Chapter 101 Mars Synchronous Orbit
Two months later.
65 days later to be exact.
The fourth planet in the solar system, Mars.
Three landing capsules slowly flew above the synchronous orbit of Mars.
"Calling Houston, this is Pathfinder 1, we have successfully entered orbit, please reply if you receive it!"
Radio waves were sent from the front landing capsule, flying across 82 million kilometers towards the blue earth!
(I searched for a long time but couldn't find the data, I will ignore the relative movement of Mars and Earth in these two months...)
...
Earth, Houston Ground Command Center, USA.
Chris, wearing a white coat, stood on the command desk with a nervous look, staring at the big screen in front of him.
"Hasn't there been any news from Pathfinder 1 yet?"
Chris asked in a deep voice.
The researcher on the side shook his head and quickly replied: "Not yet!"
"Damn..." Chris's eyes twitched slightly twice, and a bad thought flashed through his mind.
Will something go wrong?
According to the original calculation, Pathfinder 1 should have successfully entered the synchronous orbit of Mars five minutes ago!
This is the first time in the entire human history that a manned space flight has lasted 82 million kilometers.
Apart from other things, the communication delay of several minutes is enough to make people drink a pot!
The distance of 82 million kilometers means that the electromagnetic wave signal needs 546.6 seconds to make a round trip.
In other words, it takes more than 9 minutes for a message to be transmitted from Pathfinder 1 to the earth, and then from the earth to Pathfinder 1, not considering the response time in between!
What does 9 minutes mean?
Simply put, if an emergency occurs during the landing process, by the time the ground command center responds, it is estimated that the ashes of the three astronauts will be evenly scattered on the ground of Mars!
"Professor, will Pathfinder be in trouble?"
Morton asked anxiously from the side.
Professor Chris's eyes twitched again, and the anxiety in his heart increased a few points again.
But facing the director of NASA, he still forced himself to suppress his anxiety and shook his head slowly, saying, "Director Morton, please be patient."
"The distance between the earth and Mars is too far, and it is normal for the calculation to have some errors."
Molton sighed deeply, smiled bitterly and said, "Professor, if the Pathfinder program fails this time, Mr. Albert will probably not let me go."
"Who won't?" Chris shrugged lightly and said helplessly.
What a joke, the United States has spent a lot of money on the Pathfinder program. If it fails... Let alone them, Albert will probably be forced to step down to vent public anger.
Just as the two looked at each other and sighed, Andrew's voice came from the radio.
"Call Houston..."
Professor Chris was slightly stunned, and then a touch of joy burst out in his eyes!
"Nice!"
A burst of cheers and applause sounded!
Molton, who was standing aside, was slightly relieved when he saw this scene.
It seems that he can stay in the position of NASA director for two more days.
He reached out and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, then made a cross on his chest and folded his hands with a pious look.
It seems that God is still looking after America!
"Ahem! Everyone, calm down." Professor Chris picked up the microphone, with a smile on his face, and said softly, "The next is the highlight, cheer up!"
Chris's words calmed down the researchers.
That's right, successfully reaching the orbit of Mars can only be said to have completed 20% of the entire plan.
Next, they will face a greater danger-landing on Mars!
Chris turned on the radio communication switch and said in a steady tone: "Houston received!"
"Everything is going according to plan, and the landing procedure will be started after arriving at the predetermined location!"
Because the communication delay is too long, Pathfinder 1 has a very high degree of autonomy. It can be said that most events can be decided independently except for some necessary situations.
And all of this also tests the astronauts' ability to adapt to changes.
Therefore, Andrew became the captain of the Pathfinder program with his excellent performance in training.
…
In a synchronous orbit 17,000 km from the surface of Mars, three landing capsules are flying slowly at a speed of 3.55 km/s. (Mars orbital speed)
Andrew quietly looked at the vast red planet outside the porthole, and a trace of worry appeared in the depths of his eyes.
"It's been 10 minutes, why hasn't NASA responded yet?"
Bruno's voice suddenly sounded, breaking the original tranquility in the landing capsule.
Andrew's worry became more and more intense.
After a moment of silence, he whispered: "Wait a little longer, maybe Houston is delayed..."
Although he said this, Andrew couldn't help but reach out and grab the microphone, ready to call Houston again.
"Hehe... Hehe..."
A noisy electric current sound suddenly came from the radio.
"Houston received... Hehe... proceed according to the plan..."
Because of the long distance, Professor Chris's voice seemed particularly vague.
But this did not prevent the three astronauts from understanding the content.
"Okay, everyone, cheer up!" Andrew took the lead in putting on the helmet of the space suit and sat back in the chair.
"There are 20 minutes left to the scheduled location, prepare to release the satellite!"
After fastening his seat belt, he gently pushed the button on the console in front of him.
A signal was transmitted to the Pathfinder III landing capsule that was following behind.
A few seconds later, a satellite mounted on the outside of the landing capsule was released.
This satellite with both communication and remote sensing functions will be the bridge for them to communicate with the earth in the future.
"Satellite release successful!"
"Propulsion system successfully started!"
"Satellite working signal received!"
Joey's report came from the side.
Looking at the deceleration point getting closer and closer on the screen, Andrew swallowed slightly, and his face became more serious.
"Bruno, how are Pathfinders 2 and 3?"
A few seconds later.
"In good condition, deceleration can be carried out at any time!"
Andrew nodded, looking at the preset deceleration point getting closer and closer, and said in a deep voice: "Prepare to start the landing procedure!"
A tremor came from the soles of their feet, and the three Pathfinder landing capsules began to adjust their postures and aim the thruster nozzles at the bottom in the direction of travel.
With a blue tail flame, the landing module began the deceleration procedure!
The expressions on the faces of the three astronauts became more and more solemn.
Three hours later, they will face the most dangerous time of landing on Mars.
The legendary "seven minutes of terror"!
