[2003.10.16] 太空计划：楊上校背後的牽線

引用 join_soon 2011-8-6 05:00

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China in space
中国太空计划
  
Ground control to Colonel Yang
杨上校背后的牵线
  
Why has China launched a man into space, and what will it do next?
为何中国要将人送上太空？它准备再做甚么？

Oct 16th 2003 | from the print edition
  
AMID an outpouring of national pride, and some mutterings about cost, China this week achieved its long-standing ambition of launching a man into space and returning him successfully to Earth. The country's government hopes that Yang Liwei, the astronaut aboard Shenzhou 5, will inspire a generation of Chinese in much the same way that Yuri Gagarin inspired Russians and Alan Shepard inspired Americans.
  
在铺天盖地的，为国家荣誉而发出的欢呼声，以及一些关于成本的怨言中，这个星期，中国达成了它长久以来的宏愿：送一个人上太空再让他安全返回地球。这个国家的政府希望神舟五号的宇航员杨利伟，能够像美国的艾伦•谢泼德和俄国的尤里•加加林一样，振奋整整一代的民心。
  
Shenzhou 5 was launched without incident on October 15th. It took off from the Jiuquan satellite-launch pad in the Gobi desert, spent 21 hours in space, went round the Earth 14 times and left an unmanned module behind in orbit before landing in the grasslands of Inner Mongolia . In the aftermath of this success the questions are, can the Chinese run a successful manned space programme at less-than-exorbitant cost, when Russia and America failed? And if they can, why should they bother?
  
神舟五号在10月15日顺利发射。飞船从座落于戈壁沙漠的酒泉卫星发射中心起飞，在太空停留了21个小时，环绕了地球14圈，留了一个无人的组 件在轨道，然后在内蒙古草原着陆。在这次的成功过后，又有一个新的问题：中国能进行一个成功的而且费用并不太过高昂的太空计划吗？这是连美国和俄罗斯也做不到的。又假如中国做得到，他们为了甚么要这样做？

Heavenly pursuits
追寻神圣的天国
  
China's desire to put people in space goes back to the 1960s, when the country was developing its intercontinental ballistic missiles and nuclear warheads, then regarded as necessary accoutrements of superpowerdom. Manned space programmes carried a similar caché, so plans were hatched for a Chinese version of these as well. The problem was that China had neither the money nor the technological skill to run such a programme. And Mao Zedong's Cultural Revolution did not help matters, either. Indeed, political upheavals saw space-flight ambitions revived, then cancelled, twice during the 1970s. Only in 1992 did Jiang Zemin, then general secretary of the Communist Party, approve “Project 921” as it was known. This ultimately built the Shenzhou series of spacecraft and put them on top of a booster modified from one of China 's unmanned Long March satellite-launching rockets.
  
中国送人上太空的意欲要追溯到六十年代。当时，这个国家正在做一些他们认为要成为一个超级大国所必须做的事，例如说发展洲际弹道导弹和核武器。 载人航天计划似乎也是超级大国的条件之一，于是中国就渐渐开始有这个念头了。但是，中国既没有钱，又没有科学技术去达成这样的计划。毛泽东发动了文化大革 命，但也不能改变这个事实。政治动荡反而使宇航计划一波三折，在七十年代，它恢复了两次，也中止了两次。直到1992年，共产党总书记江泽民批准了『921计划』，这个计划的成果是制成了神舟系列飞船，并改良了其中一款长征无人运载火箭来把它送上太空。
  
The Shenzhou themselves are based on Russia's Soyuz craft but, according to Phillip Clark, a British-based consultant and expert on the Chinese space programme, they are not a straight knock-off. Instead, the Chinese have taken the “philosophy” of Soyuz and designed their own innards using home-grown technology. This includes a completely different propulsion system, larger solar panels, and also the orbital module (which is designed to function on its own, as a sort of space station, for six to eight months). The Long March launch vehicle, too, has been upgraded. It has an improved guidance system, better engines and a new computer system. All this is important to the argument that space programmes have technological spin-offs on Earth—though experience in the West suggests that it is often cheaper to acquire such technology directly, rather than in such a roundabout way.
  
