'Understanding how ocean life interacts with the atmosphere and the global climate is one of the secrets of the universe right here at home.'

“了解海洋生物如何与大气和全球气候相互作用是宇宙的秘密之一。”

NASA's Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, Ocean Ecosystem (PACE) satellite is set to depart Earth from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Wednesday (Feb. 7) at 1:33 a.m. EST (0633 GMT.) It will launch atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

NASA 的浮游生物、气溶胶、云、海洋生态系统 (PACE) 卫星定于美国东部时间周三（2 月 7 日）凌晨 1:33（格林威治标准时间 0633）从卡纳维拉尔角太空部队站离开地球。它将在 SpaceX Falcon 9 上发射火箭。

Launch had been planned for Tuesday (Feb. 6) at the same time, but bad weather forced a delay.

原计划于周二（2 月 6 日）同时发射，但恶劣天气迫使发射推迟。

Ahead of the launch, NASA and SpaceX experts gathered to discuss the impact the PACE mission will have on climate science as it monitors the interaction between Earth's oceans and atmosphere. 

在发射之前，NASA 和 SpaceX 的专家齐聚一堂，讨论 PACE 任务对气候科学的影响，因为它监测地球海洋和大气之间的相互作用。

"Understanding how ocean life interacts with the atmosphere and the global climate is one of the secrets of the universe right here at home. Aerosols that cycle through the ocean and atmosphere are a factor in how clouds form and how weather systems behave," NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free said at a press conference on Monday (Feb. 5). "But exactly how that process works is a scientific mystery. Unraveling it is one big goal of the PACE mission in line of course with NASA's charge to explore the unknown in air and space."

“了解海洋生物如何与大气和全球气候相互作用，是宇宙的秘密之一。在海洋和大气中循环的气溶胶是云形成和天气系统行为的一个因素，”美国宇航局副研究员行政长官 Jim Free 在周一（2 月 5 日）的新闻发布会上说道。 “但这个过程到底是如何运作的仍然是一个科学谜团。解开这个谜团是 PACE 任务的一大目标，这与 NASA 探索空气和太空未知事物的使命是一致的。”

Free added that PACE will join the two dozen NASA missions in orbit currently that collect vital data on Earth's land, ocean, atmosphere and ice. The mission's data will be used by scientists and policymakers to safeguard against the threat of global climate change.

Free 补充道，PACE 将加入 NASA 目前在轨道上执行的两打任务，收集有关地球陆地、海洋、大气和冰的重要数据。该任务的数据将被科学家和政策制定者用来防范全球气候变化的威胁。

PACE will study tiny things to make a big scientific impact

Also speaking at the press event, Director of NASA's Earth Science Division Karen St. Germain explained that PACE will use its vantage point to investigate tiny micro-organisms that play a huge role on Earth, microalgae called phytoplankton. 

PACE 将研究微小的事物以产生重大的科学影响美国宇航局地球科学部主任凯伦·圣热尔曼也在新闻发布会上发表讲话，解释说 PACE 将利用其优势来研究对地球发挥巨大作用的微小微生物，即微藻。称为浮游植物。

"Our Earth is a water planet. The surface of the Earth is covered 70% by oceans, and yet, in many ways, we know more about the surface of the moon than we do about our own oceans," St. Germain said. "Phytoplankton are at the base of the marine food chain. They serve our fisheries and the health of the oceans. They are also responsible for absorbing a tremendous amount of carbon dioxide through photosynthesis and converting that into oxygen in the atmosphere.

“我们的地球是一个水星球。地球表面 70% 被海洋覆盖，然而，在很多方面，我们对月球表面的了解比对我们自己的海洋的了解还要多，”圣热尔曼说。 “浮游植物位于海洋食物链的基础。它们为我们的渔业和海洋健康服务。它们还负责通过光合作用吸收大量二氧化碳并将其转化为大气中的氧气。

"But they can also be toxic, and we need to know that, too."

“但它们也可能有毒，我们也需要知道这一点。”

St. Germain added that PACE won't just be looking at tiny organisms in the oceans. It will also study tiny particles in the atmosphere called aerosols.

St. Germain 补充说，PACE 不仅仅关注海洋中的微小生物。它还将研究大气中称为气溶胶的微小颗粒。

"Aerosols play an enormous role in our weather, our air quality, and even our climate. They come from sources like dust flowing off the Sahara, wildfires, and even human activities, and they seed clouds that can grow into hurricanes coming across the Atlantic," St. Germain said. "But they also reflect a lot of the sun's energy. So, they play an important role in the long-term sustained stability of Earth's climate. Because we're measuring both of these things together, PACE will allow us to understand the strong interactions between the atmosphere and the ocean."

