A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket topped with the German military's SARah-2 mission launches from Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force base on Sunday, Dec. 24, 2023. (Image credit: SpaceX (via X))

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted off with two radar reconnaissance satellites for the German military on Sunday morning (Dec. 24).

2023 年 12 月 24 日星期日，搭载德国军方 SARah-2 任务的 SpaceX 猎鹰 9 号火箭从范登堡太空部队基地的 Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) 发射升空。（图片来源：SpaceX（via X））周日上午（12 月 24 日），猎鹰 9 号火箭搭载两颗德国军方雷达侦察卫星升空。

The Falcon 9 rocket launched the SARah-2 mission to low Earth orbit (LEO) from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base at 8:11 a.m. EST (1311 GMT; 5:11 a.m. local California time). The flight had originally been slated for Saturday (Dec. 23) but was pushed back a day to allow for additional preflight checks.

美国东部时间上午 8 点 11 分（格林尼治标准时间 1311；加利福尼亚州当地时间凌晨 5 点 11 分），猎鹰 9 号火箭从加利福尼亚州范登堡太空部队基地向近地轨道 (LEO) 发射了 SARah-2 任务。该航班原定于周六（12 月 23 日）起飞，但被推迟一天以进行额外的飞行前检查。

The SARah-2 mission sent two synthetic aperture radar (the "SAR" in "SARah-2") reconnaissance satellites aloft for the German military.

SARah-2 任务向德国军方发射了两颗合成孔径雷达（“SARah-2”中的“SAR”）侦察卫星。

"The satellites will continue the replacement process of the aging SAR-Lupe constellation," EverydayAstronaut.com wrote in a mission description. 

EverydayAstronaut.com 在任务描述中写道：“这些卫星将继续替换老化的 SAR-Lupe 星座。”

"SARah 2 and SARah 3 are two 'reflector antenna' satellites, meaning they will consequently fly in formation with SARah 1 to increase the resolution of the constellation," the outlet added.

该媒体补充道：“SARah 2 和 SARah 3 是两颗‘反射天线’卫星，这意味着它们将与 SARah 1 编队飞行，以提高星座的分辨率。”

SARah-2 was the eighth liftoff for this particular Falcon 9's first stage, according to SpaceX. The booster came back for its eighth landing as well, touching down at Vandenberg about eight minutes after launch.

据 SpaceX 称，SARah-2 是猎鹰 9 号第一级的第八次升空。助推器也返回进行第八次着陆，在发射后约八分钟降落在范登堡。

SARah 2 and SARah 3, meanwhile, were set to deploy into LEO from the Falcon 9's upper stage about 20 minutes and 25 minutes after liftoff, respectively.

与此同时，SARah 2 和 SARah 3 计划分别在升空后约 20 分钟和 25 分钟从猎鹰 9 号的上级部署到近地轨道。

Sunday's launch continued a very busy 2023 for SpaceX. The company has launched 94 orbital missions so far this year, as well as two test flights of its giant Starship rocket that didn't make it to orbit.

周日的发射继续了 SpaceX 非常忙碌的 2023 年。今年到目前为止，该公司已发射了 94 次轨道任务，以及两次未能进入轨道的巨型星舰火箭试飞。

And there will be more SpaceX action before the calendar turns. For example, the company's powerful Falcon Heavy rocket is scheduled to launch the U.S. Space Force's X-37B space plane to orbit on Dec. 28.

在日历转动之前，SpaceX 还将采取更多行动。例如，该公司强大的猎鹰重型火箭计划于 12 月 28 日将美国太空军的 X-37B 太空飞机送入轨道。