美国宇航局致力于登陆火星

    The head of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, or NASA, said that the space agency is on track to land people on Mars in the 2030s.
    美国宇航局负责人表示该机构有望在本世纪30年代将人送上火星。

    Charles Bolden is the administrator for NASA. He said that five years ago, President Obama set that goal for the space agency.
    查尔斯·博尔登(Charles Bolden)是美国宇航局负责人。他说,奥巴马总统在五年前为该机构设立了这一目标。

    Speaking at the Humans to Mars Summit 2015, Bolden said "This plan is clear, this plan is affordable and this plan is sustainable."
    在2015年人类登陆火星峰会上,博尔登表示,“该计划很明确、经济并且是可持续的。”

    Buzz Aldrin was the second man to step on the moon. He is retired from NASA but is working to get humans to Mars. He told the summit that "we need to stimulate the public to be supportive" of a U.S. mission to Mars. The program, Mr. Aldrin said, needs to develop in a series of stages, or steps, over several years.
    巴兹·奥尔德林(Buzz Aldrin)是踏上月球的第二人。他已经从美国宇航局退休,但是正致力于让人类登上火星。他在峰会上表示,我们需要激发公众对美国火星任务给与支持。奥尔德林表示该计划需要分为几个阶段,耗费数年时间完成。

    NASA engineer Bret Drake said that is the idea that several private companies have offered.
    美国宇航局工程师布雷特·德雷克(Bret Drake)表示,这是一些私营公司给出的想法。

    Explore Mars, Inc., is the group that organized the Humans to Mars summit last week. The group released a study on the steps required to send people to Mars.
    探索火星公司组织了上周的人类登陆火星峰会。该组织就人类登陆火星的步骤发布了一份研究。

    They are a new Space Launch System, Orion spacecraft, a deep space environment for astronauts to live in, and new methods for entry, descent and landing. Other new technologies needed are solar electric propulsion for power and a vehicle that could land people on Mars.
    该研究包括新的太空发射系统,猎户座飞船,宇航员生活的深空环境,以及进入、下降和着陆的新思路。其它需要用到的新技术包括动力方面的太阳能电子推进器和能够让人类登陆火星的火星车。

    NASA is already working with private partners to develop the technology needed to get humans to Mars. They are working to develop advanced propulsion and habitation—where and how people will live on Mars once they get there.
    美国宇航局已经同私营合作伙伴共同开发了人类登陆火星所需的技术。他们正致力于开发出先进的推进器,以及人类一旦登陆火星后用于居住的生活舱。

    One example is Lockheed Martin's Stepping Stones plan. It calls for beginning flights to the International Space Station using today's vehicles and Orion spacecraft. Later flights will land on Deimos, one of Mars' two moons.
    洛克希德·马丁公司的垫脚石计划就是一个例子。该计划要求使用现在的登陆车和猎户座飞船飞往国际空间站,然后降落到作为火星两颗卫星之一的火卫二。

    Last week NASA also announced a "Journey to Mars Challenge." The agency is asking for ideas from the public on how to get people to Mars and how they can stay. The ideas could be about shelter, food, water, breathable air, communication, exercise, social relations and medicine. NASA said people are "encouraged to consider innovative and creative elements beyond these examples."
    上周美国宇航局还公布了“火星之旅挑战”。该机构正在就如何将人类送上火星以及登陆后如何生存向公众征求意见。这些意见可能涉及住所、食物、水、可呼吸空气、通讯、运动、社会关系和药品。美国宇航局表示,鼓励人们思考这些例子以外的创新和创意元素。

    The Mars rovers Curiosity and Opportunity are already providing much information as they move across the Martian surface. It is already known that at one point in time Mars had conditions that could have supported life.
    好奇号和机遇号火星探测器在火星表面移动的过程中向人类提供了很多信息。现在已经知道的是火星某个时期曾经具备让人类生存的条件。

    NASA's Charles Bolden said that Mars "just might help us to unravel the age old mystery about whether life exists beyond Earth."
    美国宇航局的博尔登表示,火星也许可能帮助我们解开地球以外是否存在生命这一年代久远的谜团。

    I'm Anne Ball.
    我是安妮·波尔(Anne Ball)。(51VOA.COM对本文翻译保留全部权利,未经授权请勿转载,违者必究!)