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The spirit of space flight and the spirit of the Long March come down in one continuous line. Not only that, the Red Army's indomitable style in the Long March has always inspired the whole process of national rejuvenation. -Liang Xiaohong
"Long March"-Speaking of these two words, every Chinese will inevitably think of two things. One is the long journey of 25, miles 7 years ago, and the other is the "Long March" rocket that has sent our satellites and even astronauts into space for 36 years.
"It is no coincidence that our launch vehicle is named after the Long March", said Liang Xiaohong, secretary of the Party Committee of China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, the birthplace of the Long March series of launch vehicles. So, who named our launch vehicle "Long March"? What is the connection between the two "Long March"? Academician Xie Guangxuan, the first chief designer of the "Long March III" launch vehicle and honorary consultant of the first manned space flight mission in China, as one of the technical experts and main pioneers of China's strategic missiles and launch vehicles, unveiled the mystery for us.
★ The development of rockets is similar to that of the Long March. The Red Army's Long March took more than two years, and the development of "Long March 1" took 12 years.
Speaking of the origin of the name "Long March", we can't help but mention the development process of the "Long March 1" carrier rocket that launched the "Dongfanghong-1" satellite. Academician Xie Guangxuan, who was honored as "Mr. Xie", said with emotion, "The development of rockets is similar to the Long March. The Red Army's Long March took more than two years, and the development of' Long March 1' was also a long March, which took 12 years."
the "12 years" mentioned by Mr. Xie dates back to 1958. At that time, the former Soviet Union launched the first artificial earth satellite in October 1957. In May 1958, President Mao Zedong proposed at the Second Plenary Session of the Eighth Central Committee of the Communist Party of China that "we should also build artificial earth satellites". This was a great challenge to the level of science, technology and industry in China at that time, and it could only be realized through long-term hard struggle and constant innovation like the "Long March".
"'Long March 1' was developed on the basis of long-range missiles. The first and second stages used long-range missile prototypes without modification, and the third stage used solid rockets." Mr. Xie told reporters that satellites and solid rockets are contained in the fairing and are washed and heated by airflow. The three-stage solid spin is stable (18 rpm). After the second stage is turned off, the engine is controlled by injecting nitrogen to maintain the stable flight of the taxiing section. This design ensures the integrity and reliability of the satellite.
Just as the Long March has to break through all kinds of difficulties and obstacles, the development of Long March 1 is also full of twists and turns. It was not until 1969, after Premier Zhou presided over the discussion on the production situation, that the development of the "Long March 1" rocket was carried out smoothly. "At that time, it was decided to send Qian Xuesen to handle the rocket test of the First Hospital with full authority, and requested that the roster of 29 units and 3,456 staff members who participated in the development of the' Long March 1' rocket be reported to the Prime Minister's Office for inspection." When Mr. Xie talked about this past, he remembered the number "3456" very clearly.
"On February 18th, 197, two issues were discussed: one is whether the launch vehicle should launch a simulated star, and then launch the' Dongfanghong-1' satellite after success. According to Premier Zhou's "sixteen-character policy", the masses will be mobilized to carry out "quality review and fault prediction". If no problems are raised, they will be carried out according to the original technology. " Mr. Xie said that the issue of "overload switch" was also discussed on the eve of satellite launch. The first and second stages of the launch vehicle have passed the flight test of medium and long-range missiles, and the scheme is feasible. If the rocket taxiing section and the three-stage solid rocket fail, the satellite will fall and touch the atmosphere, which will cause great overload. The overload switch on the satellite will cut off the music of "Dongfanghong", which can avoid the adverse consequences after the satellite plays the music of "Dongfanghong". After discussion by the Central Committee, both plans were cancelled.