英倫翻譯社/ Trsmaster

2024/09/11 05:30
◎管淑平
NASA announced Wednesday that cost overruns and delays have forced it to cancel its VIPER moon rover program, marking a significant setback for the agency’s lunar exploration program.

美國航太總署週三宣布，成本超支和進度延宕，已迫使該署取消其月球探測車VIPER計畫。這項決定代表NASA月球探索計畫的重大挫折。

The Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) was intended to explore the lunar south pole in search of ice and other resources.

「揮發物調查極地探測車」（VIPER）原本計畫探索月球南極，尋找冰和其他資源。

"Decisions like this are never easy," said Nicky Fox, NASA’s associate administrator of the science mission directorate.

「這樣的決定從來都不容易」，NASA科學任務局副局長尼基‧佛克斯說。

"But in this case, the projected remaining expenses for VIPER would have resulted in having to either cancel or disrupt many other missions."

「但VIPER的情況是，預期的剩餘開支將導致不是必須取消這項計畫，就是會打亂許多其他任務。」

The mobile robot, which NASA had hoped would venture into the Moon’s permanently shadowed craters, where ice reserves have endured for billions of years, was originally planned to launch in 2023. (AFP)

這款機器人探測車原定2023年發射，NASA本來希望利用它探索月球上常年處於陰暗面的隕石坑，那裡蘊藏的冰已經存在數十億年。（法新社）

新聞辭典
overrun：名詞，超出預期的成本或時間。例句：The project had a budget overrun of $10000.（這項專案預算超支1萬美元。）

venture：動詞，冒險、冒險進入（未知或危險的地方）。例句：The students ventured into the forest to study plants.（學生冒險進入這片森林研究植物。）

英倫翻譯社轉自 https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1666384