- [Matt] This is our simulation

- [Matt]這就是我們的模擬

of a Lunar Lander arriving at the moon.

月球登陸器抵達月球的照片。

(upbeat music)

(歡快的音樂)

- I feel I kinda like that.

- 我覺得我有點喜歡這樣。

- Ready?

- 準備好了嗎？

- Yep. And 3, 2, 1.

- 是的。還有3、2、1。

(rushing air)

(奔騰的空氣)

- Okay.

- 好的。

- Look, as you can tell, it's very, very crude

- 看，正如你所看到的，它非常非常粗糙

but there's one extremely accurate part, the dirt.

但有一個極其準確的部分，就是泥土。

This is lunar regolith simulant or fake moon soil.

這是月球再生石模擬物或假月壤。

It was made by a lab that's part

它是由一個實驗室製作的，該實驗室是

of a small but growing cottage industry.

一個小型但不斷增長的家庭工業。

It turns out that soil

事實證明，土壤

on the Moon is nothing like its cousin here on Earth.

在月球上，它與地球上的表親完全不同。

It's weird, unpredictable, and even dangerous.

這很奇怪，不可預測，甚至很危險。

And as more missions aim for the moon

隨著更多的任務以月球為目標

- [Voiceover] Back to the moon and beyond

- [畫外音]回到月球和其他地方

- Simulant is helping avoid some potentially

- Simulant有助於避免一些潛在的

catastrophic run-ins with the real stuff.

與真正的東西發生災難性的碰撞。

- [Voiceover] That a little bit fly.

- [畫外音]這有點飛。

- So these are samples of simulated lunar regolith

- 是以，這些是模擬月球雷石的樣本

which experts will call lunar soil or dirt or dust.

專家們將其稱為月球土壤或汙垢或灰塵。

We got these samples by ordering them

我們通過訂購得到這些樣品

on the internet, and the story of why it's so

在互聯網上的故事，以及為什麼它是如此的

readily available is actually kind of fascinating.

現成的東西實際上是有點迷人的。

And it starts with this:

而這一切都始於此。

- [Matt] The first samples taken of the Moon

- [馬特]對月球採集的第一批樣品

during the Apollo program confirmed

在阿波羅計劃期間證實

that lunar regolith is strange and nasty stuff.

月球上的岩石是奇怪而骯髒的東西。

See, there's no real atmosphere on the moon.

看，月球上沒有真正的大氣。

So meteorites have pounded its bedrock into

所以隕石把它的基岩打成了

a mix of sharp jagged particles and lots of dust.

混合了尖銳的鋸齒狀顆粒和大量的灰塵。

And without wind or rain to weather that down,

而且沒有風或雨的影響。

the surface stays jagged and dusty forever.

表面永遠保持著鋸齒狀和塵土飛揚。

Meteorites also melt the soil on impact

隕石在撞擊時也會融化土壤

and create little shards of glassy material

並創造出玻璃狀的小碎片

called Agglutinate.

稱為凝集物。

And that soil is constantly being baked

而這些土壤不斷被烘烤

by solar wind causing chemical changes

由太陽風引起的化學變化

in the minerals themselves.

在礦物本身。

It's an utterly alien material.

這是一種完全陌生的材料。

And during the Apollo missions, it got everywhere.

而在阿波羅任務期間，它無處不在。

It messed with instrument readings, tore up spacesuits,

它擾亂了儀器的讀數，撕毀了宇航服。

clogged equipment, irritated astronauts eyes

堵塞設備，刺激太空人的眼睛

and the lungs.

和肺部。

Real bad news.

真正的壞消息。

NASA's solution was to make fake lunar soil here

NASA的解決方案是在這裡製造假月球土壤

on Earth to better prep their hardware

在地球上更好地準備他們的硬件

before putting it to work on the moon.

在將其用於月球工作之前。

Now they've made and tested lots

現在他們已經制作並測試了很多

of simulants over the years, and more recently

多年來的模擬物，以及最近的

have pulled in private businesses to help

拉攏私營企業來幫助

with large scale production.

與大規模的生產。

That was a smart move

這是一個明智之舉

because these days we're in a bit of a Moon boom.

