Zhang followed the directions on his phone and rode to the engineering design company, but the sales staff quickly lost patience when they saw that he was just an ordinary worker. They introduced him perfunctorily and sent him on his way.
Still, Zhang Xun learned something about building shelters, not much, but it was still useful to him. He found that the number of domestic companies in this industry is very small, and many companies are just acting as gimmicks, by transforming some abandoned bomb shelters and other means to call them shelters, but in fact, there is not much feasibility and reference value.
In contrast, there are more companies building shelters in Europe and the United States, especially in the United States, where many capitalists use the concept of the end to build various doomsday bunkers and build them according to doomsday standards. The variety of these bunkers is dizzying.
For Zhang Xun, this information may provide him with some inspiration, at least he can draw some inspiration from the experience of Europe and the United States, and make further thinking and preparation for himself and Du Jing's shelter plan. He was determined to do more than just listen to the salespeople, but to conduct more in-depth investigations and research on his own to find viable solutions and reliable partners.
Indeed, according to the old American way, bunkers usually have more than ten layers, and the total area can even reach tens of thousands of square meters. Although the bunkers meet the appropriate earthquake and nuclear protection standards, they are extremely luxurious, even with luxurious equipment such as swimming pools. It is estimated that billions of dollars of investment would be needed to build such a bunker.
Mr. Zhang speculated that the construction costs alone would account for a large part of the total cost of the lavish renovation. He knew that he could not compare with those rich people, and certainly could not carry out such lavish construction. At the end of the day, the usefulness of shelter is all that matters.
And even if he wins the lottery, the construction costs probably won't cover it, let alone the follow-up inventory and other expenses. He realized he needed to keep raising money and find a faster way.
He felt for the lottery ticket in his pocket, with mixed feelings. He both hopes to win and doesn't. Winning the prize means that he will no longer have any doubt about the apocalyptic dream, but at the same time, he faces enormous pressure to build and operate. He knows that whatever the outcome, he needs to be careful about what comes next and keep trying to raise money to make his shelter plan a reality.
In the afternoon, Zhang Xun continued to visit two similar engineering design companies, but the answer was the same: they had not designed this type of project and had no relevant experience.
The designer of one of the companies suggested that he go to a professional design company in the United States to provide a design plan for the geological structure of the site, and then find a domestic construction unit to carry out construction. However, the designers did not have foreign contact information, which made Zhang Xun feel disappointed.
After leaving the company, Zhang Xun went to Jiangcheng University of Geosciences and asked some students about their majors. He sneaks into a geology class, though he doesn't quite understand the terminology.
Despite the difficulties and uncertainties, Zhang Xun persisted in planning and preparation to make full preparations for his shelter plan.
Zhang Xun did not come to listen to the class, he found the geology professor Professor Wang. Professor Wang looked to be in his fifties. After the class was over, Zhang waited for a few minutes for Professor Wang to finish answering students' questions before running after Professor Wang as he left the room.
Zhang Xun introduced himself as Zhang Wei, a senior environmental engineering student, and asked Professor Wang if he had time to ask a few questions. Zhang Xun was nervous because he was worried that his appearance would lead people to believe he was a student.
Professor Wang looked at Zhang Xun for a while, did not refuse his request, and said that he had no more classes. Zhang Xun proposed to go into the next classroom and sit for a while, because Professor Wang had just been standing up for class and might be a little tired.
Professor Wang accepted Zhang Xun's suggestion, entered the classroom and sat down. Once seated, Zhang Xun asked Professor Wang a question: "The thing is, the students are about to graduate, and I don't know enough about geology, especially about site selection and geological structure. I plan to build a shelter and would appreciate your guidance and advice on site selection and design."
Mr. Zhang mentioned that his graduation was coming up, and hoped that Professor Wang would help him with guidance on site selection and geological structure. He hopes to get the necessary knowledge and advice from Professor Wang to help him with the planning of the shelter.
Zhang explained that he wanted to write a graduation thesis on the impact of asteroid impacts and high-altitude nuclear explosions on Earth's geology and environment. Since he is not a geology major, he needs to ask Professor Wang some questions about geology.
Professor Wang smiled after hearing Zhang's request and pointed out that Zhang Xun may have been influenced by yesterday's news to decide to write this graduation thesis.
Zhang Xun nodded sheepishly, admitting that he had been inspired by yesterday's news. He imagined a scenario: If the 15km diameter asteroid 347735 hit Chile, 1,000 km west of the Pacific Ocean, at 40 times the speed of sound, it would cause a huge geological and environmental disaster, which would bring about the extinction of all species on Earth.
