A Stationary Satellite, part 1
地球同步卫星(一)
Some of the best devices in science have been anticipated by science fiction writers years before they existed.
一些最先进的科学设备在被发明前就在科幻小说中被预料到了。
Occasionally a writer comes up with an idea that can be put into practice within their lifetime!
偶然的机会下，作家脑海中涌现出一个设想，就很可能会在他们有生之年内被实施。
Such is the case with the geostationary satellite, first imagined by Arthur C. Clarke.
地球同步卫星就属于这种情况。它是由Arthur C. Clarke首次构想出的。
Clarke, famous for writing “2001: A Space Odyssey,” also wrote a scientific article titled "Extra-Terrestrial Relays" in 1945.
以作品《2001：A Space Odyssey》而著称的Clarke，在1945年写下了一部科学论文《Extra-Terrestrial Relays》。
In it, he proposed a satellite that would remain motionless in the air, rather than passing by overhead.
在这部论文里，他提出了一款卫星模型：可以在太空中保持静止不动而不是一味从高空在运行。
Such a "fixed" satellite would be useful for relaying television and radio signals, helping ships navigate, and a host of other things.
而这样一款同步卫星将会被应用于传送电视和无线电讯号、护送船只航行以及一系列其他事务中。
But how to do it? After all, heavy machinery can't just float.
但是要怎样做到呢？毕竟，笨重的机械并不能漂浮在太空中。
Most satellites handle this problem by being blasted into orbit around the planet.
我们通过将大多数卫星送至行星运行的轨道，从而解决了这一问题。
But in order to be in orbit, you have to be constantly moving. Can you think of a way around this?
但是，卫星不得不时时刻刻地运行着。你能想出一个解决方法吗？
How about putting a satellite into orbit both in the same direction as the planet rotates and at the same speed!
在卫星进入行星运行轨道时，使其保持与行星运行同样的方向与速度。
The result is a satellite that is, in fact, orbiting the planet.
结果显示卫星实际上是环绕着行星轨道运行的，
But the ground underneath it turns at the same rate as the satellite orbits, so the satellite is always above the same spot of ground.
但是卫星底下的领域却保持着与卫星轨道同样的速度。因此这个卫星会一直固定在地面上空某点处。
From our perspective on the earth, a geostationary satellite seems fixed in one spot.
从地面上看，地球同步卫星似乎与地面保持相对静止了。