Chapter 240: Gravity of the Moon
Goheung Space Center – Control Room.
Unlike the previous night, when a gentle rain fell, today a clear blue sky enveloped the launch pad.
However, the atmosphere inside the control room was tense, as if filled with ice.
In the center of the mission room, I, overseeing the entire project, scanned the twelve telemetry panels on the main console.
Beside me, Director Kim Se-bin, Park Cheol-jin, and representatives from NASA’s Flight, GNC, and FDO teams were engrossed in their final checks at their respective consoles.
“CEO, Ivan Petrovich has completed the final de-orbit simulation.”
“Any variables?”
“Variation coefficient is at 0.23, all within the acceptable margin of error.”
Starting with Kim Se-bin’s report, each team member shared their findings.
“Engine pressure stabilized, fuel tank boil-off rate maintained at 0.0098%.”
“RCS systems normal. Luna AI-RTOS real-time feedback functioning.”
The voice of the NASA director echoed through the speakers.
“All Systems ‘Green’. Countdown proceeding.”
The launch process was being broadcast live through my feed and NASA’s official account.
Most viewers were following the event through my familiar channel.
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Comments: 601,382
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Amidst a mix of expectations and doubts, a moment of silence fell.
As the launch time approached, my gaze turned to the screen.
Park Cheol-jin and Kim Se-bin couldn’t hide their tension.
Two minutes remained until launch.
Each station reported their final checks.
“Boosters, go!”
“Stage, go!”
“GNC, Green!”
“Range, go!”
Finally,
“NASA Payload?”
A brief silence.
“Go. Godspeed.”
With all stations checked, a tense countdown began.
“T-00:00:10”
“Main engine ignition ready.”
“Main valve ‘open’.”
“Ignition sequence loaded.”
Liquid oxygen vapor flowed from the thick vents at the base of the launch pad.
“3…….”
“2…….”
“1…….”
“Ignition.”
The nine chambers of Leviathan’s first stage ignited sequentially.
Thrust surged to 100%.
As soon as the vibration meter stayed green,
I took a short breath and shouted,
“Launch!”
With a roar, a pillar of flame enveloped the launch pad as the massive craft slowly rose.
The thunderous sound pushed through the atmosphere.
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“Max-Q passed!”
The structural load graph, represented by a blue line, flattened as air resistance changed.
The process after passing Max-Q also proceeded smoothly.
The launch vehicle broke through the atmosphere.
With Main Engine Cut-Off (MECO), the lower section separated cleanly.
The first-stage Leviathan booster prepared for re-entry with a brief pitchover maneuver.
The upper stage (second stage) ignited its vacuum engine.
A needle-like flame tore through the night sky.
“Altitude 69 km.”
“Horizontal speed 2,100 km/h.”
Everyone held their breath, eyes fixed on the telemetry data.
Moments later, as the first milestone was successfully passed, cheers erupted in the control room.
“Liftoff successful! Sky Crane, slew rate increased, buffer shock absorption at 92%.”
“Booster capture burn, T-00:01:06.”
After a brief celebration, everyone refocused as the lower Leviathan booster began its return to the launch pad.
While competitors like Spade Z had a re-ignition limit of three,
Leviathan successfully achieved its fifth re-ignition, maintaining stable control.
“Booster braking burn starting!”
“Guidance OK. Volume 3.1m, roll within ±2 degrees.”
The upper part of the launch tower split open, and like the previous two launches, two massive arms extended toward the sky.
I calmly checked the telemetry panel readings.
Everything was perfect: the booster’s descent speed, attitude control, and the timing of the final retro-burn ignition.
“Booster entering capture zone!”
All eyes in the control room were fixed on the main screen.
A high-speed camera on the launch pad showed the booster’s approach in real time.
The massive craft descending with flames looked like a giant from the heavens.
“Main thrusters off, settling thrusters on!”
Following my command, dozens of settling thrusters on the booster’s base fired subtly, adjusting the final trajectory.
“GNC, final guidance patch complete!”
“Micro-thrust control normal! Error margin 0.001 degrees.”
This was the moment when the ultra-precise control system of the AGE-01, which Matthew Holligan had doubted, was seamlessly applied to Leviathan.
