"This asteroid is almost made of iron elements. As long as it is pulled back to the earth, the current price of steel on the earth is almost 1,000 Chinese dollars per ton. If this kind of unrefined raw ore is pulled into space, I think even if it is
Even 3,000 Chinese dollars per ton is considered a cabbage price."
"No matter how low the transportation cost of this anti-gravity spacecraft is, the cost of transporting anything into space will still increase significantly."
"This asteroid weighs 150 million tons. If one ton is worth 3,000 Chinese dollars, it is worth 450 billion Chinese dollars. We are going to be rich!"
Huang Zhibin became more and more excited as he talked. You must know that Qin Yi had personally promised that the entire team would account for 5% of the asteroids mined this time.
"My dear, is this asteroid worth 450 billion Chinese dollars?"
When the others heard this, they all lost their composure.
"Any one of these asteroids is worth hundreds of billions. There are countless such asteroids in this asteroid belt. Oh my god, this asteroid belt is filled with gold."
"M-type asteroids like this, which are mainly made of metal elements, account for 15% of the total. They can be found casually, almost everywhere."
Liao Fanghong immediately exclaimed, and her eyes couldn't help but turn red.
"The boss promised us that 5% of this asteroid will belong to us if we mine it. If the 450 billion is calculated, it will be almost 22.5 billion. There are only 22 of us in total. Even if it is divided equally, each of us can share it.
To 1 billion~”
"I really made a fortune, 1 billion~"
Someone firmly remembered Qin Yi's words, silently counted on his fingers, and suddenly the whole person couldn't help shouting.
When the other people on the spacecraft heard this, they were all dumbfounded. At first, everyone thought that this gray asteroid was worth something. This asteroid with a diameter of several hundred meters, no one knew how many they encountered along the way.
.
When we set off, no one thought that the 5% reward Qin Yi gave everyone would be a lot, but now a simple calculation shows that if this trip successfully brings the asteroid back to Earth, everyone present will become a billionaire.
"The entire asteroid belt is filled with gold!"
Wu Renjie couldn't help but sigh, and kept thinking in his mind. With the rapid development of the space industry and technology, more and more steel, metal, etc. are needed in space, and they are completely transported from the ground to space.
Obviously this is not possible, and mining asteroids from the asteroid belt will inevitably become the mainstream, and perhaps my own opportunity will come in the future.
Such thoughts flashed through his mind, and soon he regained his composure.
"Attention everyone, the spacecraft changes direction and we go capture the asteroid."
The distance of more than 3,000 kilometers seems very far, but for a spacecraft flying in the starry sky, it does not take a few minutes to reach the vicinity of this asteroid.
The huge hatch on the 'Qinglong' spaceship slowly opened, and two small spaceships roared out, each carrying a long rope.
This kind of rope is naturally no ordinary rope. It is all made of carbon fiber material. A hair-thin carbon fiber can hang something weighing several tons.
Carbon fiber material is a new type of fiber material with high strength and high modulus fiber containing more than 95% carbon. It is made of organic fibers such as flake graphite microcrystals stacked along the axial direction of the fiber. It is carbonized and graphitized.
Microcrystalline graphite material obtained by processing.
Carbon fiber is "flexible on the outside and rigid on the inside". It is lighter than metal aluminum, but stronger than steel. It is corrosion-resistant and has high modulus. More importantly, it not only has the inherent characteristics of carbon materials, but also has both
The softness and processability of textile fibers make them a new generation of reinforcing fibers.
Before departure, the Galaxy Science Research Institute had already worked out detailed methods for mining asteroids. First, it would use this high-strength carbon fiber rope to weave a network on it with a small spacecraft, and then use the spacecraft to pull the small asteroids into a net.
The planet deviates from its original orbit.
Finally, rely on the gravitational force of the solar system to calculate the position and let the asteroid re-form a new orbit passing the earth. When the asteroid is about to reach the earth, drag the asteroid again, and then rely on the gravity of the earth to capture the asteroid.
It forms an orbit around the earth and becomes a satellite of the earth. In this way, the capture of the asteroid is completed.
Two small spacecrafts slowly flew to the location of the asteroid. These two spacecrafts will be responsible for weaving a net for the asteroid and wrapping the asteroid with carbon fiber ropes.
"Whoosh! Whoosh!"
A steel fork was launched from each spacecraft. The steel fork penetrated deeply into the asteroid with its speed. A long carbon fiber rope was dragged behind the steel fork. Then the two spacecrafts began to wrap around the asteroid continuously.
Circle, circle, and circle, and soon it was wrapped dozens of times.
Then the two spaceships began to fly around each other, entwining the two ropes together again, and slowly flew into the Qinglong spacecraft.
Inside the Qinglong spacecraft, the robotic arm began to wrap the rope behind the small spacecraft around the pillars of the spacecraft. At this time, the rope connected the Qinglong spacecraft and the asteroid. However, the rope was not tightened, so there was no connection between them at all.
Not much impact.
All of this seems very simple, but it is actually full of risks. It is definitely not that easy and simple. Among other things, you must know that the spacecraft and asteroids are constantly moving at this time, and their speeds are very fast.
