Mars.
On the surface.
Driving the spare rover to the destination, two scientific researchers wearing spacesuits quickly jumped out of the vehicle.
"We have reached the target location …" Han Kangyu's face was full of solemnity as he looked around. He opened the communication channel and reported to the base, "Dr. Fan is not found nearby, nor is his rover."
The coordinates here were 15 ° south latitude, 128.1 ° west longitude, which was the location stated in the last message sent by Dr. Fan before the contact was disconnected.
However, forget about people.
Even the tire marks left by the rover could not be seen here.
Soon, a calm voice came from the communication channel.
"Maybe he moved to another position when avoiding the sandstorm, and the positioning system has an error under the influence of the sandstorm … Search in the nearby area."
"Okay."
After receiving instructions from Captain Liang Youcheng, the two immediately aimed their eyes at the nearby mountain range called The Gates of Hell. If it was to avoid the sandstorm, it was undoubtedly the best choice compared to the sand dunes in the open area.
Thinking of this, the two immediately launched an operation. Sure enough, they found new clues.
"The rover is here …"
They found the rover used by Dr. Fan next to a steep rock wall. Ming Wenzhe opened the door and looked inside. He frowned slightly. "There is no one in the car, and the toolbox is not here."
After hearing the sound, Han Kangyu immediately walked to his side. He looked at the empty driver's seat, and cold sweat suddenly slid down his forehead.
He punched the tire that was as tall as a person. He couldn't help but curse.
"Damn it … Where did this guy go?"
He was the deputy captain of the scientific research team that went to Mars. If someone had an accident on Mars, he and Liang Youcheng would bear the brunt of the responsibility.
Of course, compared to a human life, taking responsibility was a small matter.
If someone died here, it would undoubtedly give those who were jealous of China's achievements an excuse to attack them. It would undoubtedly be a heavy blow to the entire Mars colonization plan!
But now, they didn't even know what happened to them.
Ming Wenzhe, who was standing at the door of the car, suddenly spoke.
"There is one possibility."
Han Kangyu immediately looked at him and asked.
"What possibility?"
"According to the message he left on the rover … Before he lost contact, he should have witnessed the disappearing fracture structure nearby. Considering that there was a sandstorm at the time, the visibility outside the car was not high, and the location where the crack appeared should not be far from here. "
Seeing the increasingly ugly expression on Deputy Captain Han's face, Ming Wenzhe was silent for a moment before continuing to say the speculation that everyone found hard to accept.
"But now, the crack is gone."
"You mean, he jumped into the fissure alone, and then the fissure quickly closed after he went down?"
Ming Wenzhe nodded silently.
"That's the only way."
Although he knew that this was the most likely scenario, Han Kangyu still couldn't help but complain.
"What kind of tectonic movement is so fast, and it can … close up in an instant? He didn't even have the chance to climb up? "
"How would I know? I'm not a geological researcher." A hint of bitterness appeared on Ming Wenzhe's face. "To be honest, I find this place a little strange. Is it because it's called Hell's Gate? Why don't we give this mountain a new name? "
The communication module of the two was open to the public channel.
Liang Youcheng, who was standing in the base communication room, had been listening to the conversation between the two.
After thinking for a moment, he gave an order in a deep voice.
"It's useless to be anxious now."
"Let me make a bold guess. If the crack appeared randomly around the 128 anomalous points, there should be a large free space below this area. From this perspective, Dr. Fan, who fell down, is likely to be alive. Of course, I'm not an expert in this area. I can only say that everything is in the most optimistic direction. "
"You expand the scope and search along the edge of the mountain range. If he is still alive, he will definitely not sit down and wait for death. Maybe he has already gone to the next earthquake crack to wait for rescue."
"In addition, I will apply for support from the ground command center."
"… No matter what the final result is, we have to bring him back."
It may not be difficult to drill a rock to extract a core on the surface of Mars, but it was still quite difficult to dig through more than 20 meters deep and fish people up from below.
There might be such engineering equipment on the Moon, but it was impossible to have it here. Therefore, the only thing they could do was to apply for support.
In fact, applying for support was just a way to comfort them.
Even if the support from the Moon Palace really came from afar and brought reliable excavation equipment, all they could do was collect his body.
Han Kangyu listened to the captain's instructions from the communication channel. He clenched his fists and was silent for a long time.
Finally, he loosened his fists and sighed.
"… This is the only thing we can do now."
Ming Wenzhe suggested, "I want to apply for permission to use the optical observation module of the Xu Fu."
Liang Youcheng: "It has been assigned to you. We will also help you keep an eye on whether there are new cracks in the ground nearby. Remember, if you find that … abnormal crack again, don't act rashly, especially don't explore down! "
"No matter what his current situation is, we can't afford to lose him again."
…
The moment Liang Youcheng sent the situation at the scene and the distress message back to Earth, the entire ground command center had entered a state of emergency because of the sudden situation.
An astronaut was missing!
It had been less than a week since the colonial capsule landed, and such a serious incident had already happened. This was no longer a simple aerospace accident, but a serious political accident.
The whole country was still celebrating the success of the manned Mars landing.
If this matter were to spread, where would the Mars landing office put its face?
Inside the office.
Lu Zhou was stunned when he heard Director Chang report the situation at the scene.
Although he had considered the possible risks of this "128 outliers" research project before, he really didn't expect it to appear in this form.
The crack was stitched up when he went down?
It sounded like he had been "eaten" by something alive.
After a long silence, Lu Zhou couldn't help but ask.
"Is he still alive?"
"Life and death are unknown." A bitter expression appeared on Director Chang's face. He continued, "The problem now is that the Mars base has sent a signal requesting reinforcements, but even if we send reinforcements now, I'm afraid it won't help."
This was indeed a problem.
Even considering the most optimistic situation, the supplies on Dr. Fan Tong could only last for about three days at most. Even if their Magpie Bridge set off from the Moon Palace now, it would take at least two weeks to reach Mars.
This wasn't even considering whether the problem could be solved.
After all, the environment on the Moon was completely different from that on Mars. The engineering equipment tailored for the Moon might not be perfectly compatible on Mars.
After thinking about it for a while, Lu Zhou made a decision and spoke.
"Don't send reinforcements for the time being."
"But —"
"I know what you are worried about." Seeing the worry on Director Chang's face, Lu Zhou continued calmly, "But the worst thing right now is for us to mess up.
"Since it is only a missing person, and it has not been confirmed that our astronaut is dead, then don't make this matter public for the time being.
"At the same time, let our outpost on Mars use all available resources to carry out the search and rescue for the missing astronaut.
"If it turns into an irreversible situation …
"I will take all the responsibility."
Director Chang's shoulders shook, and he looked at Lu Zhou in disbelief.
After a while, he nodded with a heavy expression.
"… Okay."
The office door was closed.
Lu Zhou was the only one left in the spacious room.
Lu Zhou, who was sitting behind the desk, went silent for a while. He sighed softly and looked at the smartphone on the desk.
"Xiao Ai."
The signal light flickered slightly, and a message appeared on the screen.
[Master, are you calling me? O (〃 ▽ 〃) o]
"You should have heard the conversation just now, right?" After a pause, Lu Zhou continued, "Connect me to the 'Crawler' and carry out the search and rescue for the missing astronaut."
In less than a second, the dialog box filled with "reliable" popped up again.
[Yes, Master! (?????)??】
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