A Falcon Heavy rocket is scheduled to launch the robotic vehicle at 8:14 p.m. EST on Sunday (Dec. 10).

獵鷹重型火箭計劃於晚上 8 點 14 分發射機器人飛行器。美國東部時間週日（12 月 10 日）。

The U.S. Space Force's mysterious X-37B space plane is just about ready to take flight for the seventh time.

美國太空軍神秘的 X-37B 太空飛機即將第七次升空。

The Space Force and SpaceX "are making final preparations" for the planned Sunday evening (Dec. 10) launch of the robotic X-37B, Space Force officials said in an emailed update today (Dec. 7).

太空部隊官員在今天（12 月 7 日）的電子郵件更新中表示，太空部隊和 SpaceX 正在為計劃於週日晚上（12 月 10 日）發射機器人 X-37B 進行「最後的準備」。

The space plane is scheduled to lift off atop a Falcon Heavy rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida during a 10-minute window that opens at 8:14 p.m. EST (0114 GMT on Dec. 11). If SpaceX webcasts the launch as expected, you'll be able to watch the action live here at Space.com.

這架太空飛機計劃在晚上 8 點 14 分開放的 10 分鐘時間內，搭乘獵鷹重型火箭從佛羅裡達州 NASA 甘迺迪太空中心升空。美國東部時間（12 月 11 日格林尼治標準時間 0114）。如果 SpaceX 按預期進行網路直播發射，您將能夠在 Space.com 上觀看現場直播。

The Space Force is believed to possess two X-37B vehicles, both of which were built by Boeing. The space planes look a lot like NASA's old space shuttle orbiters, but they're much smaller; both X-37Bs could fit inside the payload bay of a single space shuttle.

據信太空軍擁有兩架 X-37B 飛行器，兩者均由波音公司製造。這些太空飛機看起來很像美國太空總署的老式太空梭軌道飛行器，但它們要小得多。兩種 X-37B 都可以安裝在單一太空梭的有效載荷艙內。

The two X-37Bs have flown a total of six missions to date, each one longer and more ambitious than the last. The most recent one, known as OTV-6 (Orbital Test Vehicle-6), touched down in November 2022 after circling Earth for 908 days.

迄今為止，兩架 X-37B 總共執行了六次任務，每次都比上一次更長、任務更艱鉅。最近的一顆被稱為 OTV-6（軌道測試飛行器 6），在 908 天繞地球運行 2022 年 11 月著陸。

It's unclear how long the coming flight, OTV-7, will last; the Space Force releases few details about X-37B missions, as most of their payloads are classified. Some of this gear is likely to be novel reconnaissance instruments; military officials have long said that the X-37B is used primarily as a testbed for new technologies.

目前尚不清楚即將到來的 OTV-7 航班將持續多長時間；太空部隊很少公佈有關 X-37B 任務的細節，因為其大部分有效載荷都是機密。其中一些裝備可能是新穎的偵察儀器；軍方官員長期以來一直表示，X-37B 主要用作新技術的測試平台。

But the X-37B carries up some civilian research cargo as well. For example, one of the unclassified experiments going up on OTV-7 is Seeds-2, a NASA project that will test how seeds are affected by long-term exposure to space radiation.

但 X-37B 也運載一些民用研究貨物。例如，OTV-7 上正在進行的非機密實驗之一是 Seeds-2，這是 NASA 的一個項目，將測試長期暴露於太空輻射對種子的影響。

The first five X-37B missions launched atop United Launch Alliance Atlas V rockets, and the most recent one flew aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9. OTV-7 will be the first to use the powerful Falcon Heavy.

前五次 X-37B 任務是在聯合發射聯盟 Atlas V 火箭上發射的，最近一次是在 SpaceX Falcon 9 號火箭上發射的。OTV-7 將是第一個使用強大的 Falcon Heavy 的火箭。

The Heavy has eight missions under its belt to date. It last launched in October, sending NASA's Psyche spacecraft toward the bizarre metal asteroid of the same name.

迄今為止，機槍手已經執行了八次任務。它上次發射是在 10 月份，將 NASA 的 Psyche 太空船送向同名的奇異金屬小行星。