 How Much Trash Is on the Moon? 月球上有多少垃圾？ The moon has a lot of junk on it, including a gold olive branch, a flag kit, several lunar orbiters, and a hammer and a falcon feather — the components of a 1971 experiment used to demonstrate that objects fall at the same rate regardless of mass. 月球上有很多垃圾，包括一个金橄榄树枝, 一个旗帜包，几个月人造月球卫星，一把锤子和一根猎鹰羽毛 — 这些是1971所做的一个实验的组成部分。这个实验是用来证明物体，不管其质量如何，都会以同样的速度下落。 There are dozens more pieces of lunar debris. But how much garbage, exactly, have humans left or sent to the moon? 除了这些，月球上还有几十件垃圾。但确切的说，人类到底向月球发射了、或留下了多少垃圾呢？ It's challenging to say, but the trash on the moon likely weighs upward of 400,000 lbs. (181,000 kilograms) on Earth. This weight is taken from Wikipedia, but it sounds about right considering that quite a few heavy artifacts, such as five moon rangers, are still there, said William Barry, NASA chief historian. 说起这个来，其实很难，但是月球上的垃圾约在地球上重达40万磅 (18.1万公斤)。这个重量是从维基百科而来。美国宇航局首席史学家威廉巴里说，要知道那里还有几件相当重的物件。比如说5个月球车，这个数字听起来应该是差不多。 lunar: 月球的 Much of this moon litter was left by NASA astronauts who landed on the lunar surface between 1969 and 1972 during the Apollo program. The other rubbish comes from crewless missions from space-exploring agencies, including those from the United States, Russia, Japan, India and Europe, Barry said. 这些垃圾的大部分，是1969年-1972年阿波罗计划期间，美国航天局宇航员在登陆月球时留下的。巴里说，其他的垃圾来自太空探索机构的其它无人探索使命，其中包括来自美国、俄罗斯、日本、印度和欧洲。 Many of the older pieces are lunar probes that were sent to the moon to learn about it, such as whether spaceships could land on its surface. In the 1960s, some scientists thought that the moon might have a quicksand-like exterior because so many space rocks had pummeled and pulverized it over the years. These robotic probes, which stayed on the moon after their missions ended, showed that this idea was wrong, and that human-made gear could land on the moon's surface, Barry said. 更旧一些的碎片有很多是来自于被送往月球的月球探测器，它们被用来了解诸如太空飞船是否能在月球表面着陆等问题。在二十世纪六十年代, 一些科学家认为月球可能有像流沙一样的外部, 因为这么多的太空岩石在过去的多少年里都受到了重创和分随性的撞击。巴里说, 这些在任务结束后就留在月球上的机器人探测器证明这个看法是错误的，并且人造的机械可以降落在月球表面上。 pummel: 重创 pulverize： 粉碎 The moon is also home to lunar orbiters that mapped its terrain before they crashed into its surface, adding to the garbage heap. 月球也是人造月球卫星的最终归宿，这些卫星被用来测绘月球的表面地形，最终会坠毁到月球表面，变成垃圾的一部分。 Other gear in the growing landfill has helped scientists learn about the moon. For instance, the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) was sent to the moon to study the hydrogen there and to confirm the existence of water. Its mission was successful, and LCROSS is still hanging out on the moon's surface, Barry said. 在日益增长的垃圾堆中的其他器械帮助科学家了解月球。例如，月球火山口观测和传感卫星 (LCROSS) 被送往月球，研究那里的氢气并确认水的存在。巴里说，它成功的完成了任务，但 LCROSS 却滞留在月球表面上。 As for the objects left by the Apollo astronauts, there wasn't a lot of thought put into bringing back unneeded equipment, Barry said. Moreover, doing so would have used up precious resources, such as fuel, he added. 至于阿波罗号宇航员遗留下来的物体，巴里说，当时对于是不是把不必要的设备带回来没有太多的考虑。此外，他补充说，这样做同样也会消耗像燃料这样的宝贵资源。 terrain – 地形 "On any engineering project, like landing on the moon, you design the mission to do what you need it to do and not a whole lot more," Barry told Live Science. "The real concern was: Can we get the crew safely to the moon, can they get the samples they need and can we get them back in one piece?” “任何一个工程项目，如登月，你按照需要来设计工程的任务，除了完成你所需要的，就没有什么其它的考虑了” 巴里告诉“声色科学“。”真正值得关注的是: 我们能否把宇航员安全地送上月球，他们能否得到所需要的样品，然后能否把他们安全无恙的带回来?” But, as the saying goes — one person's trash is another's treasure. Although many people might call the odds and ends humans have left on the moon "garbage" (what else would you call a used urine-collection assembly?), NASA takes a kinder view. Researchers can study these objects to see how their materials weathered the radiation and vacuum of space over time, Barry said. Moreover, some of the objects on the moon are still being used, including a laser-range reflector left by the Apollo 11 crew. 但是，俗话说 —— 对于一些人来说是垃圾，但是对于他人来说可能是财富。虽然许多人可能会把人类在月球上留下的乱七八糟称为 “垃圾” (如果不管那些使用过的废尿收集组件叫垃圾，还能叫什么？)，美国宇航局的看法并不是那么负面。巴里说，研究人员可以研究这些物体，看看它们的材料是如何经受住长期的时空的辐射和真空的环境。此外，月球上的一些物体仍在使用，包括阿波罗11号机组留下的激光测距反射器。 Researchers on Earth can ping this reflector with lasers, which allows them to measure the distance between Earth and the moon, according to NASA. These experiments helped scientists realize that the moon is moving away from the Earth at a rate of 1.5 inches (3.8 centimeters) a year, NASA reported. 根据美国宇航局说，地球上的研究人员可以用激光向这个反射器发射脉冲信号，这能让他们测量地球和月球之间的距离。美国宇航局报道说，就是这些实验帮助科学家们认识到，月球正以每年1.5 英寸 (3.8 厘米) 的速度从地球上移开。 The so-called trash left on the moon also has archaeological merit, Barry said. Future lunar visitors may want to view the old Apollo sites and see gear from NASA, the European Space Agency, the Russian space agency Roscosmos and other countries, Barry said. 巴里说，在月球上留下的所谓垃圾也具有考古价值。他还说，未来的月球访客可能希望查看旧的阿波罗遗址，并看到美国航天局、欧洲航天局、俄罗斯航天局等国家的装备。 However, the list hasn't been updated since 2012, Barry noted, and is missing more recent objects, such as Ebb and Flow, two NASA lunar probes that helped researchers analyze the moon's gravitational field. 但是，自从2012年以来，这份名单就再没有再更新了，巴里指出，最近的物体，如Ebb和Flow，两个美国航天局的月球探测器并没有被记录在案，这两个探测器帮助过研究人员分析月球的引力场。 Gravitational – 引力的 👇 |
|
|
来自： 新用户02986T3F > 《待分类》