因為這些天我們正處於月球的繁榮期。

- [Voiceover] NASA says it's opening a brand new chapter

- [畫外音]美國宇航局說它正在開啟一個全新的篇章

in lunar exploration

在月球探索中

- [Voiceover 2] Beijing's goal to put its own

- [畫外音2] 北京的目標是把自己的

astronauts on the moon by 2030.

到2030年，太空人將登上月球。

- Four stage engine start.

- 四級發動機啟動。

- [Matt] With Artemis and many other missions

- [馬特]與阿特米斯和許多其他任務

on the horizon. The simulant business is brisk.

在地平線上。模擬劑的生意很紅火。

- [Anna] Our community does challenge us

- [安娜]我們的社區確實在挑戰我們

and they push us very hard

而且他們把我們逼得很緊

cause they're like, okay, you know,

因為他們喜歡，好吧，你知道。

I need three kilograms. And we're like, here you go.

我需要三公斤。然後我們就說，給你。

And they're like, okay, can you give us like 50?

他們就說，好吧，你能給我們50塊錢嗎？

And we're like, alright, gimme a little bit of time.

我們想，好吧，給我一點時間。

We got this.

我們得到了這個。

And then they're like, alright,

然後他們就會說，好吧。

so now gimme 50 tons.

所以現在給我50噸。

- [Matt] Exolith Lab is one of NASA's primary suppliers

- [Matt] Exolith Lab是NASA的主要供應商之一。

of lunar simulants, and they walked us

的月球模擬物，他們帶我們參觀了

through their process for making this stuff from scratch.

通過他們從頭開始製作這些東西的過程。

It starts with a question.

它以一個問題開始。

"Where on the moon do you wanna simulate?"

"你想在月球的什麼地方進行模擬？"

- [Anna] So when you look at the Moon

- [安娜]是以，當你看向月球時

the lighter regions is what we call the Highlands

較輕的地區就是我們所說的高地。

and then the Mare regions are the darker spots.

然後馬雷地區是暗色的斑點。

So the mineralology there is pretty different.

所以那裡的礦物學是相當不同的。

- So let's consider this Highland sample,

- 是以，讓我們考慮一下這個高地的樣本。

based on studies of real lunar samples,

基於對真實月球樣本的研究。

the recipe from Exolith is a bunch of anorthosite

來自Exolith的配方是一堆正長巖

a little basalt, and a smidge of ilminite,

一點玄武岩，和一點鈦礦。

pyroxene and olivine.

輝石和橄欖石。

First, the team sources the raw materials

首先，團隊採購原材料

from mines and other suppliers.

來自礦場和其他供應商。

Some of it arrives pre-crushed, other samples not so much.

有些樣品是預先壓制好的，其他樣品則不太一樣。

- [Anna] It's very much like a mining operation.

- [安娜]它非常像一個採礦作業。

Some of our materials come in big boulders.

我們的一些材料都是大石塊。

So what we do is we throw them in one crusher

是以，我們所做的是把它們扔進一個破碎機裡。

then we throw them in another huge crusher.

然後我們把它們扔進另一個巨大的破碎機。

We also have to sieve it out.

我們還得把它篩出來。

A lot of the processing that we do

我們所做的很多處理都是

on our materials through the crushing

在我們的材料上通過碾壓

also helps 'em achieve that desired shape,

還能幫助他們達到理想的形狀。

that desired jaggedness that we're looking for.

我們正在尋找的那種理想的鋸齒狀的東西。

- [Matt] Now, for more of bespoke orders

- 現在，為了更多的定製訂單

they can even mix in some simulated aggultinate.

他們甚至可以混入一些模擬攻擊性的東西。

That's the strange glassy material.

這就是那種奇怪的玻璃狀材料。

Finally, all the ingredients get mixed together

最後，將所有成分混合在一起

in the proper ratio.

按照適當的比例。

- It's kind of like baking.

- 這有點像烘烤。

What you do is you follow a recipe, you weigh

你要做的就是按照配方，稱出

out the different materials, and then we let it mix

不同的材料，然後我們讓它混合。

for a while until it's nice and homogeneous.

攪拌一段時間，直到它變得漂亮和均勻。

- Just like that.

- 就像這樣。

You've got moon dirt.

你有月球的汙垢。

So what are folks actually doing with the simulants?

那麼，人們究竟在用這些模擬物做什麼？

Well, all kinds of things.

