The American space agency NASA says its Curiosity vehicle has reached its next exploration target on Mars.
美国航天局 NASA 表示，它的好奇号飞船已经到达了火星的下一个探索目标。
 
The explorer, or rover, reached an area that NASA scientists call Mount Sharp. The area sits within the planet's Gale Crater, which Curiosity has been exploring since landing on Mars in 2012. Mount Sharp contains a mix of rocky material and many large hills.
探险者或漫游者到达了美国宇航局科学家称之为夏普山的地区。该地区位于地球的盖尔陨石坑内，好奇号自 2012 年登陆火星以来一直在探索该陨石坑。夏普山包含岩石物质和许多大山丘。
 
In the past, researchers have found evidence that, billions of years ago, Mount Sharp contained many water systems. At some point, scientists believe the Martian climate grew more extreme and caused the water systems to dry up.
过去，研究人员发现证据表明，数十亿年前，夏普山包含许多水系统。在某些时候，科学家们认为火星气候变得更加极端，导致水系统干涸。
 
NASA says the minerals still existing around Mount Sharp might provide additional evidence of the severe climate changes.
美国宇航局表示，夏普山周围仍然存在的矿物质可能会为严重的气候变化提供额外的证据。
 
Today, Mars is an extremely cold desert that cannot support any running water systems. Experiments carried out on the minerals could help researchers learn more about the kinds of life that may have existed on Mars when it had conditions more similar to Earth.
今天，火星是一个极度寒冷的沙漠，无法支持任何自来水系统。对这些矿物进行的实验可以帮助研究人员更多地了解火星上可能存在的生命种类，当时它的条件与地球更相似。
 
NASA currently operates two rovers on Mars. The other vehicle, Perseverance, landed in February 2021. It is exploring areas around the planet's Jezero Crater. The space agency estimated the landing site for Perseverance was about 3,700 kilometers away from where Curiosity touched down. NASA also operates the InSight lander on Mars.
美国宇航局目前在火星上运行两辆漫游车。另一辆车 Perseverance 于 2021 年 2 月降落。它正在探索地球的 Jezero 陨石坑周围的区域。航天局估计毅力号的着陆点距离好奇号着陆点大约 3,700 公里。NASA 还在火星上运行InSight 着陆器。
 
 
NASA said in a statement that the minerals around Mount Sharp were first discovered by the agency's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, years before Curiosity landed. Scientists have been waiting a long time to get a closer look.
美国宇航局在一份声明中说，夏普山周围的矿物是由该机构的火星勘测轨道飞行器首次发现的，比好奇号早几年着陆。科学家们已经等待了很长时间才能仔细观察。
 
Shortly after arriving in the area, Curiosity's instruments discovered a wide range of different rock kinds and sizes. Among the findings were several different salt materials that suggest past signs of water in the area, NASA says.
到达该地区后不久，好奇号的仪器发现了各种不同种类和大小的岩石。美国宇航局表示，在这些发现中，有几种不同的盐材料表明该地区过去曾有过水的迹象。
 
To examine rocks, Curiosity uses a drill at the end of its robotic arm to dig into the Martian surface. The rover has already drilled many holes on Mars. The latest drilling happened on October 3.
为了检查岩石，好奇号在其机械臂末端使用钻头挖掘火星表面。火星车已经在火星上钻了很多洞。最近一次钻探发生在 10 月 3 日。
 
The Curiosity team chose a rock it named "Canaima" for the operation. The rover has recently experienced problems with a braking system that permits the robotic arm to mostly stay in place. NASA said this can cause difficulties during drilling. But it reported that Curiosity's 36th drill hole was a success.
好奇号团队选择了一块名为“Canaima”的岩石进行操作。流动站最近遇到了制动系统问题，该系统允许机械臂大部分停留在原位。美国宇航局表示，这可能会在钻探过程中造成困难。但它报告说，好奇号的第 36 个钻孔是成功的。
 
The team of scientists are now looking forward to examining the latest Martian dust collection.
科学家团队现在期待着研究最新的火星尘埃收集。
 
The space agency noted that Curiosity's path to Mount Sharp included areas containing "treacherous," or risky, areas. In August, the rover safely made its way through a sandy area situated between high hills. Sand presents a major risk for Curiosity because of the chance of getting stuck.
航天局指出，好奇号前往夏普山的路径包括包含“危险”或危险区域的区域。8 月，火星车安全地穿过位于高山之间的沙地。沙子给好奇号带来了很大的风险，因为它有可能被卡住。
 
Sharp rocks can also damage the rover's wheels. Ground-based rover drivers "need to carefully navigate these areas," NASA said. The agency noted that it took Curiosity more than a month to reach its target area.
锋利的岩石也会损坏火星车的车轮。美国宇航局表示，陆基漫游车司机“需要仔细导航这些区域”。该机构指出，好奇号花了一个多月的时间才到达目标区域。
 
After reaching its goal, however, the team was treated with some of the best images ever taken by the rover. Curiosity's so-called Mastcam was able to capture extremely wide, or panoramic, views of the Martian surroundings.
然而，在达到目标后，该团队获得了火星车拍摄的一些最佳图像。好奇号所谓的桅杆摄像机能够捕捉到火星环境的极宽或全景。
 
"We would get new images every morning and just be in awe," said Elena Amador-French. She oversees work by Curiosity's science and engineering teams at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. "The sand ridges were gorgeous," she added. "You see perfect little rover tracks on them. And the cliffs were beautiful – we really got close to the walls."
“我们每天早上都会收到新的图像，我们会感到敬畏，”Elena Amador-French 说。她在加州 NASA 喷气推进实验室监督好奇号科学和工程团队的工作。“沙脊非常漂亮，”她补充道。“你会在上面看到完美的小火星车轨道。悬崖很漂亮——我们真的很接近墙壁。”
 
Last month, NASA celebrated Curiosity's 10th anniversary in service. During that time, it said the rover has driven nearly 29 kilometers and climbed about 625 meters while exploring Gale Crater.
上个月，NASA庆祝了好奇号服役 10 周年。在那段时间里，火星车在探索盖尔陨石坑时已经行驶了近 29 公里，爬升了约 625 米。