第2080期:NASA Prepares for First Flight of Its New Supersonic Jet

The American space agency NASA is preparing to test a new supersonic airplane that could help establish a new generation of superfast aircraft. 美国宇航局美国宇航局正准备测试一种新型超音速飞机，这可能有助于建立新一代超高速飞机。 The new aircraft is called X-59, and it was built in partnership with American defense contractor Lockheed Martin. The experimental plane is part of a NASA project, or mission, called Quesst. 这架新飞机被称为 X-59，是与美国国防承包商洛克希德·马丁公司合作建造的。这架实验飞机是 NASA 名为 Quest 的项目或任务的一部分。 The mission aims to collect data in the United States on the level of noise produced by supersonic travel. Supersonic describes a vehicle that travels faster than the speed of sound: about 1,235 kilometers an hour. 该任务的目的是在美国收集有关超音速旅行产生的噪音水平的数据。Supersonic 描述了一种行驶速度超过音速的车辆：每小时约 1,235 公里。 The data Quesst gathers could lead U.S. officials to change rules that currently ban supersonic flights over land. NASA says the X-59 was developed to reduce the loudness of the sonic boom it produces when breaking the sound barrier to very low levels heard on the ground. Quest 收集的数据可能会导致美国官员改变目前禁止超音速陆地飞行的规则。NASA 表示，X-59 的开发目的是为了将突破音障时产生的音爆音量降低到地面上能听到的非常低的水平。 A few U.S. companies are exploring ways to restart supersonic passenger travel for the first time since 2003. That is the year the Concorde aircraft stopped flying. The Concorde was the world’s first supersonic passenger jet. It was operated jointly by Britain and France. 一些美国公司正在探索自 2003 年以来首次重启超音速客运旅行的方法。那一年协和式飞机停止飞行。协和式飞机是世界上第一架超音速客机。它是由英国和法国联合经营的。The Concorde flew at speeds more than twice the speed of sound, British Airways explained. This meant it could travel from London to New York in about three-and-a-half hours. The same flight took about eight hours with normal passenger jets. 英国航空公司解释说，协和式飞机的飞行速度是音速的两倍以上。这意味着它可以在大约三个半小时内从伦敦飞往纽约。使用普通客机执行同一航班大约需要八个小时。 The new supersonic planes being developed make less noise and use less fuel than the Concorde. But manufacturers are under pressure from environmental groups and airports to meet the same noise and carbon emission limits as traditional planes.正在开发的新型超音速飞机比协和式飞机噪音更低，使用的燃料也更少。但制造商面临着来自环保组织和机场的压力，要求其达到与传统飞机相同的噪音和碳排放限制。 NASA and Lockheed Martin recently showed off the X-59 plane during an event in Palmdale, California. 美国宇航局和洛克希德·马丁公司最近在加利福尼亚州帕姆代尔举行的一次活动中展示了 X-59 飞机。 At the ceremony, NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy called the development of the supersonic aircraft a “major accomplishment.” She noted that members of the NASA and Lockheed Martin teams had worked hard to take the X-59 from an idea to reality “in just a few years.” 在仪式上，美国宇航局副局长帕姆·梅尔罗伊称超音速飞机的开发是一项“重大成就”。她指出，NASA 和洛克希德·马丁公司团队的成员经过艰苦努力，“在短短几年内”将 X-59 从一个想法变成了现实。Melroy added her hope that the X-59 “will help change the way we travel, bringing us closer together in much less time.” 梅尔罗伊补充说，她希望 X-59“将有助于改变我们的旅行方式，让我们在更短的时间内更加紧密地联系在一起。” The aircraft measures 30 meters long and nine meters wide. NASA said in a press release that the X-59 is expected to fly at 1.4 times the speed of sound, or about 1,500 kilometers per hour. The aircraft’s design, shape and technologies will permit it to reach high speeds while producing “a quieter sonic thump,” the agency explained. 该飞机长 30 米，宽 9 米。NASA在一份新闻稿中表示，X-59预计将以1.4倍音速飞行，即每小时约1500公里。该机构解释说，该飞机的设计、形状和技术将使其能够达到高速，同时产生“更安静的声音重击”。 The X-59 has not yet completed a test flight. But NASA officials have said they expect that to happen sometime this year. The team will be carrying out other tests in the coming months, including instrument experiments, fast engine runs and ground testing. X-59尚未完成试飞。但美国宇航局官员表示，他们预计这将在今年某个时候发生。该团队将在未来几个月内进行其他测试，包括仪器实验、发动机快速运行和地面测试。 Once the aircraft has been cleared to fly, it will be deployed to several cities across the U.S. to collect data on the sounds the plane produces and how people on the ground react to the noise. 一旦飞机获准飞行，它将被部署到美国多个城市，以收集有关飞机产生的声音以及地面上的人们对噪音如何反应的数据。