神舟飞船是根据俄罗斯联盟号飞船而设计的，但一位熟悉中国宇航计划的英国专家菲利普•克拉克说，中国人并不是纯粹照抄。他们拿来了联盟号的哲理，再用自己的技术来作原创的内部设计。神舟有和联盟完全不同的推进系统，有更大的太阳能电池板，更有一个轨道舱（原注：设计容许它独立地工作6至8个月，就像空间站一样）。长征运载火箭也有改良，它有了更先进的导航系统、更好的引擎、和新的计算机系统。这些科技改良都有利于所有宇航计划的目的：巧妙地飞出地球——虽然西方的经验已经说明了，简单直接地购买技术，比兜兜转转地自己研究要经济得多。
  
That said, official figures suggest Project 921 has been pretty cheap. It is reported to have cost around $2 billion. What is not clear, as Mr Clark observes, is whether this figure refers to the whole programme—including the new launch pad and assembly building at Jiuquan—or simply to the cost of the spacecraft and the launch vehicle.
  
官方公布921计划只花了大约20亿美元，这是一个颇为廉宜的数字。但正如克拉克所见，这个数字未必准确，我们不知道它是否包括计划涉及的所有开支——好像是酒泉全新的发射台和火箭装配大楼——还是只算了神舟五号及其运载火箭的成本。
  
Another reason for Project 921 is military. Like the original manned space efforts of America and Russia , China 's has a military component (though America 's and Russia 's military activities in space are now almost exclusively unmanned). According to Mr Clark, earlier, unmanned Shenzhou missions have carried photo-reconnaissance equipment and probes that could spy on military-radar transmissions. Shenzhou 5 probably left a military experiment on the orbiting module.
  
921计划存在的另一个理由就是军事。像当初美国和俄罗斯发展载人航天一样，中国也是有军事目的的（不过美国和俄罗斯现在的太空军事活动几乎全部都不需要将人送上太空）。克拉克说，较早时发射的神舟飞船载有间谍摄影机和用于侦察军用雷达的传感器，而且神舟五号留在太空的轨道舱也可能有一些军用仪器。
  
In the wake of Shenzhou 5's successful mission, the Chinese say they have grand plans for the future. Space flight is an area of technology that the government feels must be developed and exploited. Some of its plans, such as follow-up piloted missions on further Shenzhou craft over the next year, look likely to materialise. In addition, it is probable that the orbiting module will be followed up in the next few years by something that is more recognisably a space station, though this station is unlikely to be manned full-time. Other plans, however, such as a manned mission to the moon, remain firmly in the realms of speculation—though an unmanned moon rover is not out of the question.
  
在神舟五号的成功后，中国人说他们对未来有很多宏图大计。宇航技术是政府觉得必须要发展并加以利用的一个领域。有些宇航计划是很可能会落实的，例如说 在明年另一架神舟飞船将执行后续的载人航天任务。在几年内，神舟五号的轨道舱也可能有一些更像空间站的后继者——尽管大概不会有人常驻。不过，另外的计划，例如是派人登陆月球，暂时还只是停留在口耳之间——不过不载人的月球探测很可能会进行。
  
China's possession of its own manned space programme will also increase pressure on the Americans to allow China to participate in the allegedly “International” Space Station. This is something the Chinese have long coveted but have not, so far, been allowed to do.
  
中国在载人航天计划取得的进展，将进一步迫使美国考虑批准中国加入所谓的『国际』太空站。这是中国渴望已久的，但到目前为止，它还未能加入。
  
Ultimately, though, Shenzhou 5 is just a way of showing off. The Chinese, too, recognise that the uses of space do not, for the most part, require people to be up there. The country has plans for better satellite communications, broadcasting facilities, weather forecasting and Earth observation missions—all of which will have a dual civilian and military role, but none of which need be manned. It also wants to build its own satellite-driven global-positioning system to rival America 's, which everyone now uses. Such a system would, of course, have a military, as well as a civilian function. In September, China became involved in European plans for a new positioning system independent of America 's. Nor is pure science forgotten. China also wants to build a space telescope like America 's Hubble.
  
无疑，神舟五号纯粹是用于耀武扬威的。连中国人自己也知道，至少在多数情况下，开发太空并不需要真的派人上去。他们正在研究更好的卫星用于通信、广播、预测气象和地球观察等任务——以上所有卫星都能同时供民用或军用，但其中没有一个是需要载人的。他们想发射卫星，建立自己的全球定位系统来和他们的对手——美国——的系统竞争，没错，就是现在人人都在用的那个系统。在九月，中国加入了欧洲的全球定位系统计划，它是另一个独立于美国的系统。中国也没有忘记纯科学，他们还想建造一个类似美国哈勃的太空望远镜。
  
And there is one other thing—the sobering fact that, as an international status symbol, manned space flight can also sometimes be something of a liability, especially for a normally secretive country such as China . Shenzhou 5's launch certainly caught the world's attention. But as America and Russia have learned, when something goes wrong and men and women die as a result, that attention is then focused not on a national technological triumph, but on a symbol of humiliating failure. Perhaps the Chinese should quit while they are ahead.
  
