【英語島讀書會】人類登月計畫再次啟動
2019年7月作為慶祝人類登月50周年之際，美國NASA太空總署公布了重返月球計畫Artemis，此消息一出便轟動全球媒體。這次全新登月計畫將不再止步於登上月亮，而是瞄準更遠的火星之旅...
人類50年來第一次重返月球
NASA announced a major step forward in its plan to send astronauts to the south pole of the Moon, where no human has ever been before, by 2024. It will be the first time female astronauts has ever landed on the Moon and further missions aim to establish a sustainable human presence on the Moon by 2028. The upcoming lunar exploration program is named Artemis, the Greek goddess of the Moon and twin sister of Apollo.
NASA太空總署宣布新登月計畫開出第一槍，將在2024年之前送太空人到月球南極，一個從未受到人類實地探索的地方。這將會是史上第一次女性太空人能登上月球，此外，這一系列任務的另一個目標是在2028年之前，在月球建立一個人類能穩定駐紮基地。這項即將實施的月球探索計畫名為阿提米斯，名字取自希臘的月亮女神，這名女神同時也是太陽神阿波羅的妹妹。
史上第一座月亮太空站「Gateway」
NASA's moon-orbiting space station, known as the Deep Space Gateway or the Gateway, will be utilized for the mission. Lunar landers, both crewed and uncrewed, will be able to depart from the Gateway and regroup there after wrapping up their surface ventures, NASA officials said. Therefore, the deep-space outpost is crucial to the exploration program, which plans to serve as a solar-powered communication hub, science laboratory, short-term habitation module, and holding area for rovers and robots.
由NASA所主導的太空站將會在月球軌道上繞行，並名為「深太空通道」或「通道」，預期會實際在計畫中投入使用。NASA太空總署表示，不管是太空人的集體行動或分散小隊的探索任務，太空人都能從「通道」出發，並在任務完成後重新回到太空站集合。因此，深入太空的前哨基地對於探索計畫非常重要，未來太空站也能作為太陽能動力的通訊樞紐、科學實驗室、短期居住太空艙、和遙控機器及機器人的指揮中心。
在月亮上也能使用的「太空 GPS」
NASA plans to use a lunar Global Positioning System (GPS) to help astronauts find their way. The new system would build a lunar receiver to pick up signals from GPS satellites in orbit around Earth. This lunar GPS would help support surface missions, pilot spacecraft, and build the space station.
NASA計畫投入能支援到月球的GPS系統，幫助太空人導航。新的系統會建造一座月球接收站，接收來自地球附近的人造衛星所發出的訊號，月球GPS將能支援太空人登陸行動、太空船導航及協助建造太空站。
Since the Moon has no atmosphere to soften the horizon, like Earth, it's notoriously hard to judge the distance and size of lunar landmarks by eyesight alone. The new system would prevent the repeat navigational problems that bedeviled Apollo astronauts in the 1960s and '70s.
由於月球不像地球表面，沒有大氣層能夠緩和地平線的目測距離，像是地球這樣，因此，太空人要單純靠肉眼判斷月球地標的距離及大小，是出了名的艱難挑戰。而新的GPS系統能解決當初1960及1970年代時，折磨阿波羅登月太空人的棘手導航問題。
為什麼堅持要送人登月？
"Humans are much more efficient at gathering scientific information compared to rovers or robots," says Georgiana Kramer, a planetary scientist who studies the Moon. She also suggested that if humans are going to become an interplanetary species, we're going to have to learn to live in space. The Moon, just a three-day's journey away, is a great place to do that.
「在收集科學數據這方面，活人比遙控機器或機器人有效率多了。」研究月亮的行星科學家Georgiana Kramer說道。她也認為，假如人類未來準備在星球間旅行，就必須學習如何在太空中生存。而距離地球只有三天航程的月球，就是最理想的學習地點。
*本文收錄於英語島English Island 2019年8月號
