NASA宇航員在巨型水箱中準(zhǔn)備月球漫步

NASA宇航員在巨型水箱中準(zhǔn)備月球漫步

NASA astronaut candidates have to meet a long list of criteria before the space agency decides they’re fit to carry out important duties in space. When astronauts return to the moon in the near future, they’ll be met with challenges that few space travelers have ever endured ,and NASA wants to make sure they’re ready for life on another world.

美國宇航局的宇航員候選人必須滿足一長串的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)，然后航天局才決定他們適合在太空執(zhí)行重要任務(wù)。當(dāng)宇航員在不久的將來重返月球時，他們將面臨很少有太空旅行者經(jīng)歷過的挑戰(zhàn)，美國宇航局希望確保他們?yōu)樵诹硪粋€世界上生活做好準(zhǔn)備。

In a new blog post, NASA highlights one of the tools at its disposal for preparing future moon explorers: the Neutral Buoyancy Lab located at the Johnson Space Center. In a massive water tank, astronauts experience simulated low gravity, and they wear much more than your average swimmer.

在一篇新的博客文章中，美國宇航局強(qiáng)調(diào)了它可以用來準(zhǔn)備未來月球探測器的工具之一：位于約翰遜航天中心的中性浮力實(shí)驗(yàn)室。在一個巨大的水箱里，宇航員會體驗(yàn)到模擬的低重力，他們穿的比普通游泳者要多。

When it comes to simulating low gravity here on Earth, our options are very much limited. NASA’s massive water lab is about as good as it gets, and while it’s not exactly a one-to-one simulation of the moon’s low-gravity environment, it’s close enough that astronauts get a good idea of what challenges await them when they arrive on the lunar surface.

在地球上模擬低重力時，我們的選擇非常有限。美國航天局的大型水實(shí)驗(yàn)室已經(jīng)非常好了，雖然它并不是對月球低重力環(huán)境的一對一模擬，但已足夠相近，宇航員們能夠很好地了解到當(dāng)他們到達(dá)月球表面時，等待他們的是什么樣的挑戰(zhàn)。

As you can see from the image, an entire team of divers aids in the simulated exercises, and the astronaut is equipped with boots and gloves that match closely with what they’ll be wearing during moonwalks.

從圖片中可以看到，整個潛水員團(tuán)隊(duì)都在模擬演習(xí)中提供幫助，宇航員配備了靴子和手套，它們與他們在月球漫步時的穿著非常匹配。

NASA is expecting to have crewed missions ready for travel to the moon as soon as 2024. The mission’s launch date, which was mandated by the Trump administration, shortened the timeline for a return to the moon dramatically, and there are still plenty of experts who believe NASA will fall short of the goal and have to push things back a bit.

美國宇航局預(yù)計(jì)最快將在2024年完成載人登月任務(wù)。這次任務(wù)的發(fā)射日期是特朗普政府授權(quán)的，大大縮短了重返月球的時間，仍然有很多專家認(rèn)為，美國宇航局將達(dá)不到目標(biāo)，必須把事情推后一點(diǎn)。

In any case, the astronauts chosen for the missions will be ready for the moon whenever the rockets are ready to fly.

無論如何，被選中執(zhí)行任務(wù)的宇航員將隨時為登月做好準(zhǔn)備。