The Rise of Australasia

Chapter 803 -601: Test-1 Rocket_1

Time flies, and before we know it, seven years have passed since the end of World War I.

The military technology of various countries developed quite rapidly during the war, and even after the war, these countries continued to establish military research organizations to keep updating their weapons and equipment.

The most famous institution in Australasia is naturally the Royal Science Academy. Founded by Arthur himself, representing the highest level of scientific achievement in Australasia, this organization plays an irreplaceable role in advancing various industries of Australasia.

Whether it was the earlier jet engines and jet airplanes, or the improved agricultural products and technologies, all owe their success to the efforts of the Royal Science Academy.

Even the extraction and smelting of minerals, as well as the extraction and refining of petroleum, heavily rely on technologies from the Royal Science Academy.

A piece of good news for Arthur was that the Royal Science Academy had made significant progress in rocket research, and was already preparing for the first practical experiment with a rocket.

The history of human rocketry can be traced back hundreds of years, and mankind’s yearning to ascend to the skies has never been broken.

The current head of rocket research in Australasia is Ziolkowski, a renowned pioneer in the exploration of rocketry.

Ziolkowski also had a distinguished assistant, who would later become known as the father of European rocketry, Hermann Oberth.

Ziolkowski’s journey to Australasia has been introduced before, and the process by which Hermann Oberth came to Australasia was quite arduous as well.

Born in Transylvania within the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Hermann’s hometown was reassigned to Romania due to changing borders, but he was a descendant of Germans.

From a young age, Hermann was attracted to various novels and magazines, which led to his fascination with interstellar travel.

It is worth mentioning that Hermann’s major in university was not rocket dynamics, but rather medicine at Munich University.

After fighting for the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Hermann interrupted his medical studies and became devoted to the fundamental theories of space travel.

During this period, Hermann read every piece of literature on rockets and space travel he could find, naturally coming across the works of Ziolkowski.

After studying at Munich University, Göttingen University, and Heidelberg University in succession, Hermann believed his thesis on rocket design was outstanding, but it was bluntly rejected by Heidelberg University for quite absurd reasons.

Greatly disappointed, Hermann decided to follow Ziolkowski’s example and moved to Australasia, which valued rocket dynamics, to conduct related research.

After submitting his thesis to Australasia National University, he immediately caught the attention of Ziolkowski, the honorary dean of the rocket dynamics program there, and thus Hermann easily made his way to Australasia.

The subsequent story is quite straightforward. Hermann and his wife, Matilda Hummel, began a happy life in Odalasia. His research in rocket power and design progressed smoothly, and he quickly became Ziolkowski’s most excellent assistant.

The rockets currently designed by Australasia certainly include Hermann’s contributions.

Ziolkowski even affectionately referred to Hermann as a genius in his reports to Arthur and personally asked Arthur to recognize his achievements.

The current rocket, of course, could not be compared with those of later times; its overall structure was still very simple, using only further refined gasoline as fuel.

Australasia’s first experimental rocket was named Test-1. Test, meaning ‘test’ in English, indicated its experimental nature.

The name’s simplicity was intentional, to avoid drawing other countries’ attention. Like the codename ‘tank,’ resembling a water container, it was a moniker used for discretion.

As the culmination of nearly ten years of research by the Royal Science Academy, Test-1 was indeed ahead of its time in terms of advanced technology compared with other countries of the same period.

That was to be expected, as there were only three top pioneers in aerospace in the world at that era, and Australasia had two of them. Thus, it was natural for them to be ahead in rocket development.

To demonstrate the importance he placed on the accomplishments of the Royal Science Academy and rocket research, Arthur decided to personally attend the outskirts to witness the practical test of Test-1, and to encourage and reward all the scientists involved.

The Test-1 rocket was 8.3 meters long and had a total weight of 7.7 tons. With a command given, flames burst out of the back of the rocket, and it then raced towards the sky.

Based on estimates from various data, the Test-1 could reach a maximum flight altitude of 11.2 kilometers and a maximum flight distance of 75.3 kilometers, both impressive achievements.

Such a rocket naturally could not be compared to those developed during World War II, but with a time difference of almost 20 years, the Test rocket still had a long way to go for improvement.

Arthur was quite satisfied with these estimated figures. A maximum flight distance of 75.3 kilometers also indicated that if it was to be transformed into a missile, it would become the longest-range single weapon in the world at that time.

Australasia’s missile technology leading by about ten years meant that it was very likely to develop medium-range missiles, and perhaps even nuclear warheads mounted on missiles, by World War II.

