After passing through the center of the earth, they are still accelerating!
Another thing that terrified Shen Huabei was that he felt gravity, and in the process of this fall through the earth, he should have been weightless from beginning to end, but he really felt gravity! The scientist's intuition quickly told him that it was not gravity, it was thrust, and it was this thrust that allowed them to overcome the growing gravitational pull of the Earth and keep it accelerated.
"You must remember Verne's moon cannon." The tour guide asked suddenly.
"The stupidest book I've ever read as a kid." Shen Huabei answered absently, looking around, trying to figure out this strange thing that had suddenly appeared.
"It's not stupid at all, firing cannons is the ideal and fastest way for humans to enter space on a large scale."
"Unless you want to be crushed into pulp in a shell."
"It was pressed into pulp because the acceleration was too great, the acceleration was too great because the barrel was too short, and if there was a barrel long enough, the shell could shoot out at a gentle acceleration, just as you feel it now."
"So we're in the cannon of Verne?" 「
As I said, it's called the Cannon of the Earth."
In Liu Cixin's short story "Earth Cannon", he imagined another way to enter space: instead of rocketing people, people were launched using "earth cannons".
Of course, this is just a fantasy in science fiction. But sometimes, art can also shine into reality. Nasa's powered space launch system, which NASA plans to test in the future, is like a similar principle of "throwing discus into space."
▲ Image courtesy of SpinLaunch
This powered space launch system, an alternative launch system for rockets, was developed by spinLaunch in California. The new space technology company, founded in 2014, has been developing suborbital systems since 2015, and this chimney-like device is one of the suborbital accelerators.
Unlike conventional fuel-based rockets, SpinLaunch developed a ground-based, electric power launch system with an electric accelerator powered by electricity that is designed to operate at 800 to 5,000 miles per hour through an electrically powered giant accelerator.
▲ Image courtesy of SpinLaunch
Similar to the movements of athletes when throwing discus, the aircraft in the accelerator are propelled to the speed of hypersonic speed by high-speed rotation, and then launched out into space. Once the SpinLaunch system has completed the first part of the project, the second stage rocket can take over and eventually push them into orbit.
▲ Image courtesy of SpinLaunch
As a result, the vehicle not only leaves the Earth's atmosphere, but also uses electric accelerators to propel them compared to traditional rocket launches, reducing fuel usage by a factor of four and costing by a factor of 10, while also sending multiple payloads into orbit each day.
▲ Image courtesy of SpinLaunch
SpinLaunch has completed its first test flight at its base in New Mexico and has achieved recycling of reusable vehicles, and in 2022, the company will conduct more tests, using a variety of vehicles and launch speeds for regular test flights.
Jonathan Yaney, CEO of SpinLaunch, said: "What started out as an innovative idea to make space more accessible has now become a technologically mature and game-changing launch method.
▲ Image courtesy of SpinLaunch
He also mentioned that SpinLaunch is providing unique suborbital flight and high-speed testing services, and the recent launch agreement with NASA marks a key turning point as SpinLaunch shifts its focus from technology development to commercial products.
There is no doubt that spinLaunch's system is a lower-cost and environmentally sustainable way to access space than conventional fuel rockets. However, this method does not apply to manned flight, after all, no astronaut should be able to withstand the huge pressure of about 10,000G.
▲ Image courtesy of SpinLaunch
Although the current system is only suitable for small launch vehicles weighing no more than 440 pounds (200 kilograms), it also provides new possibilities for human space exploration, which can actually fly without fuel.