The Falcon Heavy for the USSF 52 mission to launch the U.S. military’s X-37B spaceplane inside the hangar at launch complex 39A at the Kennedy Space Center. Image: SpaceX.

執行 USSF 52 任務的獵鷹重型火箭在甘迺迪太空中心 39A 發射場的機庫內發射美國軍方的 X-37B 太空飛機。圖：SpaceX。

Following two Falcon 9 launches from both California and Florida, SpaceX closed out the first weekend of December with a Falcon Heavy static fire test. The ignition of the 27 Merlin engines came a week ahead of the planned launch of a national security mission that has been on the books for half a decade.

繼加州和佛羅裡達州兩次發射 Falcon 9 號火箭後，SpaceX 在 12 月的第一個週末進行了 Falcon Heavy 靜態點火測試。 27 台 Merlin 引擎的點火時間比計劃啟動的國家安全任務提前一周，該任務已經記錄了五年。

The U.S. Space Systems Command said the USSF-52 mission is targeting liftoff no earlier than Sunday, Dec. 10. The launch window has not been announced publicly. It will be the first time the Falcon Heavy has conducted a launch for the U.S. military’s secretive X-37B spaceplane project. It will be the eighth Falcon Heavy launch to date and the seventh mission for the X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle.

美國太空系統司令部表示，USSF-52 任務的目標是不早於 12 月 10 日星期日昇空。發射窗口尚未公開宣布。這將是獵鷹重型火箭首次為美國軍方秘密的 X-37B 太空飛機計畫進行發射。這將是迄今為止獵鷹重型火箭的第八次發射，也是 X-37B 軌道測試飛行器的第七次任務。

U.S. Space Systems Command noted that this will be the fifth mission in 2023 for the Assured Access to Space (AATS) Directorate:

美國太空系統司令部指出，這將是太空保障 (AATS) 理事會 2023 年的第五次任務：

• USSF-67 – Jan. 15 (Falcon Heavy, SpaceX)

  USSF-67 – 1 月 15 日（獵鷹重型火箭、SpaceX）

• GPS III-6 – Jan. 18 (Falcon 9, SpaceX)

  GPS III-6 – 1 月 18 日（獵鷹 9 號，SpaceX）

• NROL-68 – June 21 (Delta 4 Heavy, ULA)

  NROL-68 – 6 月 21 日（Delta 4 Heavy，ULA）

• NROL-107 – Sept. 10 (Atlas 5, ULA)

  NROL-107 – 九月10（阿特拉斯 5、ULA）

• USSF-52 – NET Dec. 10 (Falcon Heavy, SpaceX)

  USSF-52 – NET 12 月 10 日（Falcon Heavy、SpaceX）

“Our national security space launches transport our most important capabilities into orbit,” said Brig. Gen. Kristin Panzenhagen, Program Executive Officer for AATS and Commander, Space Launch Delta 45, in a statement. “We partner closely with our launch service providers, and the entire team is focused on executing a successful mission.”

「我們的國家安全太空發射將我們最重要的能力送入軌道，」準將說。 AATS 計畫執行長兼 Delta 45 航太發射指揮官 Kristin Panzenhagen 將軍在一份聲明中表示。 “我們與發射服務提供者密切合作，整個團隊都專注於執行成功的任務。”

The launch contract was awarded to SpaceX as part of the Phase 1A National Security Space Launch (NSSL) procurement. The launch contract with SpaceX for this mission is valued at about $155 million according to SSC and will feature side boosters that are flying for their fifth time.

作為 1A 階段國家安全太空發射 (NSSL) 採購的一部分，該發射合約被授予 SpaceX。據 SSC 稱，此次任務與 SpaceX 的發射合約價值約 1.55 億美元，其中將採用側助推器，這是第五次飛行。

“We benefit greatly from our partnerships with other government agencies and from commercially derived developments,” said Dr. Walt Lauderdale, Mission Director and lead for Falcon Systems and Operations at SSC, in a statement. “When we look at the upswing in the launch tempo, adapting to change is our standard operating procedure that gives us the capacity and throughput we will need to support future national security space requirements.”

「我們從與其他政府機構的合作夥伴關係以及商業衍生的開發中受益匪淺，」SSC 任務總監兼獵鷹系統和營運負責人 Walt Lauderdale 博士在一份聲明中表示。 “當我們看到發射節奏的上升時，適應變化是我們的標準操作程序，它為我們提供了支持未來國家安全太空需求所需的容量和吞吐量。”

After the boosters are recovered, SpaceX and NASA officials said they will be used for a sixth and final time to launch NASA’s Europa Clipper mission to the moon of Jupiter in October 2024.

在助推器回收後，SpaceX 和 NASA 官員表示，它們將第六次也是最後一次用於在 2024 年 10 月發射 NASA 的歐羅巴快艇任務前往木星衛星。

Following the Falcon Heavy launch mid-month, the pad at LC-39A will be converted back to a Falcon 9 configuration in preparation for the launch of a Nova-C lunar lander as part of the Intuitive Machines and NASA mission, IM-1 heading to the Moon’s South Pole.

本月中旬獵鷹重型火箭發射後，LC-39A 的發射台將轉換回獵鷹 9 號配置，為 Nova-C 月球著陸器的發射做準備，作為直觀機器和 NASA 任務 IM-1 的一部分到月球的南極。