A Falcon 9 rocket stands ready to support the Starlink 7-9 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base. The mission also includes the first six satellites that will be used for the company’s direct-to-cell service. Image: SpaceX

猎鹰 9 号火箭随时准备支持范登堡太空部队基地的星链 7-9 任务。该任务还包括前六颗卫星，将用于该公司的直接到蜂窝服务。图片：SpaceX

SpaceX is wasting no time in kicking off what it plans to be a historically busy year for orbital launches. The company plans to launch its workhorse Falcon 9 rocket on a Starlink satellite mission after sunset on Tuesday.

SpaceX 不失时机地开始了它计划的历史上繁忙的轨道发射一年。该公司计划在周二日落后发射其主力猎鹰 9 号火箭执行星链卫星任务。

Liftoff is set for 6:31 p.m. PST (9:31 p.m. EST, 0231 UTC) from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Among the 21 Starlink satellites launching Tuesday evening are the first six that will feature direct-to-cell capabilities.

起飞时间定为下午 6:31。太平洋标准时间（美国东部标准时间晚上 9:31，世界标准时间 0231）从加利福尼亚州范登堡太空部队基地的东 4 号航天发射场 (SLC-4E) 发射。周二晚上发射的 21 颗星链卫星中，前六颗将具有直接到小区的功能。

Spaceflight Now will have live coverage of the launch starting 30 minutes prior to liftoff.

Spaceflight Now 将在升空前 30 分钟开始对发射进行现场报道。

This launch was originally planned for mid-December, but SpaceX ran into undisclosed issues in the run-up to launch and had to scrub the mission.

此次发射原计划于 12 月中旬进行，但 SpaceX 在发射准备过程中遇到了未公开的问题，不得不取消任务。

In a statement, SpaceX said that adding DTC will “enable mobile network operators around the world to provide seamless global access to texting, calling and browsing… on land, lakes or coastal waters.”

SpaceX 在一份声明中表示，添加 DTC 将“使世界各地的移动网络运营商能够在陆地、湖泊或沿海水域上提供无缝的全球短信、通话和浏览服务。”

During and August 2022 event featuring SpaceX founder Elon Musk and T-Mobile CEO and President Mike Sievert, Musk called the new addition “a massive game changer” that would help eliminated dead zones across the globe.

在 2022 年 8 月 SpaceX 创始人埃隆·马斯克 (Elon Musk) 和 T-Mobile 首席执行官兼总裁迈克·西弗特 (Mike Sievert) 参加的活动中，马斯克称新增加的功能是“巨大的游戏规则改变者”，将有助于消除全球范围内的盲区。

“This really is a big deal,” Musk said during the presentation. “Even if an entire region or country lost connectivity because of a severe hurricane or floods or fires or tornados, earthquakes… even if all the cell towers were taken out, your phone would still work.”

“这确实是一件大事，”马斯克在演讲中说道。 “即使整个地区或国家由于严重的飓风、洪水、火灾、龙卷风、地震而失去连接……即使所有的手机信号塔都被拆除，你的手机仍然可以使用。”

According to a Nov. 30, 2023, email sent to Kathyrn Medley, the acting division chief of the Federal Communication’s (FCC) Satellite Licensing Division, SpaceX anticipates launching “approximately 840 direct-to-cell capable satellites over the next 6 months, with additional launches continuing after that period.”

根据 2023 年 11 月 30 日发送给美国联邦通信委员会 (FCC) 卫星许可部门代理处长凯瑟恩·梅德利 (Kathyrn Medley) 的电子邮件，SpaceX 预计在未来 6 个月内发射“约 840 颗具有直接接入蜂窝能力的卫星，其中该时期之后还会继续进行更多发射。”

Jameson Dempsey, SpaceX’s director of satellite policy and the author of the email, wrote that the planned and future launches would “ensure that we can launch a critical mass of satellites in time to deliver commercial service later in 2024.”

SpaceX 卫星政策总监、电子邮件作者 Jameson Dempsey 写道，计划中和未来的发射将“确保我们能够及时发射足够数量的卫星，以便在 2024 年晚些时候提供商业服务。”

“As such, while we understand that the Commission may limit our experimental authority to the satellites we expect to launch and testing the next 6 months, we request that the launch license include authority for all 7500 satellites in our direct-to-cell modification application,” Dempsey wrote.

“因此，虽然我们知道委员会可能会将我们的实验权限限制在我们预计在未来 6 个月内发射和测试的卫星上，但我们要求发射许可证在我们的直接到小区修改申请中包含所有 7500 颗卫星的权限”，邓普西写道。

Sievert noted during the August 2022 event that the upcoming service in the U.S. would use the existing T-Mobile mid-band PCS spectrum.

Sievert 在 2022 年 8 月的活动中指出，美国即将推出的服务将使用现有的 T-Mobile 中频 PCS 频谱。

“That allows us to then dedicate that, working together, to the constellation that Starlink operates so that we are seeing those satellites from every corner of the country,” Sievert said. “If you have a clear view of the sky, our vision is you’re connected.”

西弗特说：“这使我们能够共同努力，将其奉献给星链运营的星座，以便我们能够看到来自全国各个角落的这些卫星。” “如果你能清楚地看到天空，我们的愿景就是让你保持联系。”

“Your phone doesn’t know it’s connecting to space. It will scan for its home network, it’ll scan for terrestrial roaming partners as well,” Sievert  added. “And if it fails to see those things, it will scan again and it will connect to the authorized connection from the satellite and it’ll think it’s connected to a cell tower because that phone is using industry standard technology communication protocols and it has the spectrum already built in. At least, the vast majority of phones in circulation today do.”

“你的手机不知道它正在连接到太空。它会扫描其家庭网络，也会扫描地面漫游合作伙伴，”Sievert 补充道。 “如果它看不到这些东西，它会再次扫描，并连接到来自卫星的授权连接，它会认为它已连接到手机信号塔，因为该手机正在使用行业标准技术通信协议，并且它具有频谱已经内置。至少，当今流通的绝大多数手机都是如此。”

The Falcon 9 rocket supporting Tuesday’s launch features first stage booster, tail number B1082, which will launch for the first time on this mission. About 8.5 minutes after liftoff, the booster will land on the droneship, ‘Of Course I Still Love You.’

支持周二发射的猎鹰 9 号火箭配备了尾号 B1082 的第一级助推器，它将在本次任务中首次发射。升空后约 8.5 分钟，助推器将降落在无人机上，“当然我仍然爱你。”