还有一件事——一个可能使人头脑比较清醒的事实，载人航天在国际上无疑是一种身份象征，但特别是对中国这个一贯喜欢遮遮掩掩的国家来说，它有时也意味着一些不那么好听的东西。神舟五号没错是吸引了全世界的目光，但美国和俄罗斯的经验告诉我们，如果计划在甚么地方出了差错，并导致一些人命伤亡，那全世界的目光就不会再看着伟大的成就，而是聚焦到可耻的失败上。也许，中国人应该见好就收。

引用 hktam 2011-8-6 09:30

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謝謝您！

All this is important to the argument that space programmes have technological spin-offs on Earth
你看這句該怎樣？

引用 contrary 2011-8-6 12:46

And if they can, why should they bother? 又假如中国做得到，他们为了甚么要这样做？
这句有点怪,这个为什么问得太白痴了吧?如果能省点钱那当然是好事,干嘛要问为什么呢?

引用 hktam 2011-8-6 12:59

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謝謝你

我表達得不清楚，我的意思是『為什麽要做太空計劃』，是承接下段的『原因』的

不過我常常會猜測作者的意思，版主紅字了我的地方有一部分是這樣，這應該不是一個好習慣。。。。。。

引用 join_soon 2011-8-7 07:53

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所有的这些，有利于这个观点，那就是，航天计划可以造就很多技术，这些技术可以应用在地球上的产品，所以，航天计划会产生许多生产地球上使用的产品的公司。
－－－I know that it is not concise. However, at least I conveyed all the meaning, I hope.

引用 join_soon 2011-8-7 07:56

本帖最后由 join_soon 于 2011-8-7 07:59 编辑

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这个why，不是问省钱。省钱的东西，还是要花大价钱的。这里是问，即便能省钱，所以中国能做，但是，为什么要做？

－－－－－－－
还有，既然你在这里，能不能责任点评这篇？这篇翻译得很不错，不过，即便如此，还是需要a second pair of eyeballs. 我划红线的地方，是应该改一改的。Of course, I may have missed some.

引用 Curie 2011-8-7 09:26

为何03年的文章要重新登？

引用 contrary 2011-8-7 11:39

斑竹划的,匆匆改了一下
1.. And Mao Zedong's Cultural Revolution did not help matters, either.毛泽东发动了文化大革 命，但也不能改变这个事实。
毛泽东发动的文化大革命也对此毫无帮助.

2. put them on top of a booster modified from one of China 's unmanned Long March satellite-launching rockets. 并改良了其中一款长征无人运载火箭来把它送上太空。
这句意思应该是 将神州系列飞船放上了一个由长征号卫星发射火箭改良而来的发射器

3. the “philosophy” of Soyuz 联盟号的哲理
应该是理念或宗旨

4.home-grown
译为本土更有味道

5.It is reported to have cost around $2 billion. 这是一个颇为廉宜的数字。
这是一个颇为低廉的价钱。

6.What is not clear,这个数字未必准确，
未明确的是

7.including the new launch pad and assembly building at Jiuquan好像是酒泉全新的发射台和火箭装配大楼
是包括了酒泉全新的发射台和火箭装配大楼

8.this is important to the argument that space programmes have technological spin-offs on Earth
spin-offs 副产品 副作用 附加效益
对于太空计划会带动地球上其他技术的发展的观点,这点非常重要

引用 hktam 2011-8-8 12:27

本帖最后由 hktam 于 2011-8-10 16:16 编辑

我改了，謝謝兩位

那句我真是完全理解錯了

引用 join_soon 2011-8-10 23:48

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1.. And Mao Zedong's Cultural Revolution did not help matters, either.毛泽东发动了文化大革 命，但也不能改变这个事实。
毛泽东发动的文化大革命也对此毫无帮助.

这种句型不能照字面翻译。应该是：
毛泽东发动的文化大革命更是雪上加霜。

引用 join_soon 2011-8-11 22:37

本帖最后由 join_soon 于 2011-8-11 22:37 编辑

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    1.. And Mao Zedong's Cultural Revolution did not help matters, either.毛泽东发动了文化大革 命，但也不能改变这个事实。
    毛泽东发动的文化大革命也对此毫无帮助.


这种句型不能照字面翻译。应该是：
毛泽东发动的文化大革命更是雪上加霜。
点评
hktam  版主是說either的句型？你的博客好像很深的，都看不懂  发表于 5 小时前 删除

是指“did not help＂这类。英语说得很轻，轻描淡写，但是，意思很重。翻译应该用中文意译。

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