Chapter 168: Supply Cabin_1

In the "Mars Ladder Project," the supply pod sent to orbit in advance, upon reaching its predetermined position, would stop moving and wait for the arrival of the "Mars Explorer."

When the "Mars Explorer" approached within 56 million kilometers of the orbit, the second docking mission was set to commence.

30,000 kilometers away from the supply pod, the astronauts had already taken their posts in advance, and You Haoming ordered Bishkov to activate the spacecraft's docking system.

Yet, as they prepared to dock, Rolf, responsible for monitoring, suddenly reported, "Commander, the radar shows the supply pod hasn't moved from its position!"

According to the planned docking procedure, the supply pod was supposed to accelerate before docking, and then the "Mars Explorer" would catch up to it and complete the docking.

There was an intelligent computer inside the control system of the supply pod, programmed to carry out the docking mission with the "Mars Explorer."

You Haoming looked at the astronaut Theodore: "What's going on?"

The communication officer Theodore, somewhat puzzled, replied, "I've already issued the command to start the thrusters on the supply pod, and the data from the pod indicates that the thrusters have been successfully activated!"

Astronaut Bole said, "Commander, it's very likely that there's a malfunction in the supply pod's controller."

You Haoming immediately ordered, "Shut down the spacecraft's docking system, and use the four-way thruster at the nose of the ship to make fine adjustments and avoid..."

Just then, Mi Jingtiao reported, "Commander, it's too late!"

There were two cameras on the exterior of the spacecraft, providing external views for docking tasks and spacewalk missions.

Everyone looked to Mi Jingtiao's screen, and soon saw the supply pod the size of a ping pong ball.

The "small ball" rapidly grew in size, within a second or two it had grown to the size of a washbowl.

You Haoming immediately shouted, "Quickly, shut down the docking..." His words were cut off as the spacecraft experienced a slight tremor; they had collided with the supply pod.

The docking system was directly at the front of the spacecraft, and as seen from the cameras, the ship was now pushing the supply pod forward.

You Haoming immediately ordered, "Check the docking system, inspect the spacecraft for damage, and check the air pressure inside the ship." His composed commands considerably calmed the other astronauts.

Bishkov was the first to report back, "Commander, the docking system is unresponsive!"

Then Theodore reported, "No other damage detected, internal air pressure is normal."

You Haoming paused briefly before ordering, "Mi Jingtiao and Bole, exit through the side door and take a look. Bring the connector and attach the supply pod from the outside of the cabin.

"Theodore, immediately report the incident to Xichang."

The spacecraft had three exits: one at the front, one on the side near the nose, and one at the rear.

Donning their spacesuits, Mi Jingtiao and Bole exited through the side, and soon Mi Jingtiao's voice came through the earpieces reporting, "Commander, the docking system appears to have minor damage. The supply pod's hatch is covered by the docking system and cannot be opened manually."

You Haoming ordered, "Use the connector to secure the supply pod to the front of the spacecraft."

The external connector resembled a fixing clamp with two ends that could be tightened to secure two space devices together from the outside.

Theodore reminded, "Commander, the recent collision has decelerated the spacecraft. If we don't quickly discard the cumbersome supply pod, our speed will decrease by 4%, and we'll miss Mars completely."

Yet You Haoming seriously declared, "I announce that the Mars mission is now our secondary objective. Our primary mission is to receive all supplies from the supply pod, and if necessary, return to Earth at any moment!"

Everyone was stunned, and after a moment's thought, they realized the awkward predicament they faced.

Having used a lot of fuel to accelerate at a distance of 3,300 kilometers from Earth,

without securing a second supply to continue forward, they must directly enter Mars orbit in one go.

Otherwise, the spacecraft would miss Mars entirely, and what's more terrifying is that it would lose most of its power by then and could only drift through the Solar System indefinitely.

To return to Earth without securing a second supply would require deceleration, turning around, and then re-acceleration.

Due to limited fuel, the ship's speed would be reduced to roughly 30% of its current pace, taking nearly two years to return to Earth, but the food onboard was only enough to feed the astronauts for two more months.

This was the first time a space accident had occurred at such a distance from Earth. Rescue operations from Earth were definitely out of the question.

Whether moving forward or returning, the fuel and food in the supply pod were vitally important.

After about fifteen minutes, Mi Jingtiao and Bole had secured the supply pod.

You Haoming ordered Theodore and Rolf to check the docking system from the transitional chamber of the docking exit and try to open the supply pod.

Soon Rolf reported that the damage to the docking system wasn't very severe; just that the fuel conduit had ruptured and needed replacing.

Over an hour later, the Xichang Command Center provided a repair plan, and You Haoming immediately organized astronauts to begin repairs.

Fortunately, the spacecraft had brought along a set of spare parts for the docking system, just to be cautious before setting off.

The initial stages of repair went smoothly, but after fixing the fuel conduit, the astronauts discovered that although there was no visible damage to the docking system's electronics, they were also completely unresponsive.

Having repaired the electronic components, they then found that, regardless of how much they pressurized the transitional chamber, it remained devoid of pressure.

Upon inspection, they realized that the docking system could not form an airtight connection with the supply pod. Initially, while wearing space suits during the repairs, no one had noticed this issue.

Only then did they understand that the damage to the docking system was severe.

Thankfully, Xichang had a professional team ready to provide detailed repair solutions at any time.

In front of the communication device at Xichang, three astronauts took turns maintaining contact with the spacecraft, a tradition that had been in place since the Apollo missions.

Ground communication personnel had to be astronauts as well, because only they could understand the feelings and emotions of their peers in space.

...

When the accident involving the "Mars Explorer" was announced on Earth, almost everyone was on tenterhooks for the crew members on board.

Ever since the "Mars Explorer" set off, Jiang Yu had become increasingly restless.

This "long trip" was too important for humanity, and Jiang Yu regretted not using the Wallfacer's privilege to board the spaceship and join the astronauts on this mission.

If he had been on the spacecraft, he might not have been so anxious.

Learning about the docking accident with the "Mars Explorer," Jiang Yu was even more unable to sleep, smoking one cigarette after another and constantly staying by the communicator, listening to the conversations between Xichang and the "Mars Explorer."

Sometimes Di Fengyi couldn't bear to watch and would secretly hide Jiang Yu's cigarettes.

Just then, the New Nuclear Energy Research Base delivered good news: Ding Yi's team had successfully achieved controlled nuclear fusion reactions.