

 So, after leaving Qiongzhou, several people went to the ITU headquarters in Geneva. Since Max insisted on going his own way, they could only use official channels to stop him!

Max didn't care at all. All his energy was focused on the upcoming starship MK1. This test launch was of great importance. Although he could not guarantee 100% success when he told Qin Tao, now, he gave his men The requirement is that it must be successful!

 May 10, morning, the long-awaited moment is finally coming!

 (End of this chapter)