[ti:Engine Problem Delays NASA Moon Rocket Launch] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]The American space agency NASA [00:03.76]postponed the launch of its new moon rocket on Monday [00:09.32]because of an engine problem. [00:13.08]The launch of NASA's Space Launch System, or SLS, [00:19.16]was called off about 40 minutes before launch time [00:23.84]at Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. [00:29.40]NASA said on its website [00:32.32]that the problem was linked to difficulties [00:36.36]cooling the rocket's main engines [00:39.60]to the needed temperature for liftoff. [00:43.64]The agency said engineers were continuing to gather data [00:49.12]and carry out tests on the engines. [00:53.08]The next launch possibility [00:56.40]has been set for Friday, September 2. [01:00.72]NASA has described the 98-meter SLS [01:06.80]as the most powerful rocket ever built. [01:10.60]It is part of the agency's Artemis program, [01:15.32]which aims to land the first woman [01:18.52]and first person of color on the moon. [01:22.52]Artemis seeks to land American astronauts [01:26.60]on the moon no earlier than 2025. [01:31.16]It would be the first moon landing by astronauts [01:35.72]since NASA's Apollo 17 mission in 1972. [01:42.04]Artemis also calls for establishing [01:46.24]a long-term base on the moon [01:48.96]that could one day launch astronauts to Mars. [01:53.80]NASA is calling the first launch of the SLS rocket Artemis 1. [02:01.24]The rocket will carry NASA's Orion spacecraft, [02:06.48]or capsule, on a test mission to fly around the moon. [02:12.00]There will be no astronauts on the spacecraft [02:16.08]during the test flight. [02:18.04]Instead, three mannequins [02:21.00]will be placed inside the crew capsule. [02:24.32]They will be connected to a series of sensors [02:28.72]designed to measure radiation [02:31.72]and movements during the mission. [02:35.32]During the trip, Orion is expected [02:38.96]to travel 450,600 kilometers from Earth [02:45.36]and thousands of kilometers beyond the moon. [02:50.32]NASA said this will be farther than any spacecraft [02:55.20]built for humans has ever traveled. [02:58.60]The mission is expected to last four to six weeks. [03:04.52]The Associated Press reported NASA officials [03:09.36]also discovered communication problems [03:12.84]late Sunday involving the Orion spacecraft. [03:17.68]The problem was causing a delay in communication lines [03:23.08]between launch controllers and Orion. [03:27.44]Officials said that problem was solved by Monday morning. [03:33.92]The main purpose of the SLS mission is to test the system [03:39.76]for a future flight that will include actual astronauts. [03:44.68]NASA has said that if everything goes well with Artemis 1, [03:50.52]a trip involving astronauts could be launched as soon as 2024. [03:58.12]SLS has been under development for more than 10 years. [04:03.96]It has experienced a series of costly production delays. [04:09.96]Orion will take nearly a week to reach the moon, [04:14.28]which is about 386,000 kilometers from Earth. [04:21.08]After passing close to the moon, [04:23.84]the capsule will enter a distant orbit [04:27.16]with a far point of 61,000 kilometers. [04:32.00]That will put Orion 450,000 kilometers from Earth. [04:39.84]At the end of the mission, Orion is expected [04:43.84]to hit the atmosphere at 40,000 kilometers per hour [04:49.48]on its way to a parachute landing in the Pacific Ocean. [04:54.76]I'm Bryan Lynn. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM