英语新闻丨Astronauts embark on six-month space trip

China successfully launched its Shenzhou XX manned spaceship on Thursday, sending three astronauts to the Tiangong space station for a six-month mission.中国于本周四成功发射神舟二十号载人飞船，将三名航天员送往天宫空间站执行为期六个月的任务。A Long March 2F rocket blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China at 5:17 pm, carrying the spaceship with mission commander Senior Colonel Chen Dong and crew members Colonel Chen Zhongrui and Colonel Wang Jie onboard.北京时间下午5时17分，长征二号F遥十七运载火箭从西北部酒泉卫星发射中心点火升空，搭载着由指令长陈冬大校、航天员陈忠瑞上校和王杰上校组成的神舟二十号乘组奔赴太空。Shortly after crossing the Karman line—the boundary separating Earth's atmosphere and outer space at an altitude of 100 kilometers above sea level—the Shenzhou XX spaceship separated from its carrier rocket and activated rapid autonomous rendezvous-and-docking mode.神州二十号飞船在穿越距地表100公里的地球大气层与外太空分界线——卡门线后，与运载火箭成功分离，随即启动快速自主交会对接程序。The astronauts, who are all members of the People's Liberation Army Astronaut Division, are scheduled to arrive at the space station early on Friday, joining their peers from the Shenzhou XIX mission who have been in orbit for nearly six months.作为中国人民解放军航天员大队现役航天员的三位成员，预计将于周五清晨与已在轨运行近六个月的神舟十九号乘组完成太空会师。At a news conference on Wednesday at the launch site, mission commander Chen Dong said he was thrilled to embark on his third spaceflight. "On the one hand, I feel immensely proud and honored, because being able to launch into space for my country again is both a great privilege and a source of deep happiness. On the other hand, there's also a deep sense of anticipation, as every journey into space is unique. I look forward to gaining more experience and achieving new breakthroughs," he added.在发射场周三举行的新闻发布会上，指令长陈冬表示对第三次执行太空飞行任务感到心潮澎湃："一方面，我感到无比光荣与自豪，因为能够再次为祖国出征太空，这既是无上荣誉，更是幸福的源泉；另一方面，我也有着深深的期待，因为每次太空之旅都是独一无二的，我渴望积累更多的航天经验，助力中国航天事业实现新跨越。"Wang Jie, a former spacecraft engineer at the China Academy of Space Technology in Beijing, said that as the mission's spaceflight engineer, his responsibilities include platform maintenance, equipment checks and repairs, handling emergencies, and conducting scientific experiments.来自北京中国空间技术研究院的前航天器工程师王杰表示，作为本次任务的太空飞行工程师，他的职责范围涵盖平台维护、设备检修、应急处置以及科学实验等多个领域。"While each crew member has specific tasks to complete during the mission, we broadly operate as a team. Every procedure or scientific experiment is carried out through collaboration, with each of us serving as backup for the others as and when necessary," Wang said."虽然每位乘组成员在任务期间都有具体分工，但我们更多是以团队形式开展工作。每一个操作程序或科学实验都是协作完成，我们每个人都在必要时为其他人提供支持。"王杰如是说。The Shenzhou XX crew is conducting China's 15th manned spaceflight and will be the ninth group of residents aboard the Tiangong, which is currently the only operational space station independently run by a single nation.神舟二十号乘组正在执行中国第十五次载人航天飞行任务，将成为入驻天宫空间站的第九批航天员乘组。目前天宫空间站是全球唯一由单一国家独立建造运营的在轨空间站。After their spaceship approaches and docks with the front port of the Tianhe core module of the Tiangong, the trio will enter the space station to meet with their Shenzhou XIX peers — mission commander Senior Colonel Cai Xuzhe, Lieutenant Colonel Song Lingdong and Lieutenant Colonel Wang Haoze.当他们的飞船靠近并与天和核心舱前向端口完成交会对接后，这三名航天员将进驻空间站，与神舟十九号乘组完成太空会师——该乘组由指令长蔡旭哲大校、航天员宋令东和王浩泽中校组成。Both teams will work together for about four days to ensure a smooth handover, after which the Shenzhou XIX crew will return to Earth, with their reentry capsule scheduled for touchdown on Tuesday.两批航天员乘组将开展约四天的联合工作，以确保顺利交接，此后神舟十九号乘组将返回地球，其返回舱计划于周二着陆。Over the next six months, the Shenzhou XX astronauts will carry out a variety of tasks, including scientific experiments, technological demonstrations, and spacewalks to install space debris shielding equipment and other external instruments. They will also retrieve equipment from the station's exterior and hold science lectures.在接下来的六个月中，神舟二十号的航天员将执行包括科学实验、技术验证、出舱安装空间碎片防护装置及其他外部设备等多项任务。他们还将回收空间站外部的设备，并开展太空授课活动。Long March 2F Rocket长征二号F遥十七运载火箭Shenzhou XX manned spaceship神州二十号载人飞船reentry capsule返回舱front port前向对接口the Shenzhou XIX神州十九号