NASA的Artemis II：50年來首次載人登月任務
NASA's Artemis II: The First Crewed Moon Mission in 50 Years
難度：中階
來源：BBC News
NASA is preparing to launch the first crewed Moon mission in more than 50 years. The Artemis II mission, which could blast off as early as February, will take four astronauts further into space than any humans have traveled before. The 10-day mission aims to set the stage for an eventual human landing on the lunar surface.
NASA正準備發射50多年來首次載人登月任務。Artemis II任務最早可能在2月發射，將把四名宇航員送到比以往任何人都更遠的太空。這次為期10天的任務旨在為最終人類登陸月球表面奠定基礎。
The crew includes NASA commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, mission specialist Christina Koch, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen. Once safely in orbit, they will test the Orion spacecraft's handling, practicing manual steering and alignment procedures for future Moon landings.
機組成員包括NASA指揮官裡德·懷斯曼、飛行員維克多·格洛弗、任務專家克里斯蒂娜·科赫和加拿大宇航員傑裡米·漢森。一旦安全進入軌道，他們將測試獵戶座飛船的操控性，練習未來登月所需的手動駕駛和對接程式。
The astronauts will then travel to a point thousands of kilometers beyond the Moon to test Orion's life-support, propulsion, power and navigation systems. They will serve as medical test subjects, sending back data from deep space. Radiation levels will be higher than on the International Space Station but still safe.
然後宇航員將前往月球以外數千公里的位置，測試獵戶座的生命支援、推進、電力和導航系統。他們將作為醫學測試物件，從深空發回資料。輻射水平將高於國際空間站，但仍然安全。
This mission prepares for Artemis III, which will attempt an actual lunar landing—possibly in 2027 or 2028. The lander hasn't been finalized; it will be either SpaceX's Starship or Blue Origin's design. New spacesuits from Axiom are also still in development. When Artemis III finally flies, astronauts will head to the Moon's south pole.
此次任務為Artemis III做準備，後者將嘗試真正的登月——可能在2027年或2028年。著陸器尚未最終確定；它將是SpaceX的星艦或藍色起源的設計。Axiom的新太空服也仍在開發中。當Artemis III最終發射時，宇航員將前往月球南極。
The last crewed Moon mission was Apollo 17 in December 1972. Since then, 24 astronauts have traveled to the Moon, with 12 walking on its surface—all during the Apollo program. Several countries now have lunar ambitions: China targets a landing by 2030, while Russia, India, and Europe also plan future missions.
上一次載人登月任務是1972年12月的阿波羅17號。此後，共有24名宇航員前往月球，其中12人在月球表面行走——全部是在阿波羅計劃期間。幾個國家現在都有登月雄心：中國目標是2030年前登月，而俄羅斯、印度和歐洲也計劃未來的任務。
重點詞彙
- alignment (n.)：對準，校準
- crewed (adj.)：載人的
- blast off (phr.v.)：發射升空
- set the stage for (phr.)：為...奠定基礎
- mission specialist (n.phr.)：任務專家（宇航員）
- life-support (n.)：生命支援（系統）
- propulsion (n.)：推進（系統）
- radiation (n.)：輻射
- finalize (v.)：最終確定，敲定
- in development (phr.)：開發中，研發中
- south pole (n.phr.)：南極
- lunar (adj.)：月球的
- ambitions (n.)：雄心，抱負