Therefore, we must first adjust the speed and direction of the two to be consistent, so that they can reach a state of mutual rest.
Then using a small spacecraft to entangle an asteroid is also full of risks. Asteroids generally not only orbit, but also autobiographical. If you are not careful, it may cause the asteroid to drag the small spacecraft into a collision and other major accidents.
When two small spaceships are entangled and braided with ropes, you also need to pay attention. It requires very superb flying skills, and the performance requirements of the spacecraft are also very high.
You must know that this is in the void of the universe, not on the earth. There is no air here, no southeast, northwest, up, down, left, etc. It is not easy to change the direction at will.
Although the risk is high, the technological equipment on the Qinglong is the most advanced and is the pinnacle of the Galaxy Technology Group. In addition, the crew members on the spacecraft are carefully selected, and everyone has the ability to be in space.
With the rich experience in it, we can complete all of this smoothly.
"The rope is fixed!"
"Start the engine!"
As Wu Renjie's order was issued, everyone began to become nervous. Although according to theoretical calculations, Qinglong can completely drag this asteroid weighing nearly 150 million tons, but this is only theoretical.
With the data, everyone is still panicking about what will happen when the operation is actually carried out, because this is related to everyone's worth and life.
The second-generation anti-gravity engine started. Under the powerful power, the entire Qinglong spacecraft began to vibrate. The speed of the spacecraft also began to slowly change. The carbon fiber rope connecting the Qinglong spacecraft and the asteroid also began to slowly change.
Straighten, tighten.
"Attention everyone~"
Wu Renjie and others have all put on their spacesuits, and some team members are already flying in small spaceships in space. Once the spacecraft has an accident and is pulled apart by powerful forces, everyone can still rely on small spaceships to save their lives.
Return to Earth.
Wu Renjie and others stared at the data very nervously, looking at the ropes getting tighter in the space outside, and praying silently in their hearts.
Soon, everyone felt a huge earthquake in the spacecraft. Everyone felt that under the action of a strong inertia, everyone was almost ejected. Fortunately, everyone was firmly fixed on the space chair and fully prepared.
The carbon fiber rope connecting the Qinglong spacecraft and the asteroid suddenly collapsed. On the asteroid, the carbon fiber rope with a diameter of one meter tightened into the asteroid, and did not stop until it encountered the hardest rock layer.
"call!"
Everyone heaved a sigh of relief, everything went well, and there was nothing wrong with the 'Qinglong' spacecraft.
"Increase the horsepower~"
Wu Renjie stared at the data carefully. At this time, the power of the spacecraft was not exerted at all. The structure of the hull was not strong enough, and it could not exert the powerful performance of the second-generation anti-gravity engine.
As his order was issued, the vibrations on the spacecraft became even greater. The powerful power of the second-generation anti-gravity engine began to appear. Using the powerful power of the star, the asteroid began to change. The original trajectory changed and a new one began to form.
track.
"Haha, it worked!"
Zhan Fei, who had been paying attention to the situation of the asteroid, couldn't help but laugh happily. At this time, the orbit of the asteroid had changed, deviated from the original orbit, and began to form a new orbit.
"Oh yeah!"
Even Wu Renjie, who was almost in his 40s, couldn't help clenching his fists with joy. He looked very excited and successfully dragged the asteroid and changed its orbit.
"Calculate the current orbit and calculate the time and place of encounter with the Earth's orbit."
On the other side, Huang Zhibin and Long Zhankong became even more nervous. They didn't have any free time, because they still needed to calculate the new orbit and then calculate the time and place to meet the Earth's orbit. This was related to
At that time, it will be a big deal whether the asteroid can be captured by the earth's gravity.
"The current orbit cannot coincide with the Earth's orbit and must be modified."
Soon, using a supercomputer, the two quickly calculated that the current orbit of the asteroid was completely unable to intersect with the Earth's orbit, so the orbit had to be adjusted.
If you have just started to adjust now, the energy consumed can be very small, and the angle and amplitude of adjustment can also be very small. This is the best time.
"Calculate the trimming direction and trimming degree."
The two people quickly used the supercomputer to start recalculating, and soon, they came up with new data.
"Captain, the asteroid needs to be trimmed by 2 degrees, and the direction is 9 degrees from the Earth's ecliptic plane."
Long Zhankong hurriedly sent over the results calculated by himself and Huang Zhibin. The longer it took, the more energy would be consumed in revising it.
"clear!"
"Start orbit correction."
Wu Renjie obtained the latest data and began to correct the flight direction and angle of the Qinglong. Behind the Qinglong, the orbit of the asteroid also began to change, bit by bit, slowly moving towards the planned orbit.
Originally, the engine of the Qinglong spacecraft was powerful enough to propel the asteroid by itself, but that consumes too much power. The most labor-saving way is to learn to use the powerful power of the sun.
A few days later, Long Zhankong and Huang Zhibin breathed a sigh of relief. They had repeatedly calculated the current orbit and speed of the asteroid. Combined with the orbit and speed of the earth, they would arrive at the Chinese Imperial Capital time on January 7, 2029.
It will rendezvous with the Earth at 12:43:41 and will be captured by the Earth's gravity in one fell swoop and become a satellite of the Earth.