首次发射前，维珍轨道完成最后一次主要测试

首次发射前，维珍轨道完成最后一次主要测试

Virgin Orbit completed a captive carry test flight of its LauncherOne system April 12, the final major milestone before the company performs its first orbital launch attempt.

4月12日，维珍轨道公司完成了其发射系统的捆绑携带测试飞行，这是该公司进行首次轨道发射尝试之前的最后一个重要里程碑。

The company’s modified Boeing 747 aircraft, with a LauncherOne rocket attached to its left wing, took off from the Mojave Air and Space Port in California at 2:23 p.m. Eastern. The plan flew out over the Pacific Ocean south of Santa Barbara to simulate a launch before returning back to Mojave, with the rocket still attached, about two hours later.

下午2点23分，该公司改装的波音747飞机从加利福尼亚州的莫哈韦航空航天港起飞，机翼上安装了一枚发射火箭。东部。在返回莫哈韦之前，该计划在圣巴巴拉以南的太平洋上空模拟发射，大约两个小时后，火箭仍然挂在火箭上。

Virgin Orbit had performed captive carry test flights in the past, but this was the first with a flight version of LauncherOne, filled with RP-1 fuel and liquid nitrogen, attached. During the flight, the plane tested the launch release maneuver, where the plane pulls up sharply after releasing the rocket.

维珍轨道公司过去曾进行过俘虏式运载试验飞行，但这是第一次搭载搭载有rpg -1燃料和液氮的“发射一号”(LauncherOne)飞行版本。在飞行过程中，飞机测试了发射释放动作，即飞机在释放火箭后急剧拉升。

In an April 10 statement, Virgin Orbit described then-upcoming flight as a “a complete, end-to-end launch rehearsal” of the aircraft and ground operations, with the exception of using liquid nitrogen, a safer alternative to the liquid oxygen propellant used for LauncherOne. That test, the company said, was also “the last major step prior to our Launch Demo,” or first orbital launch attempt.

在4月10日的一份声明中，维珍轨道公司称当时即将进行的飞行是对飞机和地面操作的“一次完整的、端对端发射演练”，唯一的例外是使用液氮，这是一种比液氧推进剂更安全的选择。该公司表示，那次测试也是“我们的发射演示或首次轨道发射尝试之前的最后一个重大步骤”。

Virgin Orbit had planned to carry out the captive carry flight earlier this year, but was delayed in part by the coronavirus pandemic. While among the many space companies considered “essential” by government agencies and thus allowed to remain open, Virgin Orbit sent its staff home with pay for a week last month both to allow them to deal with the dislocations caused by the pandemic as well as to adjust its procedures to allow for on-site operations to continue safely.

维珍轨道公司原计划在今年早些时候进行俘虏携带飞行，但部分由于冠状病毒大流行而推迟。作为被政府机构认为是“必要的”并因此被允许继续开放的航天公司中，维珍轨道公司(Virgin Orbit)上个月要求员工带薪回家一周，一方面是为了让他们处理大流行造成的混乱，另一方面是为了调整程序，让现场操作得以安全进行。

That work, Virgin Orbit said in the earlier statement, included reconfiguring its mission control center and rewriting procedures on the shop floor to comply with recommended physical distancing. It is also more frequently cleaning workspaces and increasing use of personal protective equipment. Even with those changes, the company estimates that up to 90% of its employees are still working remotely.

维珍轨道公司在早些时候的声明中说，这项工作包括重新配置其任务控制中心，重新编写车间的程序，以符合建议的物理距离。它也更频繁地清洁工作场所和增加个人防护设备的使用。即便有了这些变化，该公司估计仍有高达90%的员工在远程工作。

The captive carry test is the last major test before the company’s first launch attempt. “Of course, we’ll first pore over the data from this captive carry flight, and we’ll run through a few last rehearsals, giving the team a few additional chances to practice their jobs with our new COVID-19 procedures in place,” the company stated.

俘虏携带测试是该公司首次发射前的最后一次重大测试。该公司表示:“当然，我们将首先仔细研究这次专属携带飞行的数据，在covid19新程序到位的情况下，我们将进行几次最后的排练，给团队一些额外的机会，来练习他们的工作。”