天问一号：中国“探火” 走向深空
7月23日，中国的首个火星探测器——“天问一号”在文昌航天发射场成功发射升空。“天问一号”火星探测任务是中国继“嫦娥系列”月球探测任务后的又一大航天探测工程。
On July 23, China's first Mars probe, Tianwen-1, was successfully launched from Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site. "Tianwen-1" Mars exploration mission is another major space exploration project of China after the "Chang'e series" lunar exploration mission.
根据计划，“天问一号”探测器将于2021年2月11-24日环绕火星运行，并于2021年4月23日降落一台火星车到火星表面，进行长达90多天的探索工作。也就是说，“天问一号”要一次性实现“环绕、着陆、巡视”三大任务，这在世界航天史上还没有过先例，面临的挑战也是前所未有。
According to the plan, Tianwen-1 will orbit Mars from February 11 to February 24, 2021, and land a Mars rover on the surface of Mars on April 23, 2021 to conduct more than 90 days of exploration work. In other words, "Tianwen-1" will realize all three major missions of "encirclement, landing and inspection", which is unprecedented in world space history and might face unknown challenges.
火星是太阳系中与地球环境最为相似的行星，了解火星对研究地球早期历史和生命起源有着重要价值，也对人类拓展生存空间具有重要意义。“火星”也因此一直是一个充满想象力的存在。在科幻电影《火星救援》里，主人公马克靠种植土豆独自在火星上生存下来。中国古代将火星称为“荧惑”，其中“荧”指火星由于土壤富含氧化铁而发出的红光；“惑”则出于古人对火星运行缺乏规律而感到的困惑。
Mars is one planet in the solar system that closely matches the Earth's environment. Understanding Mars is of great value to the study of the Earth's early history and the origin of life. One day human beings might even colonize the planet. Mars has inspired our fantasies for long. In the science fiction film "Mars Rescue," Mark, the protagonist, survived on Mars by planting potatoes. In ancient China, Mars was called "Yin Huo” —"Yin" refers to the red light emitted by Mars due to the rich iron oxide in the soil while "Huo" was added since little was known to our ancestors about the fiery planet.
几十年来，世界各国都在不懈地探索火星。2020年是两年一次的火星年，10月14日，将迎来“火星冲日”的天文学现象，届时火星和地球的距离将达到最近。现在距离“火星冲日”还有两个月左右，正是最佳的发射时间，一旦错过这个黄金窗口期就需要再等两年。7月20日，阿联酋“希望号”火星探测器已经升空，而在中国的“天问一号”之后，美国的“毅力号”也蓄势待发。
For decades, countries across the world have been exploring Mars unremittingly. The year 2020 is the biennial Mars year. On October 14, Mars will make a close approach to the Earth, in fact, it will be the shortest distance between the two planets, unleashing a slew of launches, all meant to take advantage of the opportunity. If one were to miss this golden window, they would have to wait another two years. On July 20, the United Arab Emirates "Al-Amal" Mars probe was launched and after China's "Tianwen 1", the United States “Perseverance " is also set for launch.
“天问一号”是中国走向深空的重要一步，但中国探测火星的消息并不突然。2011年，中国首个火星探测器“萤火一号”搭俄罗斯探测器的“顺风车”一同升空，却出现意外坠毁，这也坚定了中国完全自主“探火”的决心。此后，中国完成了火星探测轨道设计、测控通信、自主导航、表面软着陆等关键技术的科研攻关，为这一次自主火星探测奠定了技术基础。
"Tianwen-1" is an important step for China to go deep into space, but the country has had its eyes set on the red planet for a while now. In 2011, China's first Mars probe, Yinghuo-1, took off with the Russian probe "Hitchhiker", but it crashed unexpectedly, which also strengthened China's determination to explore Mars independently. Since then, China has completed scientific research on key technologies such as Mars exploration orbit design, communication system for tracking, telemetry and command, autonomous navigation and surface soft landing, laying a technical foundation for this autonomous Mars exploration.
中国行星探测任务“天问系列”的名称源于中国战国时期诗人屈原长诗《天问》，寓意探求科学真理征途漫漫，追求科技创新永无止境。随着我们不断走向深空，距离解密火星，甚至移民火星的那一天还有多远呢？
The name of "Tianwen series" of China's planetary exploration mission is derived from the long poem "Tianwen" by Qu Yuan, a poet in the Warring States period. It means that there is a long way to go in search of scientific truth and endless pursuit of scientific and technological innovation. As we continue to move into the deep space, we might be closer to understanding our neighbour and even establishing human colonies there.
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