本帖最后由 gohomeman1 于 2009-7-1 20:01 编辑
继续新闻稿下半部分。待翻译时,我会考虑补充些背景资料图的。
Kepler mission scientists will turn the data into 30-minute snapshots of light from each of the 100,000 or more stars. From these snapshots, the scientists will construct a light curve for each star,which details any brightness fluctuations. They will review the light curves to look for any periodic decrease in brightness, an indication of a possible transiting planet.
开普勒项目科学家将把10多万恒星的原始数据转换为按30分钟间隔的快照集。科学家将从这些快照集构建每个恒星的光变曲线,其中包含详细的、所有的亮度起伏。他们将检查这些光变曲线,从中搜寻任何(细微)的光度周期性减小现象,由此推测可能的行星运动现象。
The mission scientists also will use the light curves to study the stars and their interiors. Because of the quality of the Kepler data and the large number of stars the spacecraft will observe, scientists hope to improve their understanding of stellar evolution.
开普勒项目科学家还将运用光变曲线研究恒星及其内部结构。基于开普勒望远镜巨大的观测数量和优良的数据质量,科学家希望藉此提高对恒星演化的认识。
"The mission's main purpose is to find planets that are the same distance from its solar-type star as Earth is from the Sun," said Daryl Swade, who directed the systems engineering development of Kepler's Data Management Center at the Institute. "So that means that the planet would cross in front of its star every year. We would need three or four of these transits to confirm the detection, which will take about three or four years."
太空望远镜科研所开普勒数据管理中心的系统项目工程主管Daryl Swade说:“项目主旨是发现与我们太阳系日地关系相似的系外行星,这意味着那些行星每年都会从恒星前面穿过。我们需要3~4次的凌日观测数据来证实,这需要3~4年时间。”
A planet at an Earth-like distance from its star would be in the star's "habitable zone," where temperatures are just right for liquid oceans to exist on the surface without freezing over or evaporating away. On Earth, a liquid ocean was needed to nurture the chemical processes that lead to the appearance of life. This is considered an important prerequisite for life as we know it to appear elsewhere in the galaxy.
一个行星与其恒星的间距类似我们的日地距离意味着它处于“宜居区”,它的温度刚好能让液态水的海洋在其表面存在,既不会永久冰冻也不会被晒干。在地球上,海洋是形成生命的化学过程的必要条件。这也是我们公认在星系其他地方出现(类似地球的)生命的重要的先决条件。
Kepler's science data also will be archived at the Institute. Every three months the SOC at Ames will ship FITS files in a 500-gigabyte computer hard drive to the Institute for storage in the Multimission Archive, or MAST. The archive houses data from about 14 missions,including Hubble, the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE),and the Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX).
开普勒项目的科学数据同时将在太空望远镜科研所存档。每隔3个月,埃姆斯市的SOC将提交一个存储有500GB的FITS文件的硬盘给科研所,在多任务档案库(MAST)中归档。档案库数据来自14个项目,包括哈勃太空望远镜、远紫外光谱探测卫星(FUSE)和星系演化探测卫星 (GALEX)等。
Based on its strong track record in processing and archiving data, the Institute could earn a role in many future missions.
基于这些存储记录和存档的数据文件(美国人累不累,一样的东西说2遍。——gohomeman1译注),科研所在将来的许多项目中将继续获益。
"Partnering with other institutions to share the duties of a mission may be a trend for future missions," Taylor said.
“与其他研究机构合作共享看来是将来项目任务的趋势,”Taylor说。
The Space Telescope Science Institute is operated for NASA by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc.,Washington, D.C.
太空望远镜科研所隶属美国宇航局,由位于美国华盛顿特区的全美大学天文学研究会协会负责具体运作。
Kepler is a NASA Discovery mission. NASA Ames Research Center,Moffett Field, Calif., is the home organization of the science principal investigator and is responsible for the ground system development, mission operations, and science data analysis. NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., managed the Kepler mission development. Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. of Boulder, Colo.,was responsible for developing the Kepler flight system and is supporting mission operations.
开普勒项目是美国宇航局的一个宇宙探索项目。位于加利福尼亚州莫菲特场市的美国宇航局埃姆斯研究中心,是主要的科学项目审查者,负责地面系统建设、任务运作和科学数据眼睛。 位于加利福尼亚州帕萨迪娜市的美国喷气推进实验室,管理开普勒项目运作发展。科罗拉多州Boulder市的Bell宇航科技集团,主要负责开普勒卫星的飞行和技术支持。
CONTACT
联系人
Donna Weaver
唐娜.Weaver
Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, Md.
马里兰州巴尔的摩市,太空望远镜科研所
410-338-4493
dweaver@stsci.edu
PS:Boulder的原意是巨石,顽石,附近有著名的Boulder Dam(科罗拉多河上的大坝)。 ——gohomeman1 |