英语新闻丨中国首型4米级运载火箭长征十二号首飞成功

China's carrier rocket fleet has expanded further, as the newest type in the Long March family, the Long March 12, made its debut flight on Saturday night from Wenchang, Hainan province.

11月30日晚，长征系列中最新型的长征十二号运载火箭在海南省文昌市点火起飞，中国的运载火箭队伍进一步壮大。

The flight also marked the first mission of the Hainan International Commercial Aerospace Launch Center, the nation's first spaceport dedicated to facilitating commercial operations.

这次发射是海南商业航天发射场的首次任务，它是全国首个专门用于促进商业运营的航天发射场。

As a large crowd of spectators gathered at the coastal launch complex, four liquid oxygen-kerosene engines on the rocket's first stage roared with dazzling flames at 10:25 pm, and the rocket rose into the night sky from the No 2 launchpad at the new space complex.

晚上10时25分，当大批观众聚集在沿海发射场时，一级火箭上的四个液氧煤油发动机在耀眼的火焰中轰鸣，火箭从新航天发射场的2号发射台升入夜空。

After a short while, two experimental satellites separated from the rocket and entered their preset orbit, marking the success of the launch mission.

过了一会儿，两颗试验卫星与火箭分离，进入预设轨道，标志着发射任务取得成功。

Designed by the Shanghai Aerospace System Engineering Institute, the Long March 12 is the 22nd member of the Long March family, the backbone of China's space sector, and the 17th in the operating fleet.

长征十二号运载火箭由上海航天技术研究院研制，是中国航天领域的中坚力量——长征系列的第22位成员，也是正在营运中的第17位成员。

The institute is part of the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology, which belongs to the State-owned industry conglomerate China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp.

上海航天技术研究院隶属于国有企业集团中国航天科技集团公司。

The Long March 12 is the first Chinese rocket with a diameter of 3.8 meters. Most Chinese rockets have a diameter of 3.35 meters, a standard width set in the 1960s due to rail transportation factors.

长征十二号运载火箭是中国第一枚直径为3.8米的火箭。大多数中国运载火箭的直径为3.35米，这是20世纪60年代由于铁路运输因素而设定的标准宽度。

At 62.6 meters tall, the two-stage model is the second-tallest among all Chinese rockets, exceeded only by the 62.8-meter Long March 5.

火箭全长62.6米，在中国所有火箭中排名第二，仅次于62.8米的长征五号。

The vehicle is propelled by engines fueled by liquid oxygen and kerosene and has a liftoff weight of more than 430 metric tons. It is capable of transporting spacecraft with a combined weight of more than 12 tons to a low-Earth orbit, or 6 tons of satellites to a typical sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of 700 kilometers, according to the Shanghai academy.

运载火箭由液氧和煤油燃料发动机推进，起飞质量约430吨。上海航天技术研究院称，它的近地轨道运载能力不少于12吨，700公里太阳同步轨道运载能力不少于6吨。

The new model will effectively improve China's capability to send spacecraft to a sun-synchronous orbit and deploy satellite networks in low orbits, it noted, adding that research and development started in May 2020 and finished in June this year.

新型号将有效提高中国航天器太阳同步轨道入轨能力和低轨多星座组网能力。

Xie Li, a senior designer of the new model, said the rocket features new technologies and equipment.

中国航天科技集团谢立表示，该运载火箭采用了新技术和新设备。

"It is the first Chinese rocket equipped with an automatic ignition-malfunction detection system.... After the engines are ignited, the system will detect whether the engines are functioning well, and if the result is good, the system will unleash the hold-down clamps, allowing the engines to reach full power to lift off.

“这是中国首枚配备牵制释放技术系统的火箭……火箭点火之后，系统会对火箭进行故障诊断。诊断到火箭是正常以后，牵制释放机构就会打开，让火箭飞出去。”

"When the rocket begins to fly, the system will continue performing real-time checks on the vehicle's condition, and if any anomaly occurs, the system will take necessary measures such as to replan the trajectory to make sure the satellites can be deployed into their preset orbit," he said.

他说：“当火箭开始飞行时，系统将继续对其状况进行实时检查，如果出现任何异常，系统将采取必要措施，如重新规划轨道，以确保卫星能够部署到预设轨道。”

Another advantage is that the new type needs a short time for prelaunch preparations at the service tower, which means that the launch facility can serve more space missions in a given time, thus enhancing the spaceport's operational efficiency, according to the designer.

另一个优点是，新型火箭在发射塔进行发射前准备的时间很短，这意味着发射设施可以在给定的时间内为更多的航天任务提供服务，从而提高航天发射场的运行效率。

In addition, the fuel tank of the rocket's second stage is made of a cutting-edge aluminum alloy that boasts lighter weight and better strength.

此外，火箭第二级的燃料箱由最先进的铝合金制成，重量更轻，强度更高。

"Compared with other types of aluminum alloy used on previous Long March-series rockets, the new material is up to 15 percent lighter in structural weight and 28 percent higher in tensile strength," Xie said.

“与以往长征系列火箭使用的其他类型铝合金相比，新材料的结构重量减轻了 15%，抗拉强度提高了28%。”谢立说。

Regarding the 3.8-meter diameter, he said that a wider body enables the rocket to have four engines on its first stage, while the 3.35-meter-wide models have two. Moreover, being wider means the rocket can contain more propellants. All of these give the new model a greater carrying capacity, he added.

关于直径3.8米的火箭，他说，较宽的火箭体可以使火箭的第一级有四个发动机，而3.35米宽的型号只有两个。此外，更宽意味着火箭可以装载更多的推进剂。谢立补充，所有这些都赋予了新型火箭更强大的运载能力。

The Long March 12 mission marked China's 59th space launch this year and the 548th flight of the Long March family.

长征十二号运载火箭发射任务是中国今年的第59次航天发射，也是长征系列运载火箭的第548次发射。

spaceport

n. 航天发射场

propellant

n. 推进剂

tensile

adj. 可伸展的；拉力的