嗯，各種各樣的事情。

They're figuring out how to dig into it, navigate rovers

他們正在摸索如何挖掘它，為漫遊車導航

through it, grow plants in it, extract oxygen from it.

通過它，在裡面種植植物，從裡面提取氧氣。

All the things we need to do to spend more time on the Moon.

為了在月球上花費更多時間，我們需要做的所有事情。

Now, no one stimulant is a perfect stand-in for

現在，沒有一種興奮劑可以完美地替代

all of those experiments.

所有的這些實驗。

It's just too hard to make a replica that's perfect

要製作一個完美的複製品實在太難了。

in every way.

在任何方面都是如此。

But different stimulants can get pretty close

但不同的刺激物可以相當接近

on individual features like the size

在個別特徵上，如尺寸

and shape of particles or of the chemical composition.

顆粒和形狀或化學成分。

So researchers can order the right stimulants

是以，研究人員可以訂購正確的刺激物

for the right test.

為正確的測試。

- Rolling.

- 滾動。

- This is gonna shake a lot.

- 這將會產生很大的震動。

- [Matt] Learning about all that work inspired us to

- [Matt]瞭解到所有這些工作，激發了我們的靈感。

do something with our samples.

用我們的樣品做一些事情。

So we thought we'd look at a problem that could really

是以，我們認為我們應該研究一個問題，這個問題真的可以

jeopardize our long-term plans on the moon.

危害到我們在月球上的長期計劃。

It starts when you point a rocket engine

當你對準火箭發動機時，它就開始了

and all that dusty, jagged regolith.

和所有那些塵土飛揚、參差不齊的石膏。

- That was insane.

- 這真是瘋了。

- Nice.

- 不錯。

(laughing)

(笑)

- When you try to land a rocket on the moon

- 當你試圖讓火箭降落在月球上時

the rocket exhaust is coming

火箭尾氣來了

out at thousands of meters per second.

以每秒數千米的速度出去。

- [Matt] Phil Medsker and his colleagues have spent

- [Matt] Phil Medsker和他的同事們已經花了

20 odd years studying what happens next

20多年來一直在研究接下來會發生什麼

which looks roughly like this.

這看起來大致是這樣的。

When rocket exhaust hits the moon, it sends

當火箭廢氣擊中月球時，會發出

up a huge plume of high speed regolith

形成巨大的高速岩漿流

like it would on Earth if you were to

就像在地球上一樣，如果你要

land a rocket somewhere without a launchpad.

在沒有發射臺的地方降落火箭。

But with low gravity

但在低重力的情況下

and no real atmosphere, that soil travels.

而沒有真正的大氣，那土壤旅行。

- [Phillip] There is no distance

- [菲利普]沒有距離

on the Moon that is far enough away to be safe

在月球上有足夠遠的距離，以確保安全

from some particles hitting at that distance.

從一些粒子在這個距離上打出的。

- [Matt] Meaning smaller particles

- [Matt] 意思是更小的顆粒

from a single landing can shoot across the entire moon

一次登陸就能射穿整個月球

- And therefore anything that's exposed

- 是以，任何暴露出來的東西

to that spray is gonna be hit

對那個噴霧會被擊中

by particles going thousands of meters per second.

被每秒數千米的粒子擊中。

- [Matt] We actually even have an example of

- [Matt]實際上我們甚至有一個例子

this in November of 1969, Apollo 12 touched down near

在1969年11月，阿波羅12號飛船在美國紐約市附近著陸。

Surveyor 3, which is an uncrewed NASA craft that

勘測者3號，它是美國國家航空航天局的一個無人駕駛的飛船，它

landed a couple years before.

幾年前登陸的。

- They landed 160 meters away, because

- 他們在160米外降落，因為

at the time they thought that was far enough away

當時他們認為那是足夠遠的距離

so that the rocket exhaust wouldn't damage the Surveyor.

這樣，火箭的廢氣就不會損壞測量儀。

Turns out that was, you know, a vast

結果是，你知道，這是一個巨大的

vast under prediction of how far the ejector goes.

對彈射器走多遠的預測嚴重不足。

So when they got the pieces back from Surveyor 3 back

是以，當他們從勘測者3號那裡拿回碎片的時候

to Earth, they found out they were completely sandblasted.

到了地球，他們發現自己被完全噴沙了。

The coatings were worn off.

塗層被磨掉了。

The paint was completely penetrated

塗料被完全滲透

and filled with lunar dust particles.

