v2 Chapter 63： Run to space

The elevator kept rising on the mobile launch platform, and the three of them were getting farther and farther from the ground. Zhang Heng looked up at the distant sky, where a red rising sun was rising from the coastline.

Light and darkness are perfectly intertwined at this moment, like a framed film.

"I hope we can still see such a beautiful sight." Collins whispered aside.

Although Saturn 5's amazing height made it even impossible to reach the top, the elevator eventually stopped in front of the covered bridge.

NASA staffers opened the elevator doors for them and nodded at them. At the same time, the engineer completed the last inspection before launch. The three people walked through the connecting bridge between the rocket and the launch platform and got into a small space. In the command cabin.

Zhang Heng tried to keep the spacesuit from touching the complicated instruments and pipelines around him, and at the same time found his seat, and the door of the command cabin closed slowly behind him.

So far, only three of them remain in the spacecraft.

Both Armstrong and Collins are old men at NASA. They have performed aerospace missions before, so they are very calm, but compared to Armstrong's unchanged look, it can still be seen that Collins is a little nervous.

After all, NASA has just happened a series of things before, mysterious infectious diseases, and the crazy attrition of training camps ... All this seems to be in line with the widely rumored "God does not want humans to go to the moon" rumor.

Even with the psychological qualities of Collins, it is difficult to completely ignore these disturbances.

But when the mission began, he quickly cleared his mood and devoted himself to the space flight.

Like the historical Apollo XI, NASA has arranged Armstrong as the commander and Corinth as the command / service cabin pilot. As for Zhang Hengze, he replaced Buzz Aldrin as the lunar module. Driver.

Corinth was also the only person on the Apollo 11 mission that did not land on the moon, because he needed to stay in the command / service cabin when the lunar module was separated from the command / service cabin. Once Armstrong and Zhang Heng could not get from the moon Back, Corinth was going to drive the command module back to Earth.

In terms of safety, he is the highest of the three, but the price is that he has arrived at the "doorstep" of the moon and cannot go up, but he is still higher than the lunar module driver in the task order. Zhang Heng's.

After contact during the quarantine period, Zhang Heng, Armstrong, and Collins also became more familiar, because Armstrong and Corinth returned late, and the three did not have the opportunity to train together. This once made NASA seniors worried about the three. Tacit understanding.

However, until now, they have no better solution. They can only try to create an environment for the three people familiar with each other during the isolation period. Zhang Heng has also determined one thing.

That is, what happened in the parallel copy will not be brought into the normal copy. Armstrong did not have any impression of the time when the two were together in the Lewis Flight Dynamics Laboratory 14 years ago.

This can also be seen from the look on Armstrong's face when the two met again. Armstrong looked at him like he was looking at a stranger.

Zhang Heng is still a little regrettable, although he also knows that this situation is most likely, because in the past 14 years, his appearance has not changed in any way, and there is no sign of aging on his body, which is not a thing in anyone's eyes. It is also difficult to find credible reasons for normal things.

Zhang Heng has more or less learned about what happened after the two separated from the internet and books of later generations.

Armstrong married Janet Elizabeth Hillen in 1956, who he met while he was in college. The two had three children. His daughter Karen was diagnosed with a malignant tumor and lost her language and walking ability. Karen died on Armstrong and Janet's wedding anniversary.

This incident dealt a heavy blow to him, which is why Zhang Heng felt he became more silent when he saw him for the second time, although Armstrong never showed grief in front of anyone.

However, he later applied for NASA's astronauts. In addition to his love of flying, he did not have a sense of escape. Perhaps only in high-intensity training and work can he temporarily forget the pain of losing his daughter. In addition, Armstrong's road to marriage was not smooth.

In 1989, Janet left a note for Armstrong at the dinner table, asking for the end of their 38-year marriage, and in Armstrong's own words afterwards

— "Our marriage is like a failed flight, silently broken down ... if possible, I would also say, I love my wife, I am sorry ..."

But at this moment, Armstrong sitting in the command / service cabin did not think about these things. UU reads . He has concentrated all his energy on this task. This is why NASA will evaluate Armstrong as stable and reliable The reason for the leader.

In a sense, although Armstrong and Zhang Heng are in different times, they have many similarities in their bodies and can see each other's shadow from each other.

At the beginning, there was a tacit understanding between the two at the Lewis Flight Dynamics Laboratory, and he returned to the copy of the Apollo training camp fourteen years later. Although Armstrong did not remember what had happened before, but between the two, The subtle tacit understanding did not completely disappear.

Armstrong can also detect that he and Zhang Hengming only met for the first time, but there is a feeling of long-term reunion between old friends, and Zhang Heng seems to know well about his family situation and early years experience.

…………

The ground control center in Houston issued a final two-minute ignition countdown command, and the ground staff had now evacuated to a safe area.

Just today, there were more than a million people who came to watch the Apollo 11 launch. In addition to this, dozens of cameras were broadcasting live, and Zhang Heng checked himself again at the last time. Safety belts to ensure foolproof.

At this time, the countdown also reached the last 15 seconds, and the internal guidance was started ... Immediately with 9 seconds remaining, the engine started to ignite, and the five f1 rocket engines of the first-stage rocket were running at full power and every second Burning about 12,000 kg of aviation fuel is equivalent to the combined consumption of 1500 jet fighter jets afterburning.

The red flame from the base carried a huge sand dust around, and the powerful thrust generated by it pushed the spacecraft off the ground.