Chapter 67 Geostationary Space Station_1

The Geostationary Space Station was a transit station in human space defense construction, situated higher than the space defense bases in geosynchronous orbit. The goal was to reduce the height of counterweights, and of course, there were other uses, which I will not detail here.

If the connection to a regular space station were lost, merely drifting away, there might still be a chance for rescue. But if you lost connection with the Geostationary Space Station, the weak centrifugal force would fling you far into the distance.

During the construction of the space elevator, a base station had to be built first in high orbit. From there, cables could be released downward toward the ground and outward into space simultaneously, with spacecraft needed at the top of the cables to pull them, continuously extending inward and outward.

Meanwhile, as the base station was built closer to the geosynchronous orbit, the moment came when the spacecraft-pulled cables connected with the ground-based station and the external counterweights.

Timing for this connection was extremely difficult to control, requiring exceptionally precise maneuvers. Any small error over a distance of 36,000 kilometers appeared enormously significant. It was also impractical to connect and then tighten the cables, considering the enormous weight of the cables themselves, which space tugs struggled to manage.

If the error exceeded a certain range, the connection attempt would fail, necessitating a readjustment of the orbital base station's position to prepare for the next attempt.

Wang Miao and his team had tried many times before they were successful. Once the first cable of the space elevator connected with the ground station, subsequent construction became much easier.

The beginning is always the hardest part, especially in the case of the space elevator. Once the first space cable was successfully connected, the pace of subsequent construction depended entirely on the rate at which more space cables were produced.

On a side note, many readers, upon encountering the concept of a space elevator, ponder one thing: what would happen if the space elevator's cable snapped?

Some science fiction works depict space station cables snapping and the station plummeting to Earth in freefall, which is incorrect.

If a space elevator cable snapped, the station would drift outward. Even if the counterweights were disconnected in time, the space station could still halt its movement, allowing humanity another opportunity to tow the station back to its original position.

But what if the space elevator were to fall?

It's clear that there is only one scenario for the space elevator's collapse: the section of the cable that connects the Geostationary Space Station to the counterweight in outer space breaks. The space elevator loses its balance and is pulled toward Earth by the gravity acting on the cable's Earth-bound end.

However, it wouldn't fall straight down. As the Geostationary Space Station descends, it maintains its original tangential velocity, moving forward as it drops in altitude.

Indeed, every cable in the space elevator possesses such a tangential velocity, influenced by the tension from the cable below and the centrifugal force from the cable's tangential motion above.

For the Geostationary Space Station, both gravity and the cable's tension constantly point towards the center of the Earth. As it descends, the tangential velocity increases (the speed is constant, it's the ground moving faster, analogous to the Coriolis force), and one can roughly estimate that the whole collapse process wouldn't be too rapid, taking about 1.5 to 2 hours.

Furthermore, the crash site would be fixed, predicted to be 4,000 kilometers west of the base of the space elevator. Should such a catastrophe occur, timely evacuation of populations near the equator and around the crash site of the Geostationary Space Station should be feasible.

Actually, the likelihood of a space elevator collapse is infinitesimally small. Even if all the cables extending outward were to break, we could promptly sever all connections to the Earth-bound cables.

Thus, the Geostationary Space Station would not fall. Of course, the space cables would still descend, and due to the numerous supporting rings fitted onto them, the damage caused could be substantial.

Therefore, when designing the space elevator, a substantial safety margin was incorporated into the tensile strength of the nanomaterial cables, ensuring that even if a cable unexpectedly snapped, the remaining ones would prevent the space elevator from collapsing or drifting away.

...

No matter what, any person beholding such a monumental edifice would be deeply impressed and awestruck.

Logic, confronted with humanity's greatest creation, was profoundly moved: "It's truly astonishing, a testament to mankind's greatest achievements."

Seeing the completion of the first phase of the space elevator's construction, Lin Sen couldn't help but reflect. Humanity had taken a solid step into space, and a new chapter for the human future had unfolded.

In the original timeline, humanity had not completed the construction of the space elevator for decades, but now mankind had accomplished it, with the full elevator expected to be finished in another 8 to 10 years.

If desired, a second and even a third space elevator could be built in the future.

More importantly, Lin Sen believed that what he was doing was meaningful, that the future could be changed; he was simply using his own capability as a Spirit Master to influence the people around him.

This could be described as version 0.1 of the thought revolution, liberating the minds of those around him and allowing them to truly utilize their talents.

Lin Sen finally saw a glimmer of hope on his future path. Human society could perhaps be seen as an "individual" with its own emotions, stubbornness, pride, diligence, and struggle. Nurturing it was an entirely different matter from nurturing a human individual.

This was something Lin Sen would need to study for his entire life; his greatest skill lay in emotional control and influence. How to control and affect human society was what he had previously asked Dr. Yun Fei to research – the study of societal emotions.

Standing atop the Geostationary Space Station, surrounded by bustling transport ships, looking up at Earth and the suspended cables, and down at the descending cables with no end in sight.

He felt as if tugged by two ropes, dancing on a thread, bearing the whole Earth, the civilization of Earth.

In the original timeline, human civilization had failed. The responsibility he now shouldered was perhaps the most significant in all history.

At that moment, Kent hurried over to Logic, saying, "Dr. Luo Ji, a message from the PDC. The Astronomical Observation Group just sent a message; they have new information to report.

Madam Sai and Chairman Galning would like you to attend the Wallfacer's hearing in a week's time."

Logic and Lin Sen exchanged glances. What was destined to come had arrived. There was no way the Trisolarans would have remained inactive after the Ice Lake Enlightenment four years earlier.

Their response would only be seen by mankind four years later, as any event 4 light-years away demanded at least a four-year wait.

Whatever action Trisolaris had taken, it proved one thing: the Dark Forest theory was true, and the malevolence of the universe was plainly laid out before Logic's eyes. At that moment, Logic was devoid of any illusions; civilization was a path drenched in blood, with no retreat possible. Logic needed to confront everything directly.

What the Astronomical Observation Group had seen was likely Trisolaris's response to Logic's Ice Lake Enlightenment. No matter what it was, it had to be faced.

Logic struggled to utter a few heavy words from his mouth, "I'll go."

Lin Sen naturally knew what was coming, only wondering how many 'Waterdrops' the Trisolarans would deploy this time…