He hopes to explore the immediate impact and long-term effects of such a large impact on the Earth's geological structure from a geological perspective. He also expressed interest in the impact on China's geological structure.
Zhang's first question is about the impact of such a massive impact on the Earth's geological structure, and Professor Wang will provide guidance and answers on this question.
When Professor Wang heard Zhang Xun's question, he showed interest in the topic. He pondered for a few minutes, tapped lightly on the table, and then began to answer.
He started by setting the conditions for an asteroid impact. He hypothesized that after the asteroid entered the atmosphere, the entire Earth would witness a huge fireball more than eight times brighter than the Sun. This is due to the friction caused by asteroids as they enter the atmosphere.
Professor Wang went on to explain that a thousand kilometers of Chile's interior, west of the impact point, is dominated by shallow water. When the impact occurs, it will create a crater on the ocean floor with a depth of 500 to 1000 meters. At the same time, the intensity of the energy released by the impact can be comparable to that produced by the detonation of billions of atomic bombs. This release of energy causes evaporation of the nearby crust.
According to Professor Wang, everything within 2,000 kilometers of the impact point will be destroyed by high temperatures and shock waves.
In addition, due to the intense heat at the moment of impact, large areas of the Earth's crust will be vaporized, and a large amount of debris will be released, like rising fireworks into the sky and even space.
According to Professor Wang's answer, such a huge impact event would have an extremely large impact and impact on the geological structure of the earth.
When Professor Wang heard Zhang's description, he went on to explain that within thousands of kilometers of the impact area, there would be a violent earthquake of more than 12 magnitude on the Richter scale. At the same time, coastal areas of the Americas will be hit by a tsunami of more than 500 meters. Although the Asian coast is far from the impact point, there will still be severe crustal movement, and earthquakes of magnitude 8 or greater will occur frequently in various fault zones, and earthquakes of varying sizes will be produced in other areas.
Professor Wang went on to point out that the impact of the tsunami would come later, but he estimated that the height of the tsunami would not be lower than 200 metres.
He added that this was only the first wave of impact. The powerful energy will heat the atmosphere up to 1,500 degrees within 3,000 kilometers, which is a short-term heat, but it will soon cool down.
In the second wave of effects, tens of thousands of tons of rock fragments flying through the air began to fall, like rain on fire. The entire hemisphere would be in flames, and the surface temperature would rise dramatically.
Professor Wang took a sip of water and continued to explain. These depict the dramatic effects that could occur after an asteroid hits Earth. This disaster will have devastating consequences for the Earth's geology and environment.
Professor Wang went on to explain that in this third wave of effects, violent geological movements will cause all of the Earth's active and extinct volcanoes to erupt again. As the temperature rises, a lot of smoke and dust will be produced, and the suddenly heated air will gradually expand and rise. This dust will be carried into the atmosphere and eventually cover the entire Earth. At the same time, the ash produced by these volcanoes contains a large amount of acid, which will cause an unprecedented rainstorm, covering the entire Earth. All fresh water resources will also be polluted, and even the surviving plants and animals will perish in the acid rain.
To make matters worse, the dust that blocks most of the sunlight would plunge the Earth into darkness. The whole Earth would be as deep as a cave out of reach, plant photosynthesis would stop, and the food chain would completely collapse.
However, when Mr Zhang asked if it was possible for humans to survive, Prof Wang pondered for a moment. Finally, he slowly replied, "Given the impact of this devastating disaster on the planet and on life, the chances of human survival are very low." Such a massive impact and environmental collapse would cause irreversible damage to human societies, resources and living conditions."
Professor Wang's answer caused Zhang Xun a deeper shock. He was silent for a moment and then asked dryly, "So how should we face such a disaster? Is there any way to mitigate its consequences or look for the possibility of survival?"
Professor Wang sighed and went on to reply, "If a few people can stay in solid underground bunkers, and these bunkers can withstand the impact of impacts and earthquakes, it is possible to survive in the short term." However, an important condition for long-term survival is that these underground bunkers must be prepared in advance and have a well-developed closed cycle ecosystem that can support the population at the time."
However, those who do not have well-prepared underground bunkers will face a fate from which there is no escape. In addition, the collapse of the Earth's ecosystems will cause another problem, that is, the oxygen content will be lower and lower.
Professor Wang's answer reveals the dire predicament humanity faces when disaster strikes. Zhang Xun felt deep despair and powerlessness. After a moment of quiet reflection, he finally asked, "When a disaster like this happens, is there anything we can do to prevent or at least mitigate its consequences?"