The booster descended without a single wobble, perfectly centered between the tower’s open arms.
Squeeeak—!
The massive arms enveloped the booster, moving silently and powerfully,
like a giant robot cradling a baby, both gentle and strong.
“Terminal capture successful!”
My shout was met with another round of cheers in the control room, but they were short-lived.
Booster recovery had already been achieved several times before.
The real challenge was yet to come.
Everyone’s attention shifted to the upper stage (second stage) beyond the atmosphere.
Without a moment to spare, I called out,
“Fairing separation.”
Two white hemispheres split open like a shell, revealing the Polar Orbiter and Selene Kick Stage inside.
The NASA FDO (Flight Dynamics Officer) exclaimed,
“Guidance good. Parking orbit nominal.”
As he spoke, the upper stage entered a circular low Earth orbit (LEO) at 185x185 km.
[T+00:11:40]
“Second Engine Cut Off (SECO).”
With the second-stage engine shutdown command, the engines turned off simultaneously.
“Separation in 3, 2, 1. Selene, release!”
As I gave the order, the kick stage smoothly slid away.
The internal inertial unit aligned itself.
Luna AI-RTOS took control.
“Settling thrusters firing.”
Micro-pulses in the milligram range pushed the propellant to the bottom of the tank.
A routine to prevent cavitation.
The pressure pump finished idling, and a precise engagement sound was transmitted as data.
“Perigee raise burn ignition.”
The perigee raise burn was designed to boost the spacecraft into a higher orbit.
The kick stage’s main engine roared softly.
A smooth blue plume clung to Selene’s bell nozzle, and the telemetry thrust gauge entered the stable range.
“Combustion chamber pressure normal. Δv accumulated 612 m/s…… Cutoff!”
“Orbit 185 x 3,120 km, eccentricity 0.18. Guidance good.”
After the first ascent, a coast phase of about 40 minutes followed.
Luna adjusted the solar angle to distribute thermal load on the tank’s outer wall and used spin bleed to manage stratification of the cryogenic gas inside.
The boil-off rate remained at ‘0.009%’.
This moment proved that what I had said in the presentation was no exaggeration.
“Second ascent burn. Ignition!”
“Combustion chamber pressure normal. Δv accumulated 1,980 m/s…… Cut!”
“Orbit 192 x 109,400 km, phasing complete. TLI window opens in T-00:27:10.”
Preparation to reach the Moon.
The control room fell silent, with only the sound of breathing.
Through the cameras, Earth transformed into a disc, and on the main screen, a 3D vector of the lunar orbital plane and target node overlapped clearly.
Park Cheol-jin closed his calculator and looked up.
“Window entry countdown starting. Remaining Δv margin 3.6%. All thermal cycles ‘Green’.”
I nodded and shouted,
“Alright. Selene, prepare for TLI (Trans-Lunar Injection).”
“Luna, sequence upload complete.”
Kim Se-bin typed on the keypad and said,
“Ultra-precise control kernel, entering micro-thrust blending mode.”
[T+00:43:09]
“Trans-Lunar Injection (TLI) Burn!”
Selene’s main engine roared again for the lunar transfer orbit insertion.
The prolonged burn shook even the hearts of those lightly floating.
The RCS prevented cavitation, subtly moving fuel to the bottom.
The orbital path on the display panel extended toward the Moon.
“Burn four minutes in. Vibration 0.03g. Header tank pressure stable.”
“Δv 3,180…… 3,200…… Cut.”
The main engine shut down, and the vibration subsided instantly.
On the monitor, a long, smooth orbit extending to the Moon appeared.
“C3 +0.62. Lunar orbit insertion (TLI) successful.”
At the NASA FDO’s words, ‘Guidance good,’ applause erupted in the control room.
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└ Idiot, you need to hear it to know? It’s obvious just by looking.
└ Anyway…… watching this makes my heart swell.
└ It’s not over yet, so it’s too early to celebrate.
As someone commented, the final challenge of lunar capture (LOI), entering the Moon’s gravitational sphere, remained. This process couldn’t be completed with a simple ignition.
And at that very moment,
An unexpected telemetry anomaly was detected.