馬斯克的SpaceX將成爲全球最大的衛星公司

SpaceX on Saturday fired up the rocket that will ferry the company's next batch of Starlink satellites into space.
週六SpaceX公司發射的火箭將把該公司的下一批互聯網衛星送入太空。
The company conducted a static-fire test on Saturday (Jan. 4) of a Falcon 9 rocket at Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, the company said on Twitter. That rocket is expected to send 60 Starlink internet satellites into space no earlier than Monday (Jan. 6), marking the first launch of the year from Florida's Space Coast.
該公司在推特上說，週六（1月4日）進行了“獵鷹”9火箭靜態點火測試，測試地點位於佛羅里達州卡納維拉爾角空軍基地40號航天發射複合體。這枚火箭預計最早會在週一（1月6日）將60顆互聯網衛星送入太空，在佛羅里達州的太空海岸進行本年度第一次發射。
The Falcon 9 rocket out of its hangar on Friday (Jan. 3) and went vertical on the launch pad in advance of the planned test-firing of its nine first stage engines on Saturday. The two-stage rocket is scheduled for liftoff Monday at 9:19 p.m. EST (0219 GMT Tuesday).
“獵鷹”9火箭週五（1月3日）離開飛機庫，在週六九個一級引擎點火測試的計劃時間之前提前豎立在發射臺上。二級火箭預計於美國東部時間星期一晚上9:19（格林尼治標準時間週二2:19）升空。
But before it can launch, SpaceX put the vehicle through a routine launch rehearsal. The brief test, known as a static-fire test, is a standard part of prelaunch procedures and one of the last major milestones before liftoff. During the test, teams loaded the Falcon’s super-chilled propellants — kerosene and liquid oxygen — into the rocket before igniting the first stage’s nine Merlin 1D engines.
但發射之前，SpaceX公司讓飛行器進行例行發射演習。這個簡單的測試被稱爲靜態點火測試，是發射前的標準程序，也是升空前最後階段的關鍵部分。團隊在測試時會將“獵鷹”的超冷推進劑——煤油和液態氧注入火箭，然後點燃第一級的九個“梅林1D”發動機。
The engines briefly fired at 12 p.m. EST (1700 GMT), generating more than 1 million pounds of thrust while the booster remained firmly on the ground. Engineers reviewed the data before deciding to proceed with the Falcon 9’s planned launch attempt Monday evening.
這些發動機在美國東部時間中午12點（格林尼治標準時間17點）的短暫發射會產生超過100萬磅的推力，而助推器則穩穩地留在地面上。工程師檢查了數據，然後決定將“獵鷹”9火箭的計劃發射時間定於週一晚上。
"Static fire complete — targeting Monday, January 6 at 9:19 p.m. EST for launch of 60 Starlink satellites from Pad 40 in Florida," SpaceX wrote on Twitter shortly after the test.
SpaceX在測試後立刻在推特上寫道：“靜態點火測試完成，下一步是在美國東部時間週一（1月6日）晚上9:19在佛羅里達州40號發射臺發射60顆互聯網衛星。”
The company launched its first group of 60 in May of last year, followed by an additional 60 in November, and plans for its burgeoning constellation to eventually be more than 40,000 satellites strong. Monday’s launch will bring the current number of satellites up to nearly 180, making Musk’s constellation the largest in orbit.
去年五月份該公司發射了第一批60顆衛星，接着又在11月份發射了60顆，計劃使新興衛星互聯網星座的衛星總數最終超過40,000顆。週一的發射行動會使目前的衛星總數達到近180顆，馬斯克的“星座計劃”成爲了軌道上最大的衛星項目。