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Science and Technology
科技版块
The war in Ukraine
乌克兰战争
Loitering with intent
有意图的游荡
Baguette-sized flying bombs are about to enter service in Ukraine
法棍面包大小的飞行炸弹即将在乌克兰投入使用
Javelin anti-tank missiles supplied to Ukraine by America are imposing a heavy toll on Russian forces.
美国向乌克兰提供的标枪反坦克导弹给俄罗斯军队造成了巨大损失。
Now, the Americans are sending a batch of 100 somewhat different portable weapons—so-called loitering munitions.
现在，美国正在往乌克兰运送100件不同的便携式武器，即所谓的游荡弹药。
The difference is that, with a Javelin, you have to choose the target before you launch the missile.
不同的是，使用标枪，你必须在发射导弹之前选择目标。
With a loitering munition, you don’t.
带着游荡的弹药，你就不需要了。
Rather, you can fly it to a target-rich environment and pick out the richest of the lot to attack.
确切地说，你可以让它飞到目标众多的环境中，然后挑最多的目标位置进行攻击。
The Javelin, a modern successor to the Bazooka, weighs 20kg with its launcher and can hit something up to 4km away.
标枪是火箭炮的现代继承者，其发射器重达20公斤，可以击中4公里外的目标。
Switchblade, as the loitering munition in question is known, is subtler.
Switchblade，这种被称为“游荡武器”的武器则更加隐蔽。
The version most likely to be delivered (though no one will confirm this) weighs but 2.5kg, yet has a range of 10km.
送给乌克兰的装备型号极有可能（虽然没有人会证实这一点）只有2.5公斤重，但射程为10公里。
Though it cannot penetrate tank armour, its grenade-sized warhead is effective against unarmoured vehicles and groups of troops.
虽然它不能穿透坦克装甲，但它的手榴弹大小的弹头对非装甲车和部队群攻击非常有效。
That, as Nick Reynolds, an analyst at rusi, a British defence think-tank, observes, means they can be used in particular against artillery batteries, whether of guns or rocket launchers—which are “softer” targets than tanks.
正如英国国防智库RUSI的分析师尼克·雷诺兹所观察到的那样，这意味着它们可以专门用来对付炮兵，无论是火炮还是火箭发射器--它们都是比坦克“更容易攻击”的目标。
This may be increasingly important as Ukraine’s cities are subjected to heavy artillery bombardment.
随着乌克兰城市遭到猛烈炮击，这一点可能变得越来越重要。
Like Javelin, Switchblade is launched from a tube.
和标枪一样，“Switchblade”也是从管子里发射的。
But rather than being a sleek rocket capable of travelling supersonically, it is a miniature aircraft—a drone—with wings that flip out after launch (hence its name) and an electric propeller which drives it forward at a leisurely 100kph for a flight that can last up to 15 minutes.
但它不是一架能够超音速飞行的光滑火箭，而是一架微型飞机--一架无人机--发射后机翼可翻转（因此得名），还有一个电动螺旋桨，驱动它以每小时100公里的速度飞行，飞行时间最长可达15分钟。
It is controlled using a tablet that displays videos from an optical camera and an infrared thermal-imager which are on board the craft.
它是通过平板电脑控制的，平板电脑可以显示飞行器上的光学相机和红外热成像仪拍摄的视频。
When the operator spots a target, he or she locks onto it and the drone accelerates towards it at up to 160kph, chasing it automatically if it takes evasive action.
当操作员发现目标时，他或她会锁定目标，无人机会以高达160公里的时速向目标加速，如果目标躲避行动，就会自动追赶。
Robert Bunker, director of research and analysis at c/o Futures, a security consultancy in California, says that the precision thus offered allows Switchblade to focus on high-value targets: not just artillery, but the headquarters and command vehicles of artillery units.
加州安全咨询公司c/o Futures的研究和分析主管罗伯特·邦克表示，这样提供的精确度使“Switchblade”能够专注于高价值目标：不仅是大炮，还有炮兵部队的总部和指挥车辆。
The close-up view provided by camera and thermal-imager means that targets can be picked with care.
相机和热成像仪提供的特写镜头意味着可以小心地挑选目标。
Moreover, if the operator realises a mistake has been made as the drone closes in, the attack can be called off and the weapon flown back into the sky until another target has been identified.
此外，如果操作员在无人机接近目标时意识到发生了错误，攻击可以取消，武器可以飞回天空，直到确定另一个目标。
That gives Switchblade an advantage over a different sort of loiterer, armed drones.
这使得“Switchblade”相对于另一种游荡的武装无人机具有优势。
