國際空間站迎來首位AI宇航員

Last Friday Morning, SpaceX launched its 15th cargo mission to the International Space Station for NASA, sending up nearly 6,000 pounds of supplies on top of its Falcon 9 rocket.

當地時間上週五上午，SpaceX第15次爲美國宇航局執行向國際空間站運送補給的任務，利用“獵鷹9號”火箭爲國際空間站送去了近6000磅物資。

On board the vehicle are shipments of food and water for the six astronauts living on the ISS, as well as new science experiments and technologies to be tested out in microgravity.

除了爲生活在國際空間站的6名航天員送去的食物和水以外，這次升空的還有一些需要在微重力環境下測試的新的科學實驗和技術。

And within that haul includes the first ever AI robot "crew member" to live on the station.

其中包括首個將在國際空間站上生活的人工智能機器人“航天員”。

The robot's name is CIMON -- for Crew Interactive Mobile Companion -- and it looks a bit like a volleyball with a computer screen on one side.

這款機器人名爲“CIMON”（航天員交互式移動伴侶），看起來有點像一個側面裝有計算機顯示屏的排球。

The screen displays a simplified cartoon face that the bot will use to interact with the humans on the ISS.

顯示屏上是一張簡化了的動漫臉，機器人將利用它與國際空間站上的航天員交流。

And to maneuver around, CIMON is equipped with 14 internal fans that propel the white ball, by sucking in the station's air and expelling it to move in whatever direction it needs.

爲了實現自由走動，CIMON內部裝了14個風扇，通過吸入空間站的空氣然後再排出來，推動白球前進，從而到達它需要去的方向。

Airbus developed CIMON for Germany's national space agency, and the goal is to see whether intelligent bots can cooperate with astronauts to simplify work life in space.

CIMON是由空客公司爲德國航天局開發的，目的是瞭解智能機器人能否與航天員合作，從而給他們在太空的工作和生活帶來便利。