美国国家航空航天局终于完成了下一枚将我们带到月球的火箭

美国国家航空航天局终于完成了下一枚将我们带到月球的火箭，它是辉煌的

NASA has completed the giant rocket that will take US astronauts back to the Moon, the space agency's head announced Monday, pledging the mission would take place in 2024 despite being beset by delays.

美国国家航空和宇宙航行局(NASA)局长周一宣布，该机构已完成将把美国宇航员送回月球的巨型火箭，并承诺将在2024年完成这一任务，尽管该任务受到拖延的困扰。

Towering 212 feet (65 meters), the equivalent of a 20-story building,

高达212英尺(65米)，相当于20层楼高，

The Space Launch System (SLS) is the tallest rocket ever built at a towering 212 feet (65 meters), the equivalent of a 20-story building.

太空发射系统(SLS)是有史以来最高的火箭，高达212英尺(65米)，相当于20层楼高。

It is also the most powerful, designed to reach a record-breaking speed of Mach 23 before separating from its upper stage, the Orion crew capsule.

它也是最强大的，设计速度达到破纪录的23马赫，然后从上层分离，猎户座乘员舱。

But its development has been hit by delays and cost overruns - its first flight was set to take place in November 2018, and its price tag has risen from US$6.2 billion to US$8 billion, or 29 percent, according to a June audit report.

但是它的发展受到了延误和成本超支的打击——它的首飞计划在2018年11月进行，根据6月份的审计报告，它的价格已经从62亿美元上升到80亿美元，即29%。

Standing before the orange behemoth at the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine called it a "very important day" for the space agency "when we get to announce core stage complete for in fact the SLS rocket.

站在位于新奥尔良的米克豪德组装工厂前，美国宇航局局长吉姆·布里登斯汀称这是航天局“非常重要的一天”，“当我们宣布SLS火箭的核心阶段实际上已经完成。”

We are making significant progress towards achieving that Artemis 3 mission and getting our first woman, and next man to the south pole of the Moon in 2024.

“我们在实现阿尔特弥斯3号任务方面取得了重大进展，并在2024年让我们的第一位女性宇航员和下一位男性宇航员登上月球南极。”

The Artemis 1 mission will likely take off by June 2020, according to the audit report. The first test will be uncrewed.

根据审计报告，Artemis 1号任务可能在2020年6月前起飞。第一次测试将无人参与。

NASA plans to land on the Moon's south pole in order to exploit its water ice, discovered in 2009, both for life support purposes and to split into hydrogen and oxygen for use as rocket propellant.

美国国家航空航天局计划在月球南极着陆，以利用2009年发现的水冰。水冰既可以维持生命，也可以分解成氢和氧，作为火箭燃料。

The agency views its return to the Moon as a proving ground for an onward mission to Mars in the 2030s.

该机构将其重返月球视为21世纪30年代火星任务的试验场。

It's not just the cost of the rocket that has spiralled: NASA will have spent roughly US$34 billion on the SLS, Orion, and Exploration Ground Systems Program programs through 2019, a sum projected to increase to over US$50 billion by 2024.

不仅仅是火箭的成本急剧上升:NASA到2019年将在SLS、Orion和探索地面系统项目上花费大约340亿美元，预计到2024年将增加到500亿美元以上。

The future of the mission rests on continued political support, both from the White House and Congress, which is ultimately responsible for budget allocations.

特派团的未来取决于来自白宫和国会的持续政治支持，白宫和国会最终负责预算拨款。