ISS astronauts take out the space trash | Space photo of the day for March 11, 2026

国际空间站宇航员清除太空垃圾|2026年3月11日每日太空照片

A new extra-large spacecraft loaded with garbage prepares to meet its fiery demise in Earth's atmosphere in this shot from the International Space Station.

在这张来自国际空间站的照片中，一艘满载垃圾的新型超大型宇宙飞船正准备在地球大气层中迎接它的炽热灭亡。

In this screenshot from one of the live cameras aboard the International Space Station (ISS), the new Northrop Grumman Cygnus XL freighter is being jettisoned away from the station.

在这张来自国际空间站（ISS）上的一个实时摄像机的截图中，新的诺斯罗普·格鲁曼公司的天鹅座XL货机正在被抛弃离开空间站。

Cygnus XL arrived at the ISS on Sept. 18, 2025, carrying around 11,000 pounds (4,990 kilograms) of supplies to the astronauts aboard the station, making it the largest-ever cargo spacecraft to arrive at the orbital laboratory.

天鹅座XL于2025 9月18日抵达国际空间站，为空间站上的宇航员运送了约11,000镑 (4,990公斤) 的物资，使其成为有史以来最大的货运飞船。

After docking at the station for seven months, Cygnus XL was released from its berth on the Earth-facing port of the ISS's Unity module on Thursday (March 12) while over the south Atlantic Ocean. It will now deorbit into Earth's atmosphere and burn up, carrying thousands of pounds of garbage produced on the ISS, according to NASA.

在与空间站对接七个月后，天鹅座XL货运飞船于周四（3月12日）在南大西洋上空从国际空间站团结号节点舱朝地端的对接口脱离。据美国宇航局称，它现在将脱离轨道进入地球大气层并燃烧，携带国际空间站上产生的数千磅垃圾。

Images like this one are a reminder of the mind-boggling technological achievement that is the International Space Station.

像这样的图像提醒人们国际空间站令人难以置信的技术成就。

The ISS measures around 356 feet (109 meters) end-to-end and weighs close 925,000 pounds (420 metric tons) and orbits Earth at a speed of 17,500 mph (28,000 km/h), or about 4.8 miles per second (7.7 km/s) — all while 260 miles (420 km) above the surface of Earth.

国际空间站端到端测量356英尺 (109米)，重近925,000镑 (420公吨)，以17,500英里/小时 (28,000千米/小时) 的速度绕地球运行，或大约每秒4.8英里 (7.7千米/s) -所有这些都在地球表面以上260英里 (420千米) 处。

Even at such an altitude and orbital velocity, cargo spacecraft like Cygnus XL  —  not to mention crewed spacecraft like SpaceX's Crew Dragon  —  routinely launch from the surface and dock with the orbital laboratory.

即使在这样的高度和轨道速度下，像天鹅座XL  -  这样的货运飞船，更不用说像SpaceX的Crew Dragon  -  这样的载人飞船，通常从地面发射并与轨道实验室对接。

The ISS is currently scheduled to be deorbited into a spacecraft graveyard in the Pacific Ocean around 2030, although some U.S. lawmakers would like to see its operations extended to 2032 while commercial replacements are still being developed.

国际空间站目前计划于2030年左右被引导脱离轨道，坠入太平洋上的航天器坟场。不过，一些美国国会议员希望将其运行期限延长至2032年，以便在商业替代设施尚未建成之前继续开展相关活动。