並充滿了月球塵埃顆粒。

It completely eroded the entire surface of the Surveyor.

它完全侵蝕了測量儀的整個表面。

- [Matt] As the lunar economy heats up

- [馬特]隨著月球經濟的升溫

and the moon gets more crowded,

和月亮變得更加擁擠。

these tiny little particles could cause bigger

這些微小的顆粒可能導致更大的

and bigger problems.

和更大的問題。

Damage from regolith plumes could cost a lot of money,

雷石羽流造成的損害可能要花費很多錢。

put future missions at risk,

將未來的任務置於危險之中。

even cause geopolitical trouble.

甚至造成地緣政治麻煩。

- Because if one country lands on the moon

- 因為如果一個國家在月球上登陸

and then sandblasts and damages the

然後進行噴砂處理並損壞

hardware of another country

其他國家的硬件

then technically you're violating the Outer Space Treaty

那麼在技術上你就違反了《外層空間條約》。

because you're not allowed to do any harm

因為你不允許做任何的傷害

to other countries assets in space.

對其他國家的空間資產。

There's also a concern

也有一種擔憂

about countries claiming an excessively large blast zone

關於聲稱爆炸區過大的國家

which could be a way to get around the Outer Space Treaty

這可能是繞過《外空條約》的一種方式

and claim defacto territory on the Moon.

並聲稱在月球上有事實上的領土。

- [Matt] Fortunately, there are lots of solutions

- [Matt] 幸運的是，有很多解決方案

on the table.

在桌子上。

You could standardize landing zones

你可以將著陸區標準化

for everybody, using the Moon's

為每個人，利用月球的

hills and valleys as shields.

丘陵和山谷作為盾牌。

Even building launch pads out of regolith.

甚至用雷石建造發射臺。

And simulant is powering a lot of that R and D.

仿真劑正在為大量的研發工作提供動力。

NASA's busy testing regolith based construction materials

美國宇航局正忙於測試基於雷石的建築材料

and doing much more thoughtful versions

並做了更多的思考版本

of our little experiment.

我們的小實驗的。

There's still a lot more work to be done

仍有許多工作要做

but Phil says there's also been a lot more recognition

但菲爾說，也有很多人承認

of the issue than there used to be, which feels like a win.

的問題比過去更多，這感覺是一種勝利。

- If there was anything that I could consider to

- 如果有什麼我可以考慮的，以

be my life's work, I think that would be it.

是我一生的工作，我想那將是它。

But yeah, I feel really good

但是，是的，我感覺非常好

about where we are and where it's been so far.

關於我們所處的位置和迄今為止的情況。

- Of course, humanity has its sight set

- 當然，人類有自己的視線設置

farther than the Moon and we have regolith for that too.

比月球更遠，我們也有雷石。

I mean, here's some Mars regolith full

我的意思是，這裡有一些火星上的雷石，充滿了

of different minerals and properties.

不同的礦物和性質。

The point is, the need for this stuff isn't going anywhere

關鍵是，對這些東西的需求不會消失。

and there's a virtuous cycle to it too.

而且也有一個良性循環。

I mean, the more stimulant that's available

我的意思是，可用的刺激物越多

the more gets used here on Earth

越是在地球上被使用

and maybe more missions happen out there

也許有更多的任務發生在那裡

- [Anna] The more that people have access to doing things

- [安娜]人們越是有機會做事情

like this kind of research with our stuff, the more

像這樣的研究我們的東西，越是

it's gonna perpetuate that curiosity.

它將使這種好奇心持續下去。

So I do feel like being a part of it as it's happening

所以我確實覺得在它發生的時候是它的一部分。

- [Voiceover] And lift off of Artemis 1.

- [畫外音]和阿特米斯1號的升空。

- [Anna] and then also helping it become more available

- [安娜]，然後也幫助它變得更容易獲得

to everyone is gonna kind of make that happen even

對每個人來說，這將使這種情況發生，甚至是

more rapidly.

更迅速。

- So imagine being

- 是以，想象一下被

on a planet covered in this stuff.

在一個被這種東西覆蓋的星球上。

Sweeping forever.

永遠掃蕩。

- Don't sweep up the Lunar Lander. Lunar Rover. (laughing)

- 不要掃蕩月球著陸器。月球車。(笑)