航天局SSPICY任务航天器失联判定不可恢复：故障保护系统误关无线电
美国国家航空航天局（NASA）11月3日发布消息：一颗由 NASA 资助、10月发射的小卫星在调试阶段与地面失去联系，其所有者兼运营方 Starfish Space 已无法恢复双向通信。NASA 与 Starfish Space 共同认定，这颗航天器已不可恢复。
这项任务名为「小航天器推进与巡检能力」（Small Spacecraft Propulsion and Inspection Capability，简称 SSPICY），10月1日发射升空。Starfish Space 的 Otter 航天器升空后曾与地面建立初步通信，但在开机调试（commissioning）阶段失联，此后一直未能恢复双向通信。
据 NASA 通报，双方排查后确认，问题出在航天器的故障保护系统：这套负责探测并响应异常的机载软件，错误地让航天器的无线电保持关闭状态，通信因此无法恢复。
SSPICY 原是一项技术演示任务：Otter 航天器要在近地轨道靠近并巡检已失效的美国空间物体，演示先进推进、制导导航与控制技术以及一支可动机械臂。这是 Otter 航天器的首次发射部署，也是其导航与推进技术首次集成到同一套航天器系统中。NASA 对该任务的支持由位于加州 Silicon Valley 的 NASA Ames Research Center 的小航天器与分布式系统项目管理。
NASA 总部先进研究与技术部主任 Greg Stover 表示：「像 Starfish 这样的商业能力，对美国太空经济的竞争力和美国在近地轨道的强大领导地位至关重要。技术演示让我们能快速测试新系统、从其表现中学习并不断迭代，在每一次任务中推进可能性的边界。NASA 将继续与行业伙伴密切合作，迎接大胆挑战。」
NASA 表示，SSPICY 的目标是加速在轨服务、组装与制造领域的行业技术，并为 NASA 提供轨道碎片物体的特征数据；Starfish Space 在后续 Otter 任务中仍打算继续为 NASA 收集这些技术的性能信息与轨道碎片巡检数据。
NASA-Funded SSPICY Spacecraft Declared Unrecoverable After Communications Loss
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced on November 3 that a NASA-funded small satellite launched in October has lost contact with its owner and operator, Starfish Space, during commissioning, and that NASA and Starfish have concluded the spacecraft is not recoverable.
The mission, the Small Spacecraft Propulsion and Inspection Capability (SSPICY), launched on October 1. Starfish Space established initial communications with its Otter spacecraft, but lost contact during commissioning, the initial phase after launch to turn on systems and calibrate instruments, and has not been able to reestablish two-way communication.
According to NASA, troubleshooting and analysis by both NASA and Starfish revealed an issue with the spacecraft's fault protection system, the onboard software for detecting and responding to problems, which is keeping the spacecraft's radio erroneously turned off.
The technology demonstration was designed to navigate toward and inspect inoperable space objects of U.S. origin in low Earth orbit, while demonstrating advanced propulsion, guidance, navigation, and control technologies, as well as an innovative articulating robotic boom. The SSPICY mission was the first launch and deployment of Starfish's Otter spacecraft and the first integration of the company's navigation and propulsion technologies into a single spacecraft system. NASA's support of the mission is managed by the Small Spacecraft and Distributed Systems program at NASA's Ames Research Center in California's Silicon Valley.
"Commercial capabilities like Starfish's are critical for a competitive U.S. space economy and strong American leadership in low Earth orbit," said Greg Stover, director of the Advanced Research and Technology Division at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "Technology demonstrations allow us to quickly test new systems, learn from their performance, and iterate so that we are pushing the boundaries of what's possible with every mission. NASA will continue taking on bold challenges in close collaboration with our industry partners."
NASA said the objective of SSPICY is to accelerate industry technologies for in-space servicing, assembly, and manufacturing while providing NASA valuable data on the characteristics of orbital debris objects, and that Starfish intends to continue gathering that information for NASA during its future missions with the Otter spacecraft.
来源：美国国家航空航天局
发布：GSM·美国（发布链接）
图片来源：图：美国国家航空航天局（NASA）总部 Mary W. Jackson 大楼（Washington，GSM 四级固定图库；CC BY 2.0，经 Wikimedia Commons）。 / Photo: Mary W. Jackson Building, NASA Headquarters in Washington (GSM fixed asset library; CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons).
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