VOA Special English - China Sends Its Youngest-ever Crew, Enters New Space Race

2023-10-27 14:02:23来源：网络

VOA Special English - China Sends Its Youngest-ever Crew, Enters New Space Race

中国派出有史以来最年轻的宇航员，进入新的太空竞赛

　　By Gregory Stachel

　　26 October 2023

　　China launched its youngest-ever crew for its orbiting space station Thursday. The launch is part of the country's plan to put astronauts on the moon before 2030.

　　The Shenzhou 17 spacecraft lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China at 03:14 UTC. The China Manned Space Agency said the average age of the three-member crew is the youngest since the launch of the space station. Their average age is 38, state media China Daily said.

　　The three astronauts are Tang Hongbo, Tang Shengjie, and Jiang Xinlin. They will replace a crew that has been on the station for six months.

　　Chinese astronauts for the Shenzhou-17 mission, from left, Jiang Xinlin, Tang Hongbo and Tang Shengjie wave as they attend a send-off ceremony for their manned space mission at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China on October 26, 2023. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

　　The new crew will perform experiments in space medicine, space technology, and other areas during their mission. And they will help to place and do possible repairs to equipment inside and outside the station, the agency said.

　　New space race

　　China also has plans to place astronauts on the moon before the end of 2030 in competition with the United States in space exploration. This follows other competition for influence between the world's two largest economies in the technology, military, and diplomatic fields.

　　Earlier on Wednesday, the Chinese space agency also announced plans to send a new telescope to look deep into the universe. Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said the telescope would permit for mapping of the sky, but no timeline was given for when it would be placed.

　　In 2022, the Chinese government built its own space station after it was not permitted to join the U.S.-led International Space Station.

　　China's first manned space mission in 2003 made it the third country after the former Soviet Union and the U.S. to put a person into space using its own resources.

　　The American space program is believed to be far ahead of China at this time. But, China has made some important steps. They include bringing back samples from the moon's surface for the first time in many years and landing a vehicle on the less explored far side of the moon.

　　The U.S., meanwhile, aims to put astronauts back on the moon's surface by the end of 2025. It is aided by private American companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin.

　　In addition to their moon, or lunar, programs, the two countries have also separately landed vehicles on Mars. And China plans to follow the U.S. in landing a spacecraft on an asteroid.

　　I'm Gregory Stachel.

　　Andy Wong reported this story for The Associated Press. Gregory Stachel adapted the story for VOA Learning English.

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　　作者:格雷戈里·斯塔切尔

　　2023年10月26日

　　周四，中国为其轨道空间站发射了有史以来最年轻的宇航员。此次发射是该国2030年前将宇航员送上月球计划的一部分。

　　神舟十七号宇宙飞船世界协调时03:14从中国西北部的酒泉卫星发射中心发射升空。中国载人航天局表示，这三名成员的平均年龄是自空间站发射以来最年轻的。官方媒体《中国日报》称，他们的平均年龄为38岁。

　　这三名宇航员是唐洪波，唐盛杰和蒋新林。他们将替换已经在空间站工作了六个月的宇航员。

　　2023年10月26日，在中国西北部的酒泉卫星发射中心，执行神舟十七号任务的中国宇航员(左起)蒋新林、唐洪波和唐在参加载人航天任务的欢送仪式时挥手致意。

　　新的机组人员将在太空医学、太空技术和其他领域进行实验代表团。该机构称，他们将帮助安置和维修空间站内外的设备。

　　中国还计划在2030年底前将宇航员送上月球，与美国在太空探索方面展开竞争。此前，世界上最大的两个经济体在技术、军事和外交领域展开了其他影响力竞争。【画外音：美国一直在用冷战思维，认为我国在和他们搞竞争】

　　周三早些时候，中国航天局还宣布计划发射一架新的望远镜，以深入观察宇宙。中国国家电视台CCTV表示，该望远镜将用于天空测绘，但没有给出何时放置的时间表。