Nasa is testing the next generation of human spaceflight technology in the deserts of Arizona, US. The Desert RATS (Research and Technology Studies) program is designed to give advanced equipment a trial run, and to expose any issues before it is used in space.
美國航空暨太空總署正在亞利桑納州沙漠測試下一代載人太空飛行技術，這項代號「美國沙漠之鼠」的探索和技術研究計畫，目的在讓先進的儀器和載具進行初步測試，並在上太空使用前找出所有問題。
Nasa's base camp is near Black Point Lava Flow in northern Arizona, and, from there, researchers have spent two weeks conducting a series of tests of hardware, software, and human behavior. They are doing trials using a number of concept space vehicles, including two rovers, a six-legged vehicle called ATHLETE （All-Terrain, Hex-Limbed, Extra-Terrestrial Explorer, photo, AFP）, and a pressurized excursion module.
太空總署基地營在亞利桑納州北部靠近「黑點熔岩流」附近。研究人員在那裡花了2周進行連串軟硬體與人類行為測試。他們在測試時，動用許多尚處於概念階段的太空載具，包括兩部漫遊車、一個稱為「全地形6支架外星探測器」（暱稱「運動員」，圖／法新社）的6腳載具，和一個密封加壓漫遊太空艙。
The Space Exploration Vehicle is a rover about the size of a pickup truck, and has a pressurized module that two astronauts can live in for up to 14 days. In this exercise, two rovers have been working in tandem, meaning they can venture more than 240km away from their base. The Apollo-era rover had a range of about 10km. Each rover uses six sets of wheels, all of which can rotate 360 degrees meaning the rover can go in any direction, including crabbing sideways to get around an obstacle.
太空探索載具是一部大小有如小貨卡的漫遊車，並有加壓艙，可供2名太空人生活長達14天。在這次演習中，兩部漫遊車同步作業，這意味著他們可以冒險到離基地240公里遠的地方。阿波羅時代的月球漫遊車活動範圍大約只有10公里。每部漫遊車有6組輪子，所有輪子都可360度旋轉，換言之，它可以往任何方向行駛，包括為了避開障礙物以蟹形方式側走。
As for the ATHLETE, it is an imposing sight in the Arizona desert, towering above the other equipment on six legs which can raise it from around one meter above the ground to more than six meters. Each limb is effectively a robotic arm, capable of independent motion. “The big advantage of being out here is that we are not space constrained, we can do a lot of driving. So on this field test we have been demonstrating that we can traverse this vehicle across long distances,” says Julie Townsend, an engineer from Nasa JPL, who has been conducting tests on ATHLETE in the Arizona desert. She explains how Athlete has been designed to deal with challenging conditions. For this field test it consists of a large airlock with room to hang spacesuits, and attached to that, a cylindrical room 5m in diameter.
至於「運動員」，它在亞利桑納沙漠中巍然挺立，6隻腳可以把它從離地約1公尺抬高到離地6公尺以上，使它在其他軟硬體載具中鶴立雞群。它每隻腳都是一支有力的機械手臂，能獨立運作。太空總署噴氣推進實驗室工程師茱莉葉．湯森說：「到外面這裡，最大的優勢是沒有空間限制，我們可以到處駕駛。因此，在這次實地測試中，我們已經證明，我們可以駕著這個載具長途跋涉。」她一直在亞利桑納沙漠測試「運動員」，並解釋如何設計運動員處理各種高難度的情況。這次實地測試還包括一個可以掛太空衣的大型壓差隔離室，並加掛一個圓柱形直徑5公尺的房間。
Nasa astronaut Mike Gernhardt is project manager of the Space Exploration Vehicle system. He has flown to space on the Shuttle four times, spending over 43 days in orbit. His duties have included four spacewalks totaling over 23 hours. For him, one of the key developments on the new vehicles is a suit port, that connects spacesuits directly to the outside of the vehicle. Astronauts can quickly climb into their suits and leave the rover. “It takes us at least six hours to get out of the space station, and with this, I can be 'boots on the surface' within 10 minutes. The suit is on the outside, it's already powered up, and we only have a few leak checks that we have to do.” That opens up new possibilities for surface exploration at short notice, and also limits the amount of dirt and dust that is brought into the habitable areas.
太空人葛恩哈特是太空探測載具系統專案經理。他曾搭太空梭飛往太空4次，在軌道上飛行超過43天，他的任務包括4次太空漫步，總共超過23小時。對他來說，新載具一個重大的發展在太空衣的端口，使太空裝可以直接跟載具外面接合。太空人可以迅速爬入太空裝，離開漫遊車。「通常我們至少要花6個小時才能離開太空站，有了這個太空裝，10分鐘內就可以『把靴子踩在地表上』。太空衣就放在外面，已經通電，只要再做些防漏檢查就行了。」這也開創一接到通知馬上可以探測地表的新的可能性，並限制汙垢和塵埃被帶進居住區的數量。
The Habitat Demonstration Unit provides astronauts with a base to return to, after missions on a rover. “The crew collects samples, and then they dock with the Habitat Demonstration Unit,” says Tracey Gill from Nasa's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.“Then they come inside, and we have maintenance and science workstations in there where they can examine samples, they can resupply, take care of any medical situations, and we have tools and work benches, where they can do repairs.” It is a reconfigurable unit, and could be expanded with inflatable rooms.
「居住示範單位」是太空人完成漫遊車任務後返回的基地站。「這組太空人收集樣本，然後泊靠在居住示範單位上。」佛羅里達州太空總署甘迺迪太空中心的崔西．吉爾說：「等他們進來後，我們在裡頭有維修和科學工作站，在那裡他們可以檢查採樣，再補給，並處理任何醫療情況，我們有工具和工作台，在那裡他們可以進行維修。」這是個可以重新組裝的單位，可以用充氣室加大範圍。
As well as the maintenance workstations, on this mission botanists on the Habitat Demonstration Unit have produced their own food - lettuce - to simulate having to grow crops to be self sufficient on another planet. “We actually grew enough lettuce during the mission that we harvested it, and the crew had some with their lunch one day,” says Tracey Gill.
除了維修工作站，這次出任務的居住示範單位植物學家已自行生產出食用生菜，以模擬在另一個星球上種植農作物自給自足的情況。吉爾說：「我們這次任務，已經真正種植並收成足夠的生菜，這組太空人有一天午餐時還吃了些。」
Nasa is retiring the space shuttle and the US administration has recently proposed that the space agency should focus manned spaceflight efforts on objectives further than the Moon, so the scientists working on these prototypes say they are ready to make changes. “We're looking at a flexible path, which will take us to the Near Earth Objects,” says mission manager Joe Kosmo. “That could include missions to Mars, or to asteroids in the Solar System. Even though we're roving on a surface here, the habitability studies that are being done within the cabin environment would be directly applicable to doing asteroid activities.”
太空總署正在將太空梭退役。美國政府最近提議，該署應把重心放在載人太空飛行任務上，目標也設定得比月球要遠，因此這些正在著手進行原型測試的科學家表示，他們已做好隨時改變的準備。任務指揮官柯斯莫說：「我們正在摸索一條靈活的路徑，它將帶我們到近地天體中，這可能包括火星或太陽系小行星的飛行任務。雖然我們在這裡只是在地表上漫遊，並在太空艙環境內完成可居住性研究，但這些都將直接適用於小行星上的活動。」