1.新聞網址︰
※超過一行請縮址※
https://tinyurl.com/vxo3tov
2.新聞來源︰
MIT Technology Review
3.新聞內容︰
※請完整轉載原文 請勿修改內文與編排※
A Russian satellite is probably stalking a US spy satellite in orbit
俄羅斯衛星可能在軌道上跟踪美國間諜衛星
It’s a scenario that will almost certainly repeat over and over in the years
to come.
在以後的幾年中，這種情況幾乎肯定會反復發生。
On January 20, something rather strange happened in orbit. A Russian
satellite suddenly maneuvered itself so that it was closely shadowing a US
spy satellite. The pair are now less than 186 miles (300 kilometers) apart—a
short distance when it comes to space. While we don’t know for sure what’s
going on, the Russian satellite’s actions strongly suggest it is there to
spy on the US one—and there is very little the US can do about it.
1月20日，在軌道上發生了一件非常奇怪的事情。 一枚俄羅斯衛星突然改變自身軌道
，使它能夠緊緊的尾隨著掩蓋了美國間諜衛星。 現在兩者相距不到186英里（300公里）
，這是太空中的一小段距離。 儘管我們不確定到底發生了什麼，但俄羅斯衛星的行動
強烈表明它有可能監視美國一顆衛星，而美國對此幾乎無能為力。
Russia’s official story is that the satellite, called Kosmos 2542, is part
of its program to test out satellite “inspection” technologies so that the
country can closely observe its own orbital assets. A parent satellite is
supposed to deploy a sub-satellite nearby, and then approach and image it.
俄羅斯官方的說法是，名為Kosmos 2542的衛星是其測試衛星“檢查”技術的計劃的一部
分，以便該國可以密切觀察自己的軌道資產。 母衛星應該在附近部署一個子衛星，然後
靠近它對其進行成像。
None of the recent maneuvers made by the Kosmos 2542 parent satellite or
sub-satellite support this cover story, however. Michael Thompson, a graduate
student studying astrodynamics at Purdue University who first broke the news
about Kosmos 2542 on Twitter, notes that the parent satellite’s sync with
the US satellite, called USA 245 (which orbits between 171 and 630 miles high
in low Earth orbit), is unusually sharp, while the sub-satellite doesn’t
seem to have any real function.
但是，Kosmos 2542母衛星或次衛星最近進行的操作均不支持此說法。 邁克爾·湯普
森（Michael Thompson）是普渡大學（Purdue University）的一名研究空氣動力學的研
究生，他首先在Twitter上發布了有關Kosmos 2542的新聞，他指出，母衛星與美國衛星
美國245號（在低地球軌道上繞行171至630英里）同步非常的吻合，而子衛星似乎
沒有任何實際功能。
Although the evidence is still circumstantial, Thomas Roberts, a former
aerospace security fellow at the Center for Strategic and International
Studies (CSIS), thinks that Kosmos 2542 is purposely shadowing USA 245 to spy
on it. “Things do move around in low Earth orbit, but to expend your
valuable propellant in this way to perfectly position yourself to view
another satellite like this to me is just beyond the pale,” he says. ”It’s
not a coincidence.”
儘管證據仍然是間接的，但戰略與國際研究中心（CSIS）的前航空安全研究員Thomas
Roberts認為，Kosmos 2542故意尾隨了美國245以對其進行監視。 他說：“衛星確實會在
低地球軌道上四處移動，但是以這種方式消耗寶貴的推進劑以完美地定位自己去看
另一顆衛星，這簡直是難以想像，”他說。 “這不是巧合。”
Todd Harrison, the head of the Aerospace Security Project at CSIS, says
inspector satellites can reveal exactly what kinds of targets on Earth are
being surveilled by the spy satellite. We don’t know exactly what Kosmos
2542 is capable of, but Harrison speculates it could determine the aperture
and resolution of the cameras on USA 245. If it has a radio-frequency probe,
it could listen for faint signals from USA 245 to deduce what kinds of
computer processes are happening onboard, when it’s operating, and when it
is taking pictures.
CSIS航空航天安全項目負責人托德·哈里森（Todd Harrison）表示，檢查衛星可以準確
顯示間諜衛星正在監視地球上的哪些類型的目標。 我們不確切知道Kosmos 2542的功能，
但Harrison推測它可以確定USA 245上相機的光圈和分辨率。如果有射頻探測器，它可以偵
聽來自USA 245的微弱信號以推斷出衛星上的處理器在進行怎樣的運算，何時運行以及
何時拍照。
In fact, Russia has been pulling these kinds of stunts on a regular basis for
about 10 years now. The most notorious case is the country’s Luch satellite,
which has a history of repeatedly moving and parking itself next to other
neighbors in geostationary orbit (GEO), ruffling the feathers of the
international community.
實際上，大約十年來，俄羅斯一直在定期拉這類特技。 最臭名昭著的例子是該國的盧克
（Luch）衛星，該衛星具有反复移動並停泊在地球靜止軌道（GEO）的其他鄰國旁邊的歷
史，惹怒了國際社會
The Russians aren’t alone. Brian Weeden, a space policy expert at the Secure
World Foundation, says the first example of these inspector satellites was an
American satellite code-named “Power,” launched in 1990 and never
acknowledged by the US. It appears its job was to approach other satellites
in GEO for surveillance. A series of Chinese satellites starting with the
launch of SJ-12 in 2010 suggest that China is running a similar program.
俄羅斯人並不孤單。 安全世界基金會（Secure World Foundation）的太空政策專家布萊
恩·維登（Brian Weeden）表示，這類檢查衛星的第一個例子是代號為“ Power”的美國
衛星，該衛星于1990年發射，但從未得到美國的承認。 它的工作似乎是接近GEO中的其他
衛星進行監視。 從2010年SJ-12發射開始，一系列中國衛星暗示中國正在運行類似計劃。
“This is not unique to Russia,” says Weeden. “It doesn’t happen every
day, but it’s a capability that China, the US, and others have been testing
out over time.”
這不是俄國獨有的。它並不是每天發生，但中國、美國和其它國家都在測試這種技術
There are no rules about these kinds of close approaches, either, so Russia
isn’t breaking any laws. “You can get as close as you want, as long as you
don’t touch or interfere with the other satellite,” says Weeden. The US can
’t do much except perhaps move its satellite into a new orbital position,
but even a small maneuver means expending precious fuel. And the Russian
satellite could simply follow the American asset to the new location.
對於這種緊密的接近也沒有任何規則，因此俄羅斯沒有違反任何法律。 Weeden說：“只
要您不觸摸或乾擾另一顆衛星，您就可以盡可能接近。” 美國除了將衛星移動到新
的軌道位置外，無能為力，但即使是很小的移動，也意味著要消耗寶貴的燃料。 俄羅斯
衛星可以簡單地跟隨美國衛星到新的位置。
This latest incident is certainly troublesome, but Roberts hopes the
discussion and response will say away from alarmist predictions and fears. “
We have to talk about these things in the right way,” he says. “Behavior
can be suspicious without being malicious.”
最近的事件當然是麻煩的，但是羅伯茨希望討論和回應能夠擺脫危言聳聽的預言和恐懼
。 他說：“我們必須以正確的方式談論這些事情。” “行為可以是可疑的，而不是惡意
的。”
4.附註、心得、想法︰
美國死定了
間碟衛星被跟蹤了
但沒犯法～不能拿它怎麼樣
我建議啦～
乾脆用衛星幫俄羅斯的衛星拍一張照片算了～