SpaceX could attempt first in-flight refueling for world’s biggest rocket

SpaceX 可能会尝试为世界上最大的火箭进行首次空中加油

SpaceX is planning to test a critical technique for Moon and deep space missions during the next launch of its Starship rocket, according to Nasa.

据美国宇航局称，SpaceX 计划在下次发射其“星际飞船”火箭时测试月球和深空任务的一项关键技术。

The third major flight test of the world’s biggest rocket is expected to take place early next year after the first two attempts ended in explosions.

世界上最大火箭的第三次主要飞行测试预计将于明年初进行，前两次尝试均以爆炸告终。

Future versions of the spacecraft will be used to help deliver people to the Moon as part of Nasa’s Artemis program. Key to this mission will be the ability to perform an inflight propellant transfer, which could be attempted during the next test flight that aims to launch Starship from Texas and land it in Hawaii.

作为美国宇航局阿尔忒弥斯计划的一部分，该航天器的未来版本将用于帮助将人们送上月球。这项任务的关键是能够执行飞行中推进剂转移，这可以在下一次试飞期间尝试，该试飞旨在从德克萨斯州发射星舰并将其降落在夏威夷。

A spokesperson for the US space agency told CNBC that discussions are currently underway to try the orbital refuelling technology.

美国航天局发言人告诉 CNBC，目前正在讨论尝试轨道加油技术。

“Nasa and SpaceX are reviewing options for the demonstration to take place during an integrated flight test of Starship and the Super Heavy rocket,” the Nasa official said. “However, no final decisions on timing have been made.”

美国宇航局官员表示：“美国宇航局和 SpaceX 正在审查在星际飞船和超重型火箭综合飞行测试期间进行演示的选择。” “但是，尚未就时间做出最终决定。”

For the test to succeed, Starship would need to reach low-Earth orbit – something SpaceX is yet to achieve.

为了使测试成功，星际飞船需要到达近地轨道——而 SpaceX 尚未实现这一目标。

The first attempt on 20 April this year ended when both stages of the rocket exploded after attempting to separate a few minutes after launch.

今年 4 月 20 日的第一次尝试结束了，当时火箭的两级在发射几分钟后试图分离后发生爆炸。

The second high-altitude flight test on 18 November was more successful, becoming the first to achieve hot-staging separation. This saw the top part of the rocket separate from the Super Heavy booster using its onboard engines, however both parts of the rocket were ultimately lost.

11月18日的第二次高空飞行试验更加成功，成为首次实现热升分离。这使得火箭的顶部部分与使用其机载发动机的超重型助推器分离，但火箭的两个部分最终都丢失了。

The inflight fuel transfer will be the first test of a system designed to eventually allow Starship to refuel from an external tanker in Earth’s orbit.

飞行中的燃料传输将是对最终允许星舰从地球轨道上的外部加油机加油的系统的首次测试。

“The goal is to advance cryogenic fluid transfer and fill level gauging technology through technology risk assessment, design and prototype testing, and in-orbit demonstration,” Nasa said.

美国宇航局表示：“我们的目标是通过技术风险评估、设计和原型测试以及在轨演示来推进低温流体传输和液位测量技术。”

“The demonstration will decrease key risks for large-scale propellant transfer in the lead-up to future human spaceflight missions.”

“这次演示将降低未来载人航天任务之前大规模推进剂转移的主要风险。”

Following the November launch, SpaceX boss Elon Musk said the next Starship rocket system should be “ready to fly in three to four weeks” but the timeline will depend on the speed of external reviews undertaken by regulatory agencies like the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

11 月发射后，SpaceX 老板埃隆·马斯克表示，下一个 Starship 火箭系统应该“在三到四个星期内准备好飞行”，但时间表将取决于美国联邦航空管理局 (FAA) 等监管机构进行外部审查的速度。

Mr Musk has been known for his ambitious development deadlines, which have frequently been pushed back. His ultimate goal for Starship is to build hundreds of the rockets in order to establish a permanent human colony on Mars by 2050.

马斯克先生以其雄心勃勃的开发期限而闻名，但这些期限经常被推迟。他对 Starship 的最终目标是建造数百枚火箭，以便到 2050 年在火星上建立永久的人类殖民地。