333: Chapter 333 Star Rocket Launch

Night fell over Detroit on August 10th.

The glow of fire turned half the sky red.

Armored vehicles of the National Guard blocked the streets, their tracks crushing broken glass with a harsh, grating sound. Soldiers stood with rifles in hand, facing the riotous crowd, their shields reflecting the cold light of the fires.

Burning cars crackled and popped, sending plumes of black smoke into the air. Shop windows were smashed, and stores were looted. On the walls, graffiti in blood-red letters read: "F**K THE SYSTEM."

James, an unemployed worker, stood in the crowd, his eyes hollow.

Forty-five-year-old James had worked at Ford for twenty years, rising from a line worker to a team leader. He had thought he would work there until retirement, get a decent 401k, buy a house in the suburbs, and watch his children grow up.

But three months ago, Ford laid off staff. Two weeks ago, his 401k was wiped out. A week ago, the bank foreclosed on his house. Yesterday, his wife took their two children and went back to her parents' home.

Now, he stood on the burning street, not knowing where tomorrow would take him.

A person next to him handed him a bottle of liquor: "Drink up, brother. America is finished."

James took the bottle and took a deep swig.

The strong liquor burned his throat, but he could no longer feel the pain.

At 10:00 AM on the 12th, in the White House Situation Room in Washington.

Seven people sat around an oval table, the atmosphere so heavy it felt like it could drip water.

The President sat at the head of the table, his face ashen. At sixty, he looked ten years older. His hair was messy, his eyes bloodshot, and his tie was crooked—something that would have been absolutely impossible in the past.

The Secretary of the Treasury was reading data, his voice heavy:

"Unemployment rate: 15.3 percent. This is the highest since the Great Depression."

"July CPI: 14.2 percent. Double-digit growth for three consecutive months."

"Dow Jones Index: down 38 percent from the beginning of the year."

"Thirty-seven cities across the country have entered a state of emergency."

Hawk slammed his hand on the table and stood up.

Bang—the water glass on the table jumped, spilling water all over the table.

"We must send troops! Star Rocket is about to launch in the South China Sea, we should..."

The President raised his hand to interrupt him.

"Hawk, enough."

Hawk was stunned. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

The President looked at him, no anger in his eyes, only a deep exhaustion.

"Every one of your plans has made things worse. Sanctions, sanctions failed. Military threats, threats failed. What do you want to do now? Send an aircraft carrier to the South China Sea?"

Hawk wanted to say something else, but the Secretary of State sneered.

"Hawk, Congress is already drafting articles of impeachment. If the President steps down, you won't escape either."

Hawk's face turned instantly pale.

At 3:00 PM on the 14th, on Capitol Hill.

The House chamber was packed. The representatives were solemn, and reporters in the gallery were frantically taking notes.

The Speaker pounded the gavel.

Thump—

The whole room went silent.

"The House of Representatives officially initiates impeachment proceedings against the President of the United States. Articles of impeachment: failure to address inflation, causing the bankruptcy of national credit, and endangering national security."

The room erupted in an uproar.

On the CNN live broadcast, the President's approval rating flickered at the bottom of the screen: 19 percent.

The comments section instantly exploded:

"This is the worst president since 1929!"

"Don't blame the President, blame Star!"

"Star? Our own companies are all using their systems, who do you blame?"

"America is finished."

At 8:00 AM on August 15th, at the Command Center Spacecraft Launch Site in Hainan.

The wind from the South China Sea, carrying a salty, damp scent, blew through the palm trees and the viewing platform. The sky was as blue as if washed clean, dotted with a few white clouds.

On the massive launch tower, a milky-white rocket stood majestically.

tianlong-1—sixty-seven meters high, equivalent to a twenty-story building. Its takeoff thrust was 1,200 tons, equivalent to twelve Boeing 747s taking off at the same time.

Inside the fairing, 120 satellites were neatly arranged. Each satellite weighed 280 kilograms, with a total payload exceeding 33 tons—this was the world's first "one rocket, one hundred satellites" launch.

On the viewing platform sat over a hundred special guests.

The Chairman of the Aerospace Science and Technology Group, Lei Fanpei, the Deputy General Manager of the Aerospace Science and Industry Group, the President of CETC, the Chairman of CETC Tianao—the veterans of the Chinese aerospace industry were all present.