Consider the military bases of Australasia, which could even be spread throughout Northern Europe (Finland), the Middle East (Persian Gulf Territory), Oceania (the native land and its affiliated islands), Southeast Asia (the Philippines), and Central America (El Salvador)—there are innumerable areas and countries within striking distance.

If missile research were to accelerate, simply with the military base in El Salvador, Australasia could threaten the southern region of the United States.

This is also the greatest means of sanctioning the United States. If during World War II the United States really had chosen a different side, then missiles armed with nuclear warheads would be the best way to sanction the United States and also the most powerful guarantee to split the country.

Australasia had already expedited its research on nuclear weapons; although nuclear arms would not appear overnight, research related to nuclear theory was gradually being perfected.

More importantly, much of this research was strictly confidential, which meant that Australasia held a leading position in the field of nuclear theory.

After gaining control of the high-purity uranium mines in the Congo, in fact, countries around the world began to slow down their pace of nuclear theory research.

Add to this the considerable talent attracted by Australasia, and it would be quite a feat for other countries to catch up to the historical pace of nuclear weapons research, let alone make any headway ahead of time.

The Test-1 Rocket marked only the first step in actual rocket development, yet this initial step is the most crucial.

The saying “all beginnings are difficult” is no joke. The very first step of anything is tremendously tough and also determines whether the following progress will be smooth or not.

Australasia’s research in rocket technology obviously extends beyond Test-1, with the most valuable contributions being the gradually improving rocket design and research into rocket propulsion.

Further improvements to the rocket will also rely on related theoretical research. Just like nuclear weapons, which saw no practical progress despite over ten years of research, it is quite challenging to design a tangible product without a completed theory.

Arthur was very generous to the experts in scientific research, giving each a cheque for 300 Australian dollars.

This was equivalent to an ordinary person’s income for five years, and this reward was bestowed upon all employees of the rocket research lab, truly a share for everyone present.

In addition to this reward, further rewards would be given based on each individual’s contributions, with extra rewards for those who made outstanding ones.

Take, for example, Ziolkowski and Helman, who made the greatest contributions to rocket research, each of them received a cheque for 1500 Australian dollars, and their corresponding rewards would also be recorded. Once they accumulated enough, they would be exchanged for a Title of Nobility.

This is one of the benefits of granting noble titles for military merit in Australasia. Anyone who made any contribution could earn merit, and once enough merit was accumulated, one would receive corresponding rewards, such as funds, land, and Titles of Nobility, among others.

The contributions made by every individual to the country would not be erased, and it was entirely possible to achieve a satisfactory Title of Nobility through one’s own accumulated merits.

However, it would still be quite difficult to achieve a higher Title of Nobility through accumulated merit alone. After all, the Title of Sir could not be inherited, which meant that many people had no chance of acquiring a Baron Title.

Even if one were to obtain a Baron Title, achieving further advancement, such as becoming an Earl, was no less challenging than making accomplishments in the political arena.

Beginning from the time of the Australian Principality, 24 years had passed. The emergence of former Prime Minister Kent as an Earl over these 24 years sufficed to demonstrate the difficulty of obtaining a higher Title of Nobility.

Nevertheless, compared to politicians, those who found it easiest to gain merit were soldiers and scientists.

But soldiers had to put their lives on the line in the battlefield, while the relatively safer positions, where significant merit could be earned, still belonged to scientists.

This was the environment Arthur wished to foster in Australasia. Only if scientists had an easy path to distinction would people desperately aspire to become, or to have their children become, scientists.

More than one-third of the population in the Australasian nobility are scientists, which also fuels the fervent passion of Australasians for scientific research.

Take, for instance, the distinguished contributors Ziolkowski and Helman; as long as improvements in the rocket technology go smoothly, it will be very easy for each of them to obtain a Title of Nobility.

Coupled with the research into converting rockets into missiles and creating commendable military records with them, even Baron and Earl Titles are not out of reach.

As long as they can obtain the corresponding Titles of Nobility, their status in Australasia will not be inferior to that of officers, and they will also receive a substantial portion of wealth that matches their Titles of Nobility.

This has led to the warm reception of scientific research in Australasia, especially among ordinary people, who show a broad interest in pursuing careers in this field.

Just think, an ordinary person may not experience any significant changes throughout their life, as in any country, the ordinary population is abundant, and in theory, there is no shortage of such individuals.

But if one were to engage in scientific research, even without any significant contributions, one could do better than the average person.

The treatment of scientific researchers in Australasia has always been quite favorable. Coupled with the various funds and supplies that Arthur periodically rewards to scientific researchers, their income far exceeds the average, making it one of the most sought-after professions in all of Australasia.

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