After the arrival of the new colonists, the construction of the Mars colony also entered the second phase.
Celestial Trade's positioning for the Mars colony was to build this place into an industrial base in the solar system from the very beginning. Therefore, the development direction of the second phase of the colony was quite clear, that was to mine, mine, and then smelt steel!
Steel was the foundation of industry. In order to increase production capacity on Mars, steel production must keep up.
It was not difficult to achieve this on Mars. You could smell the rust on a handful of sand, it was just a matter of how much. In addition, there was another advantage to the development of heavy industry, that was, the man-made greenhouse effect would indirectly change the thickness of the Mars atmosphere. Perhaps in a few centuries, the thickness of the atmosphere on Mars would return to the level three billion years ago under artificial interference, and Mars would become a second paradise for humans …
Of course, this was a story for the future.
In addition to increasing production capacity, the population could not fall behind.
Labor force was always one of the important factors restricting industrial development, whether it was the general labor force or the labor force with higher education. Even if automated production could greatly reduce the demand for low-educated labor in industrial facilities, it was impossible to completely kick humans away.
At least not in the next two centuries.
In the six-month plan for the Mars colony, Jiang Chen clearly set two goals. The first was that the monthly output of steel must exceed one million tons, and the second was to expand the size of the colony to a population of one thousand.
Because of this, the colonists who had just arrived on Mars didn't even have time to savor the exotic atmosphere on Mars. The next day, they carried their drunken and groggy brains and set foot on their jobs with their tools.
This time, the Seagull-class transport ship not only brought the colonists but also brought a lot of production tools, such as excavators, cranes, mining equipment, and so on specially designed for the Mars environment. The initial colonial cabin with a square could only provide 200 living units, and the colonists who arrived later could only live in the rooms they built themselves.
After all, the colonial cabin that could be deployed by airdrop was quite expensive, and Celestial Trade could not waste all the budget of the colony on buying houses for the colonists.
The engineers of the entire colony were busy all of a sudden. They commanded the construction workers to drive the construction vehicles to enclose the land. The entire colony turned into a huge construction site, submerged in flying dust.
The first to start the expansion was the soilless cultivation farm, then the spherical water pump, then the steel mill …
Just as construction machinery was plowing the sand dunes, an armored vehicle that had been specially modified for the Martian environment drove out of the garage of the colony and headed toward the distant horizon …
…
Celestial City, Space Command Center, Mars Colonization Project Department.
After learning that the transport ship had arrived on Mars, Jiang Chen immediately took the space elevator here and found Kelvin, who was inspecting the work in the command center, and asked him about the recent situation of the Mars colony.
"Did our colonists land safely?"
"It landed yesterday." Kelvin nodded. "The Seagull-class transport ship has gotten rid of Mars' gravity after circling the synchronous orbit and is now returning to the Earth-Moon system."
It seemed like the colony was developing well.
Jiang Chen nodded with satisfaction and then asked about another matter he was concerned about.
"What about Mine 071? What's the situation? "
"How can it be so fast?" Kelvin shook his head. "Our Marines have just set off from the colony and have yet to arrive at Mine 071. Even if they arrived, they wouldn't be able to immediately obtain information five kilometers underground. According to the plan provided by Hong Zewei, we will first drill a five-kilometer deep well in Mine 071, and then send the drone down to check the situation. "
"What do you think will be there?"
Kelvin shook his head helplessly. "I don't know. Maybe it's really an alien city? But I hope it's an alien grave, or a fossil. If it's a living Martian, it's definitely a disaster for our colony. "
Jiang Chen didn't know whether it was a blessing or a curse to discover traces of "aliens" on Mars. On the one hand, he was looking forward to what the colonists on Mars could find, but on the other hand, he was worried about whether it would bring disaster to Celestial Trade's Mars colonization plan.
Just as Jiang Chen was puzzled, he suddenly remembered that there might be one person who could give him the answer.
With a stomach full of questions, he took the space elevator back to the ground the next day.
…
Coro University.
Unlike the third-rate university that was not much better than the community college, Coro University had developed into a world-class institution. Whether it was in academia or among companies, it had a strong influence. Of course, this influence was mainly reflected in aerospace, new energy, and materials science. As for other majors …
Let's not talk about it.
When the university was first established, Jiang Chen was invited by President Raphael Leif to open a public elective course called cosmology. It was also a way to satisfy his desire to be a university professor. But since he pulled Hawking out of his wheelchair, his three-minute passion had almost faded, so he gave this elective course to Hawking, who taught physics.
On the tree-lined path, there were young and inexperienced faces and students of different skin colors. They spoke in a language that he was familiar with and chatted with their friends about clubs, girls, professors, and where to relax later …
Because it was Saturday, the campus was quieter than usual. At this time, students would choose to go to the downtown area of Coro City, or buy a ticket to Penglai City for a day or two before coming back.
Those who remained in the teaching building were either top students or freshmen who still had elective courses to deal with.
Jiang Chen was very low-key when he arrived. He drove quietly into the campus and didn't attract too many people's attention. After he called Raphael Leif and learned that Hawking was in class, he drove straight to the teaching building.
After waiting at the door for the class to end, Jiang Chen found Hawking, who had just walked out of the lecture hall.
Seemingly surprised to meet Jiang Chen here, Hawking, who walked out of the door with his briefcase, paused for a moment.
"… What a rare guest."
Jiang Chen made a helpless expression. Just as he was about to speak, Hawking spoke first.
"I guess you have something to ask me?"
This time it was Jiang Chen's turn to be stunned. He didn't expect Elder Huo to have the ability to read minds.
"Sort of, there's a small problem at work … I don't know if it's convenient for you?"
"What's not convenient? If it's not convenient for me, I don't know how many scholars would fight for this opportunity to answer questions for the executive, "Hawking said humorously. Hawking said humorously. He reached out and pulled Jiang Chen's sleeve and led him to the side. "It's time for dinner. Let's talk while we walk. The cafeteria next to the east teaching building is good. The pine cone pancakes there are quite good. I recommend you try some. "
Now that class was over, many students had already noticed the two people at the door. After they recognized Jiang Chen, some even took out their phones in excitement. If they stayed here any longer, they would be surrounded like pandas.
Jiang Chen didn't have the time to experience the enthusiasm of foreign female students, so he quickly followed Hawking's footsteps and walked out of the teaching building.
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