VOA慢速英语: 太阳能飞机环球飞行

Solar-Powered Plane to Fly Around the World

Pilots of the solar plane that already set records flying without a drop of fuel are close to making their first attempt to fly around the world

太阳能飞机环球飞行

The makers and pilots of a solar-powered plane will try to fly it around the world beginning next month.

下个月，太阳能动力飞机的制造商和飞行员会尝试飞机的环球飞行。

The plane is called "Solar Impulse 2," or SI-2. It arrived in pieces recently in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. The plane's material is mostly plastic strengthened with lightweight glass. It is now being assembled and prepared for its journey around the globe. The SI-2 team plans to circumnavigatethe Earth in 25 flying days over a five month period.

这架飞机叫做“太阳动力2号（Solar Impulse 2）”飞机的各个零部件已经运送到阿拉伯联合酋长国的阿布扎比。机身的材料是有一种轻质玻璃加强的塑料材料。现在已经安装完毕，准备开始环球航行。SI-2研究团队计划在五个月的时间内完成环球25天的飞行。

The idea was first tested by Solar Impulse 1 in 2012. Pilots flew the plane on an intercontinental flight from Switzerland to Morocco. And in the summer of 2013, the plane was flown across the United States, from San Francisco to New York City.

2012年Solar Impulse 1飞机首次进行飞行试验。飞行员驾驶飞机实现从瑞士刀摩洛哥的跨国飞行。2013年夏天，飞机从旧金山飞到纽约，横跨美国。

The plane's wings are 72 meters across. They are covered with more than 17,000 solar cells. These special energy storage containers provide power to the batteries that permit the plane's four electric motors to operate at night.

飞机两翼72米长，大概有17,000块太阳能电池。这些特别的能源储存装置为电池提供能量，这样确保飞机的四个电子马达在夜晚也能正常运作。

Only one person can sit in the SI-2. In March, the first pilot will take off from Abu Dhabi and fly along the equator, where the sun's rays are strongest. The plane will land every few days so that the two pilots can take turns flying it.

SI-2飞机上只能乘坐一名飞行员。三月份，首位飞行员会从阿布扎比起飞，然后沿着太阳光线最强的赤道飞行。飞机隔几天会着陆一次，这样两个飞行员能够换班飞行。

Bertrand Piccard is one of the pilots. He also helped create the project. He says the flight around the world will require that he and the other pilot have a lot of endurance.

伯特兰·皮卡德是其中一名飞行员。他同时也参与这个项目的创建工作。他表示环球飞行需要他和其他飞行员有足够的忍耐力。

"It's very exciting for everybody, and we are also in the psychological preparation of the pilot and the team, because technology is OK, but you need to cope now with very long duration flights -- single pilot on board for five days and five nights; lot of stress for everybody."

“对每个人来说，这次环球飞行都让人非常激动，我们也做好飞行的心理准备。技术已经完备，但是你需要解决的是长时间的飞行问题——五个昼夜只有一个飞行员在飞机上，这对每个人来说都有很大压力。”

Andre Borschberg is the other pilot. He helped Mr. Piccard create the solar planes. He says that although a computer called an autopilotcan fly SI-2, he and Mr. Piccard plan to rest or sleep for only 20 minutes at a time.

安德烈·博尔施博格是另一位飞行员。他帮助皮卡德建造太阳能飞机。他表示尽管叫做自动驾驶仪的电脑操作系统能够操作SI-2的飞行，但是他跟皮卡德每次休息或睡眠时间只有20分钟。

He says the number of times the pilots will be able to rest or sleep every night is difficult to estimate. He says they have trained in asimulatorto have six to eight breaks in a 24-hour period. That is about two hours of sleep every 24 hours. He says that is not a lot.

每天晚上飞行员能够休息或者睡眠的次数很难估测。他说他们已经在一个模拟装置里进行训练：24小时内只有6到8次的休息。这也就是说24小时里只有两个小时的睡眠时间。睡眠时间很显然不是很多。

Bertrand Piccard says the goal of the project is to show that renewable energy and clean technologies can be used in other kinds of projects.

伯特兰·皮卡德称这个项目的目标是展示可再生能源和清洁技术在其它项目中的使用。

"If an airplane can fly with no fuel around the world, can you imagine how this technology could be used everywhere?"

“如果一架飞机能够不用燃料环球飞行的话，你能想象这种技术在其它任何地方如何使用吗？”

SI-2 is to return to Abu Dhabi in July.

SI-2预计7月份返回阿布扎比。

I'm Jonathan Evans.

我是乔纳森·伊凡斯。

VOA Science Correspondent George Putic reported this story from Washington. Jonathan Evans wrote it in VOA Learning English. Christopher Cruise edited the story.

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Words in This Story

autopilot – n. a device that steers a ship, aircraft or spacecraft in place of a person

circumnavigate – v. to travel all the way around something in a ship or airplane

equator – n. an imaginary circle around the middle of the Earth that is the same distance from the North Pole and the South Pole

endurance – n. the ability to do something difficult for a long time

intercontinental – adj. traveling or occurring between continents

simulator – n. a machine that is used to show what something looks or feels like; a machine that is used to study something or to train people

In what other places could solar power be used? Do you use solar power? Do companies in your country use solar power? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the comments section.