一家中国小型新兴企业正在研发一款极超音速太空飞船，能够载人从一个国家到另外一个国家通过亚轨道飞行。
A Chinese start-up is developing a hypersonic spaceplane that will ferry passengers from one country to another with suborbital flights.
这个雄伟的项目叫做太空运输，目前北京凌空天行科技有限责任公司正在开发这个项目。
The ambitious project is called Space Transportation and is being developed by Beijing Lingkong Tianxing Technology.
如果成功的话，这将改变交通旅行行业。比如，此项技术只需在一小时之内，将乘客从北京送达迪拜，而不是现在常规的9个小时。【在其官网上显示，从上海到迪拜只需60分钟，里程7000公里，平均每秒钟就可飞行1.94公里。】
It will transform the travel industry if successful. For example, it would allow passengers from Beijing to reach Dubai in an hour, instead of the nine hours it takes on a regular aircraft.
虽然这不是什么最新的想法-很多公司也在尝试这项任务-但是这家新兴企业却做出了客观的进度计划，计划在2023年进行地面测试。
Although the idea is not new – there are a few other companies attempting to achieve the task – this start-up is making notable progress, with ground tests expected to take place in 2023.
产品型谱示意图
2019年至2022年通过大规模技术验证平台飞行进行各类关键技术验证；
2023年实现亚轨道太空旅游样机的首飞，2025年进行首次亚轨道太空旅游飞行器载人试飞；
2028年实现全球高超音速飞行器首飞，2030年完成全尺寸全球高超音速飞行器飞行。
去年，公司通过上海市产业投资基金，丝路金桥和天奇创投为此项目成功募集了6200美元的资金。
Last year, the company managed to secure $62 million in funding for its projects through a Shanghai-level industrial investment fund, the Silk Road Golden Bridge and Tianqi Venture Capital.
这家新兴企业的投资合伙人经纬中国的左凌烨说道：“凌空天行的产品是高速飞行器。想象一下，不到两个小时，可以从东半球飞到了西半球。这可能是下一代的航空飞行器，将对全球航空运输和物流行业产生巨大的影响。”
“The product of Lingkong Tianxing is a high-speed aircraft. Imagine, in less than two hours, we can fly from the eastern hemisphere to the western hemisphere,” said Zuo Lingye, partner at Jingwei China, one of the investment partners of the start-up.
“This may be the next generation of aircraft that will have a major impact on global passenger transport and logistics.”
未来的旅行
Futuristic travel
该公司网站的动画显示乘客在北京太空港登录一架太空飞机。
An animation on the company’s website shows passengers boarding a spaceplane in Beijing spaceport.
当这个飞机飞到足够的高度时，就会从火箭驱动的双翼上脱落 - 类似于Virgin Galactic使用的近轨道飞船技术。
The vehicle detaches from a rocket-powered wing once it is high enough – similar to the technique Virgin Galactic uses for its suborbital flights.
除此之外，该飞船将垂直发射，能够达到每小时10000公里的速度，因为需要在太空边缘穿行7000公里，只需60分钟就飞抵中东。
Except, this one takes off vertically and can go up to speeds of 10,000 kilometres per hour, as it travels 7,000 kilometres across the edge of space and over to the Middle East in only 60 minutes.
该飞船最后在迪拜太空港垂直着陆，落地时折叠的支腿会打开。乘客可以通过手机APP预定太空飞行器的机票并于登机。
It lands vertically on a spaceport in Dubai, using legs that unfold as it touches down.
Passengers would be able to book their spaceflight tickets though an app and use it as a boarding pass.
火箭推动的翼能够再利用，并在释放携带的太空飞行器后能够返回起飞点。
The rocket-powered wing is reusable and would return to the point of lift-off after the spaceplane detaches from it.
时间计划
Timeline
该公司计划在2023年开展地面试验，2024年实现无人飞行试验。到2025年，实现载人飞行试验。
The company is planning to carry out ground tests in 2023 and to stage an un-crewed flight test in 2024. By 2025, a crewed flight test would take place.
预计到2030年，实现第一架商业航班的运营。【半岛华人：好“宏伟”的计划，希望能够按计划实现。】
It is hoped that the first commercial flight would take place by 2030.
亚轨道旅行进展
Progress in suborbital travel
到目前为止，只有Virgin Galactic(维珍银河Virgin Galactic是一家理查德·布兰森爵士维珍集团拥有的公司，计划提供亚轨道的飞行)和蓝色起源（蓝色起源(Blue Origin)是亚马逊CEO杰夫·贝索斯(Jeff Bezos)旗下的一家商业太空公司，2000年成立，已经拥有了近 600 名员工。）成功开展了亚轨道商业航班。太空探索技术公司（SpaceX）CEO兼CTO、特斯拉公司CEO埃隆马斯克成功将旅客送入了轨道并送到了国际空间站。
So far, only Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin have successfully carried out crewed suborbital commercial flights. Elon Musk’s SpaceX has sent tourists to orbit and to the International Space Station.
维珍银河的SpaceShipTwo飞船去年夏天首飞搭载公司的老板理查德布兰森飞抵太空边缘。
Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo flew towards the edge of space last summer, with company owner Richard Branson on board the first flight.
这两艘飞船都有几分钟的失重状态，之后便飞回降落在起飞地点左近。
Experiences on both of the spaceships involves a few minutes of weightlessness before they land back near to where they lifted-off from.
蓝色起源的新牧羊人飞行器垂直起飞，并且比Spaceshiptwo飞的高，超过了地球大气和太空的边界卡门线。
Blue Origin's New Shepard flight takes off vertically and goes higher than SpaceShipTwo, crossing the Karman Line, the boundary between Earth's atmosphere and the beginning of space.
几年前，维珍银河说过他们将能够用使用在世界上各个不同地点建造的太空港把旅客从一个国家运到另外一个国家。
A few years ago, Virgin Galactic had said that it would be able to ferry passengers from one country to another, using spaceports that would be built in different parts of the world.
该公司发射飞船使用了位于新墨西哥州的美国太空港发射站，去年夏天的那一次是第一次并且唯一的一次亚轨道飞行，后因为偏离轨道而被美国当局暂停。
The company uses its Spaceport America launch pad in New Mexico for its current launches, although authorities had grounded their flights after the first and only suborbital flight in the summer went off-path.
预计本年年底之前将会重新开放，并且重新对公众售票。
It is expected that operations would resume by the end of this year, with ticket sales now re-opened to the public.
阿联酋阿布扎比机场和维珍银河在2019年签署了协议，在阿莱茵机场建造太空港，之后就没有什么消息。
An agreement between Abu Dhabi Airports and Virgin Galactic was signed in 2019 to build a spaceport in Al Ain airport, however, no updates have been provided since.
去年，阿联酋经济部和蓝色起源达成一致，共同寻求开发阿联酋太空旅游市场的途径，其中包括太空港。
Last year, the UAE Ministry of Economy and Blue Origin agreed to explore ways to develop a space tourism market in the Emirates, including a spaceport.