Chapter 181: Artificial Ecosystem_1

Jiang Yu remembered that Qi Guanglu was already in his seventies this year, but he looked even younger than he did eight years ago.

Zhao Yun said with a smile, "Joy rejuvenates the spirit. Professor Qi's team has achieved such great success that it has made him look much younger."

The results of Qi Guanglu's work were clear to see. When Jiang Yu had visited last time, although new varieties of wheat had been planted, the surrounding environment was still rather desolate.

Now, however, the area was a lush green, and sparse woodlands could be seen in the distance.

Qi Guanglu introduced with a smile, "Actually, the Green Keeper Project didn't have any new breakthroughs. The methods for creating green spaces here are something we had thought of a long time ago, only in the past few years have we made enough technological progress."

He led Jiang Yu and the others, "Please follow me."

The greenery in the desert was encircled by grasslands on the outside, and one had to walk several tens of meters inward to find the major crops of the north like wheat and corn.

Upon entering the agricultural area, Jiang Yu felt that the air humidity seemed to have changed.

Qi Guanglu, walking in front, said, "Actually, many people talk about soil erosion every day, yet they don't understand what it means and its dangers.

"A poplar tree, during the rainy season, can generally store several hundred kilograms of water. A poplar forest can virtually absorb the excess rainwater that could lead to floods.

"Without floods, it ensures that the soil resources within the forest won't be lost, and the water absorbed by the trees will gradually be released into the surrounding environment, maintaining adequate moisture.

"But when the forest is gone, neither soil nor water can be retained, and the concurrent problems of soil erosion will follow.

"Without trees to absorb water, floods are more likely to occur. Without trees to continually release water resources, drought becomes more probable."

As Jiang Yu listened to Qi Guanglu explain this knowledge, he noticed a tall white tower not too far away.

The tower was made of metal, with what looked like rings of small holes from the bottom to the top.

Qi Guanglu continued leading them toward the white tower, and he said with a smile, "Here, you surely do not feel the dryness of the desert anymore."

He gave a mysterious smile, "We used to believe that no matter how hard we worked in the desert, a dry wind could come along and take away all the water vapor in the air.

"However, our results have changed our previous understanding. Once a sufficient number of plants have been planted in the desert,

"Their respiration can to some extent alter the climatic environment of the desert.

"Just like the example of soil erosion I mentioned earlier, when vegetation that can adjust a region's water resources returns, the region's climate will become healthier and healthier."

Lu Qingfeng asked curiously, "But that still seems like a 'which came first, the chicken or the egg' concept. How can we get enough plants in the desert to produce respiratory effects that can change the climate?"

Qi Guanglu pointed at the white tower ahead, "This is it. We call it the Small-scale Ecosystem Adjusting System. Although it still needs improvement, as you can see, it has created an oasis."

Jiang Yu, looking at the white tower with curiosity, asked, "How does it work?"

Qi Guanglu answered with a smile, "Do you still remember the proposals our Water Transport Team put forward twelve years ago?"

Jiang Yu nodded, "I vaguely remember."

"The plan to build a climate regulator in space was scrapped five years ago," Qi Guanglu said. "That project was too advanced; the theoretical and technical barriers were too great.

"So, we turned all our attention to the water synthesis system project.

"This was inspired by the artificial starch project; transporting water is difficult, but it is relatively easy to transport the hydrogen and oxygen that make up water."

"This is thanks to the huge investment by Moon City, which designed special trains for us that can handle pressure and refrigeration and built more than ten kilometers of railway, allowing liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen to be transported directly from the seaside here."

"These special trains run once a day and can bring thousands of tons of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen each time."

Jiang Yu and the others were looking at the small holes around the white tower and roughly understood how the system worked.

Qi Guanglu continued to explain, "If it were over a thousand tons of water, it would barely make a dent, but it's different when liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen are transported separately.

"In their liquid state, they are essentially compressed hydrogen and oxygen gases with greater density, allowing for larger one-time transport volumes, whereas liquid water is difficult to compress.

"We have a hydrogen production plant and an oxygen production plant in Qinhuangdao that use seawater for hydrogen and oxygen production, and then transport them here."

"After adding liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen to the small ecosystem in proportion, first the two liquid gases are vaporized, then they react to form water vapor.

"Then the water vapor is released from these small holes, scattering evenly over the surrounding vegetation."

Jiang Yu nodded, he was more concerned about, "What's the cost like?"

Qi Guanglu smiled and said, "The Water Transport Team has overcome technical challenges, especially in hydrogen production technology, as the nuclear tests conducted in space now require a lot of hydrogen.

"This has greatly increased the efficiency of the hydrogen production industry and significantly reduced costs.

"And the liquid hydrogen we use doesn't need further purification, and the oxygen production process is already well-established."

"On the experimental fields side, the electricity generated from wind and solar energy is enough to convert the liquid gases into liquid water.

"Overall, it's difficult for ordinary crops to break even with this cost, so we are now cultivating some economic crops.

"But the significance of this system is extraordinary, completely resolving the issues of difficult, costly, and recurrent desert control that have plagued our country since the last century.

"If there is enough funding, there will be no more deserts in the country, and even no more deserts in the world!

"Humanity's arable land will have doubled, and there will be no more dust storms!

"We have mastered the way to transform the Earth! This is a tremendous leap forward for human civilization!"

Qi Guanglu joked, "At that point, we should be careful not to let the global oxygen levels increase too much."

Jiang Yu squatted down and touched the thick grass next to the white tower, which was growing so lush that it made the sandy ground beneath it firm.

Greenness concealed the sand below, life concealed desolation.

He asked, "How big is the experimental field now?"

"Nearly six hundred acres," Qi Guanglu replied. "This is one of the earlier experimental fields, mainly focused on crops; to the north, there are some forests with well-developed root systems.

"We've found that five hundred acres is roughly the threshold for altering the local climate; below that, there's not much change, but above that, there is a noticeable improvement."

Jiang Yu smiled, "This system has another huge use; once it matures further, it can change the environment of a planet!"