【12月21日】看軍聞學英語
■林國賓
原文：
The Airbus-built Sentinel-6B satellite has successfully launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. This is the second of two identical satellites built to continue collecting essential sea-surface height data until at least 2030. The first satellite, Sentinel-6A, was launched in November 2020.
For its first year, Sentinel-6B will join Sentinel-6A in orbit, allowing both instruments to collaborate, thus providing the most accurate data on global sea levels.
"The launch of this satellite will play a crucial role in advancing ongoing research while building upon the significant progress already achieved. Accurate sea-level measurements are invaluable data to help protect coastal communities and guide global climate action", said Alain Fauré, Head of Space Systems at Airbus.
Sentinel-6B will carry out high-precision ocean surface topography measurements. By sending radar pulses to the ocean surface and recording how long they take to return, it enables measurements with an accuracy of a few centimetres. In addition to measuring global sea level rise and ocean circulation, the satellite will record vertical profiles of atmospheric temperature and humidity.
With sea levels rising at an accelerated rate, Sentinel-6B will ensure the continuation of long-term data records essential for informing climate adaptation and mitigation strategies to prepare for future impacts.
This is one of more than twenty climate-monitoring initiatives for which Airbus has served as prime contractor. Collectively, these satellites deliver critical insights into the reality of our changing planet.
中譯：
由空中巴士建造的哨兵6B衛星，順利自加州范登堡太空軍基地發射升空。這是2枚同型衛星中的第2枚，任務是持續收集重要海平面高度資料至少到2030 年。首枚衛星哨兵6A已於2020年11月發射。
首年運作期間，哨兵6B將與哨兵6A一同在軌道運行，兩套儀器將協同工作，以提供最精準的全球海平面數據。
空巴太空系統部門主管弗爾表示：「這枚衛星的發射將在推動現有研究上扮演關鍵角色，並進一步深化已取得的重大成果。準確的海平面量測資料，對保護沿海社區、引導全球氣候行動至關重要。」
哨兵6B將執行高精準度的海表面測高任務。透過向海面發射雷達脈衝並記錄返回時間，它能以數公分的精準度進行測量。除了測量全球海平面上升與海洋環流，衛星還將記錄大氣溫度與濕度的垂直剖面數據。
隨著海平面加速上升，哨兵6B將確保長期資料的延續性，以因應未來衝擊所需的氣候調適與減緩策略提供必要的資訊。
這是空巴主導的20多項氣候監測任務之一。整體而言，這些衛星持續為我們提供關於地球變遷的重要洞察。
-關鍵軍語-
※satellite：衛星
※sea-surface：海平面