新奇事件簿 中国成月球背面着陆首个国家

China has become the first nation ever to successfully land a spacecraft on the far side of the moon. The official China Central Television station announced that the lunar explorer spaceship, Chang'e 4, touched down at 10:26am on Thursday. Professor Zhu Menghua, from Macau University of Science and Technology, said the success of the mission was a major milestone¹ for China and established the nation as a pioneer in space exploration. He told the New York Times: "We Chinese people have done something that the Americans have not dared try." Sun Zezhou, chief designer of Chang'e-4, said: "Landing on the far side of the moon is more risky² than landing on the near side."

中国成为首个航天器成功着陆月球背面的国家。中国中央电视台宣布月球探险飞船嫦娥四号于周四早上10:26着陆。澳门科技大学的朱梦华教授表示此次任务的成功是中国一个重要的里程碑，确定了中国在太空探索中先驱者的地位。他告诉《纽约时报》：“我们中国人做了一件美国人不敢尝试的事情。”嫦娥四号首席设计师孙泽洲表示：“着陆月球背面比落在近侧更危险。”

The Chang'e-4 probe started sending photographs back to Earth soon after it landed on the moon's surface. The China National Space Administration said the mission had, "lifted the mysterious veil" from the far side of the moon and "opened a new chapter in human lunar exploration". Sun Zezhou told reporters about the significance of the program. He said it would, "help lay the foundation for future space exploration." He added: "A high-precision landing is a necessity for further exploring the moon and asteroids³. We hope to be able to reach the whole moon and even the whole solar system." China also has plans to launch a returnable spacecraft (Chang'e 5) by 2020.

嫦娥四号探测器在着陆月球表面后就开始向地球发送照片。中国国家航天局表示这项任务揭开了月球背面的神秘面纱，开启了人类月球探索的新篇章。孙泽洲告诉了记者该项目的意义。他说这次任务将“有助于为未来的太空探索奠定基础。”他还说道：“高精度着陆是进一步探索月球和小行星的必要条件。我们希望能够到达整个月球乃至整个太阳系。”中国还计划于2020年前发射可回收航天器（嫦娥五号）。

1 milestone   

n.里程碑；划时代的事件

参考例句：

• The film proved to be a milestone in the history of cinema.事实证明这部影片是电影史上的一个里程碑。
• I think this is a very important milestone in the relations between our two countries.我认为这是我们两国关系中一个十分重要的里程碑。

2 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

3 asteroids   

n.小行星( asteroid的名词复数 )；海盘车，海星

参考例句：

• Asteroids,also known as "minor planets",are numerous in the outer space. 小行星，亦称为“小型行星”，在外太空中不计其数。
• Most stars probably have their quota of planets, meteorids, comets, and asteroids. 多数恒星也许还拥有若干行星、流星、彗星和小行星。