The heads of the space agencies from Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt—the leaders of space agencies from over a dozen countries, each with different expressions.

There was also a group of middle school students in uniforms—children from Command Center Aerospace Primary School. They pointed excitedly at the rocket, chattering away.

Star Aerospace CEO Chu Tianming stood in the command center, watching the countdown on the big screen.

Fifty-year-old Chu Tianming had once been the chief designer for the Aerospace Science and Technology Group, having led the development of the Long March 5 and Long March 7. Four months ago, Su Chen had found him and said he wanted to build a launch site in Hainan, build rockets, and launch 20,000 satellites within two years.

At the time, he thought Su Chen was crazy.

But now, he stood here, watching the rocket about to take off.

Lei Fanpei stood beside him and sighed with emotion:

"Mr. Chu, four months ago, Mr. Su said he wanted to build a launch site, build rockets, and launch 20,000 satellites. We all said Star was crazy."

Chu Tianming smiled.

"Mr. Lei, when China was building the two bombs and one satellite, others said the same thing."

At 8:30 AM, in the command center.

On the big screen, various parameters were flickering normally.

tianlong-1 Technical Parameters

Takeoff thrust: 1,200 tons

Low Earth Orbit payload: 33 tons

Satellites per launch: 120

Launch preparation time: 72 hours

Maximum recovery times: 50

Cost per launch: 15 million USD

Comparison data popped up automatically—SpaceX falcon 9:

Takeoff thrust: 760 tons

Low Earth Orbit payload: 22.8 tons

Satellites per launch: 60

Launch preparation time: 168 hours

Maximum recovery times: 15

Cost per launch: 50 million USD

A technician added: "The 14-nanometer radiation-hardened version of the Xinghuo Chip has twice the computing power of Starlink satellites, with 30 percent lower power consumption."

"Energy system: flexible thin-film solar panels, with a photoelectric conversion efficiency of 35 percent—the international average is 25 percent."

"Inter-satellite laser communication: speed reaches 100 gigabits per second, ten times that of Starlink."

Chu Tianming nodded.

At 9:00 AM, countdown.

"Ten minutes to launch."

On the viewing platform, the children quieted down.

"Five minutes to launch."

The heads of the space agencies from various countries sat up straight.

"One minute to launch."

The entire venue held its breath.

"Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one—"

"Ignition!"

Flames spewed from the bottom of the rocket.

The seawater instantly evaporated into white steam, engulfing half the launch pad. Orange-red flames rolled in the steam, emitting a deafening roar.

tianlong-1 slowly left the launch pad.

One meter, ten meters, one hundred meters.

Accelerating.

Thirty seconds later, it pierced through the clouds, trailing a long flame, heading straight into the sky.

On the viewing platform, the children cheered and jumped with joy.

At 9:12 AM, first and second stage separation.

The first stage of the rocket detached and began to turn around.

It would return to the launch site and land steadily.

This was the 100th flight of tianlong-1, and it was also the beginning of its future career of forty-nine reuses.

At 9:35 AM, satellite-rocket separation.

120 satellites were released one by one into Low Earth Orbit at 550 kilometers, like scattering beans.

Each satellite deployed its solar panels and began to operate autonomously. They lined up in formation and slowly dispersed, like a flock of fledglings that had just learned to fly.

In the command center, applause thundered.

Chu Tianming turned to Su Chen beside him—Su Chen had come today too, wearing a plain white shirt, standing behind the crowd.

"Mr. Su, the 'tianting project' has officially launched."

Su Chen nodded.

At 10:00 AM, a press conference.

Chu Tianming stood on the stage, with the image of the successful launch on the big screen behind him.

"The goal of the 'tianting project'—to launch 20,000 low-orbit communication satellites within ten years and build a global high-speed satellite internet."

The big screen displayed the timeline:

2018: 1,560 launched

2019: 5,000 cumulative

2020: 10,000 cumulative

2023: 15,000 cumulative

2025: 20,000 cumulative, global coverage

"In the remaining four months of 2018, Star Aerospace will launch tianlong-1 at a frequency of once every ten days. 120 satellites each time, without fail."

Reporters below the stage were frantically taking notes.

A reporter raised their hand: "Mr. Chu Tianming, such a launch frequency has never happened in human aerospace history."

Chu Tianming smiled.

"Then it starts from today."