SpaceX將為NASA往月球運貨

SpaceX將為NASA往月球運貨

“SpaceX will deliver critical pressurized and unpressurized cargo, science experiments and supplies to the Gateway, such as sample collection materials and other items the crew may need on the Gateway and during their expeditions on the lunar surface,” reads NASA’s press release. The expeditions are tentatively scheduled for as early as 2024.

美國宇航局的新聞稿說：“SpaceX將把關鍵的加壓和非加壓貨物、科學實驗和物資，例如樣品收集材料和宇航員在月球表面進行探險時可能需要的其他物品，運送到月球門戶。”。探險隊暫定最早在2024年。

NASA has begun awarding commercial contracts under the Artemis Program, the plan to get back to the moon. SpaceX has won the first contract, guaranteeing them two delivery trips to the Lunar Gateway and giving NASA the option to order more over a 12-year period. In total, NASA has allocated $7 billion in funds for these deliveries, so even if NASA awards contracts to other rocket companies, SpaceX will make quite the fortune.

NASA已經(jīng)開始根據(jù)阿爾特彌斯計劃(Artemis Program)授予商業(yè)合同，該計劃旨在重返月球。SpaceX贏得了第一份合同，保證NASA前往月球門戶兩次，并允許美國航天局在12年內(nèi)有權訂購更多旅行?？偟膩碚f，美國宇航局已經(jīng)為這些交付撥款70億美元，所以即使美國宇航局將合同授予其他火箭公司，SpaceX也會賺大錢。

NASA originally put out a call for companies to plan deliveries seven months ago; in that time, SpaceX reconceptualized their supply platform for long-distance. The base of the delivery system is the Falcon Heavy , the world’s most powerful operational rocket. It was designed with a mission to the moon or Mars in mind, and because it is semi-reusable, it does so affordably.

NASA最初是在7個月前要求企業(yè)計劃交付;在那段時間里，SpaceX重新定義了他們的遠程供應平臺。該運載系統(tǒng)的基礎是獵鷹重型火箭，這是世界上最強大的可操作火箭。它的設計初衷是去月球或火星執(zhí)行任務，因為它是半可重復使用的，所以它的成本是可以承受的。

Contained within the Falcon Heavy will be the new Dragon XL spacecraft. SpaceX has not revealed how the Dragon XL differs from the Dragon (pictured top), but the latter is already humanity’s most capable spacecraft in several areas. It can seat seven and launch with 6,000 kg of payload mass and land safely with 3,000 kg.

獵鷹重型火箭將搭載新型Dragon XL航天器。SpaceX還沒有透露Dragon XL與Dragon的區(qū)別，但后者已經(jīng)是人類在幾個領域中能力最強的航天器。它可以容納七人，攜帶6000公斤有效載荷發(fā)射，攜帶3000公斤安全著陸。

“Returning to the moon and supporting future space exploration requires affordable delivery of significant amounts of cargo,” said SpaceX President and Chief Operating Officer Gwynne Shotwell. “Through our partnership with NASA, SpaceX has been delivering scientific research and critical supplies to the International Space Station since 2012, and we are honored to continue the work beyond Earth’s orbit and carry Artemis cargo to Gateway.”

SpaceX公司總裁兼首席運營官Gwynne Shotwell說:“重返月球并支持未來的太空探索需要負擔得起的大量貨物。”“通過我們與NASA的合作，自2012年以來，SpaceX一直在向國際空間站運送科學研究和關鍵物資，我們很榮幸能夠繼續(xù)在地球軌道之外的工作，將阿爾特彌斯號的貨物運送到月球門戶。”