双语新闻：美国国家航空航天局将发射航天器观测富含金属的小行星

The American space agency NASA is preparing to launch a spacecraft designed to observe an asteroid made mostly of metal.

美国国家航空航天局正准备发射一艘航天器，用于观测一颗主要由金属制成的小行星。

The launch of the vehicle, called Psyche, is set for October 12 from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

该飞行器名为Psyche，定于10月12日在佛罗里达州肯尼迪航天中心发射。

The spacecraft will fly to an asteroid also called Psyche. It orbits the sun between Mars and Jupiter. NASA says the asteroid was discovered by an Italian astronomer in 1852. Since it was the 16th asteroid discovered, it is sometimes also called 16 Psyche.

宇宙飞船将飞往一颗名为Psyche的小行星。它在火星和木星之间绕太阳运行。美国国家航空航天局表示，这颗小行星是由一位意大利天文学家于1852年发现的。由于它是第16颗被发现的小行星，有时也被称为16 Psyche。

Psyche will be NASA's first trip, or mission, to an asteroid that contains a large amount of metal. Past missions explored asteroids made mostly of rock or ice.

Psyche将是美国国家航空航天局首次前往含有大量金属的小行星。过去的任务主要探测由岩石或冰组成的小行星。

Astronomers say the asteroid Psyche is about 280 kilometers at its widest point. They believe it may be part of a center, or core, of a planetesimal. This is an object thought to be the metallic remains of an early rocky planet. Scientists think Psyche is made up mostly of iron and nickel, similar to Earth's center.

天文学家表示，小行星Psyche最宽处约280公里。他们认为它可能是星子中心或核心的一部分。这是一个被认为是早期岩石行星金属残骸的物体。科学家认为Psyche主要由铁和镍组成，类似于地球的中心。

NASA believes the asteroid could have separated during violent crashes that happened during our solar system's early creation. Scientists think data collected on the asteroid could provide new details about how rocky planets, including Earth, formed.

美国国家航空航天局认为，这颗小行星可能是在太阳系早期形成时发生的剧烈撞击中分离的。科学家们认为，在这颗小行星上收集的数据可以提供包括地球在内的岩石行星如何形成的新细节。

But NASA says the object could also turn out to be something else, such as "a different kind of iron-rich body that formed from metal-rich material somewhere in the solar system."

但美国国家航空航天局表示，该物体也可能是其他物体，例如“由太阳系某处富含金属的材料形成的另一种富含铁的物体”。

The space agency expects Psyche to travel about 3.6 billion kilometers over six years to reach the asteroid. If the spacecraft reaches its target as planned in August 2029, it will then start orbiting the object for at least two years.

航天局预计Psyche将在六年内飞行约36亿公里到达这颗小行星。如果航天器按计划在2029年8月达到目标，它将开始绕物体运行至少两年。

Once in orbit, the mission team will examine data gathered by several science instruments aboard the spacecraft. Psyche will take pictures, map the asteroid's surface and collect data on what materials are contained in the object.

一旦进入轨道，任务小组将检查航天器上的几个科学仪器收集的数据。Psyche将拍摄照片，绘制小行星表面的地图，并收集物体中包含哪些物质的数据。

NASA says once Psyche separates from its launch vehicle, it will use a different kind of propulsion system never tried in missions beyond the moon.

美国国家航空航天局表示，一旦Psyche与运载火箭分离，它将使用一种从未在月球以外的任务中尝试过的不同推进系统。

The system to be used is called solar electric propulsion. Large solar panels will be extended outward from the main part of the spacecraft to collect light from the sun. The panels then change, or convert, this sunlight into electricity that powers the spacecraft's thrusters.

将要使用的系统称为太阳能电力推进系统。大型太阳能电池板将从航天器的主要部分向外延伸，以收集来自太阳的光。然后，这些面板将这些阳光转化为电力，为航天器的推进器提供动力。

Psyche will depend on solar electric propulsion to reach its target. NASA describes the thrust as "gentle," but strong enough to push the spacecraft through its long trip. The spacecraft is also set to get a gravitational push when it passes by Mars in May 2026.

Psyche将依靠太阳能电力推进来达到目标。美国国家航空航天局称推力“温和”，但足够强大，足以推动航天器完成长途飞行。该航天器还将在2026年5月经过火星时受到引力推动。

NASA said experiments have shown that solar electric propulsion can be highly effective. Scientists estimate Psyche's thrusters "could operate nearly nonstop for years without running out of fuel."

美国国家航空航天局表示，实验表明，太阳能电力推进可以非常有效。科学家估计，Psyche的推进器“可以在不耗尽燃料的情况下连续运行数年”。

In addition, NASA says Psyche will be carrying nearly 1,000 kilograms of propellant, xenon gas, in its tanks. Xenon is also used in automobile headlights and some televisions. Agency engineers have estimated the mission would need to burn through about 15 times that amount of propellant if the Psyche spacecraft used traditional chemical thrusters.

此外，美国国家航空航天局表示，Psyche将在其坦克中携带近1000公斤的推进剂氙气。氙气也用于汽车前灯和一些电视。原子能机构的工程师估计，如果Psyche飞船使用传统的化学推进器，该任务将需要消耗大约15倍的推进剂。

Lindy Elkins-Tanton, with Arizona State University, is the lead investigator for the mission. She said NASA had always planned on having Psyche use an electric propulsion system. "Without it, we wouldn't have the Psyche mission," Elkins-Tanton said.

亚利桑那州立大学的Lindy Elkins Tanton是此次任务的首席调查员。她说，美国国家航空航天局一直计划让Psyche使用电力推进系统。埃尔金斯·坦顿说：“如果没有它，我们就不会有Psyche任务。”

NASA says the Psyche mission also includes a technology demonstration involving a laser-based data communications system. This experiment is designed to "test the ability of lasers to transmit data at increased rates beyond the moon."

美国宇航局表示，普赛克任务还包括一项涉及激光数据通信系统的技术演示。这个实验的目的是“测试激光在月球以外以更高的速率传输数据的能力”。

The technology to be tested in the demonstration is known as "optical communications." It is meant to one day replace the radio communication systems long used by NASA to transmit data between Earth and space. NASA says a laser-based communication method will permit the agency to send and receive data faster and more effectively.

在演示中测试的技术被称为“光通信”。这意味着有一天它将取代美国宇航局长期使用的在地球和太空之间传输数据的无线电通信系统。美国宇航局表示，一种基于激光的通信方法将使该机构能够更快、更有效地发送和接收数据。