“气溶胶对我们的天气、空气质量，甚至气候起着巨大的作用。它们的来源包括撒哈拉沙漠的尘埃、野火，甚至人类活动，它们产生的云可以发展成横跨大西洋的飓风。 ，”圣日耳曼说。 “但它们也反射了大量的太阳能。因此，它们在地球气候的长期持续稳定中发挥着重要作用。因为我们同时测量这两件事，PACE将使我们能够了解强烈的相互作用大气层和海洋之间。”

The PACE launch will also be offering something a little bit different for typical NASA Cape Canaveral liftoffs.

PACE 发射还将为典型的 NASA 卡纳维拉尔角发射提供一些不同的东西。

"PACE is the eighth NASA LSP mission to launch on a SpaceX rocket, and the first government mission to fly a polar trajectory from the Cape since November of 1960," NASA Launch Services Program (LSP) Director Tim Dunn said. "Now, SpaceX is well seasoned in flying this particular trajectory. They've done it 11 times commercially since 2020."

NASA 发射服务计划 (LSP) 主任蒂姆·邓恩 (Tim Dunn) 表示：“PACE 是 NASA 使用 SpaceX 火箭发射的第八个 LSP 任务，也是自 1960 年 11 月以来第一个从好望角出发进行极地轨道飞行的政府任务。” “现在，SpaceX 在这条特定轨道上的飞行经验丰富。自 2020 年以来，他们已经进行了 11 次商业飞行。”

During the last Cape "polar launch," the blast-off of SOLRAD 2 and Transit 3A atop a Thor-Ablestar rocket on Nov. 30, 1960, a booster flew off course and rained debris over Cuba. After this, NASA's polar launches were moved to the Vandenberg Space Force, previously Vandenberg Air Force Base.

1960 年 11 月 30 日，在开普敦的最后一次“极地发射”中，SOLRAD 2 和 Transit 3A 在雷神-Ablestar 火箭上升空，助推器飞离轨道，碎片如雨点般落在古巴上空。此后，美国宇航局的极地发射被转移到范登堡太空部队，以前是范登堡空军基地。

Plus, the launch of PACE has been a long time coming. The Trump administration proposed canceling PACE in all four of its NASA budget proposals, from fiscal years 2018 through 2021, but Congress kept the mission funded each year.

另外，PACE 的推出已经等了很长时间了。特朗普政府提议在 2018 财年至 2021 财年的所有四项 NASA 预算提案中取消 PACE，但国会每年都会为该任务提供资金。

The Falcon 9 rocket with PACE attached was rolled out to the launch pad and erected at around 4 a.m. EST (0900 GMT) on Monday morning. Final preparations should begin at 10 p.m. EST (0300 GMT) tonight, with propellants set to be loaded at around 12:50 a.m. EST (0450 GMT).

周一早上美国东部时间凌晨 4 点（格林尼治标准时间 0900）左右，附有 PACE 的猎鹰 9 号火箭被推出到发射台并竖立起来。最后的准备工作将于晚上 10 点开始。今晚美国东部时间（格林威治标准时间 0300），推进剂定于东部时间上午 12:50 左右（格林威治标准时间 0450）装填。

The PACE launch was supposed to happen early Tuesday morning (Feb. 6), but the weather didn't cooperate. There's a 60% chance of good weather for Wednesday's opportunity, according to U.S. Space Force Weather Officer Brian Cizek.

PACE 发射原定于周二凌晨（2 月 6 日）进行，但天气不配合。据美国太空部队气象官员布莱恩·西泽克 (Brian Cizek) 称，周三的好天气概率为 60%。

The weather issues aren't dampening spirits at NASA for this important launch, however. 

然而，天气问题并没有影响美国宇航局这次重要发射的热情。

PACE's  "launch is not just a mission to space. It's a testament to our collective pursuit of knowledge, innovation, and the betterment of humanity for all Earthlings," Free concluded. "Go Falcon and go PACE."

Free 总结道：“PACE 的发射不仅仅是一次太空任务。它证明了我们对知识、创新和为所有地球人谋求人类福祉的集体追求。” “去猎鹰，去佩斯。”

You can watch the PACE launch live here at Space.com, courtesy of NASA, or directly via the space agency's website

您可以在 Space.com 观看由 NASA 提供的 PACE 发射现场直播，或者直接通过航天局网站观看

Editor's note: This story was updated at 12:30 a.m. on Feb. 6 with news of the launch delay to Feb. 7.

编者注：本文于 2 月 6 日凌晨 12:30 更新，发布时间推迟至 2 月 7 日。