What is the oldest American object ever launched into space?
What is the oldest American object ever launched into space?
历史上被送入太空的最古老的美国物品是什么？
Did you know that the space shuttle once launched the Statue of Liberty into space? In fact, there were two “Lady Liberties” on board Discovery when it lifted off on its fourth flight in April 1985. To be fair, each statue was only 15 inches tall (38.1 centimeters), but they were also each made of copper that was removed from the full-size statue during its then-still-ongoing restoration. 你知道吗？航天飞机曾经将自由女神像送入过太空。事实上，1985年4月“发现号”航天飞机执行第四次飞行任务时，机上确实搭载了两座“自由女神像”。平心而论，每座雕像只有15英寸（38.1厘米）高，但它们都是由当时正在进行修复的巨型雕像上拆卸下来的铜片制成的。
After the weeklong STS-51D mission was over, one of the space-flown statues was placed on display, and the other was melted down to create copper seals, which were then sold to the public by the Statue of Liberty Ellis Island Centennial Commission. The copper dated back to the statue’s original 1875 to 1884 construction. A gift from France, the Statue of Liberty was originally intended to commemorate the United States’ centennial in 1876. 在为期一周的STS-51D任务结束后，其中一座随航天飞机飞行的雕像被公开展出，而另一座则被熔化制成了铜质印章，随后由自由女神像埃利斯岛百年纪念委员会向公众出售。这些铜材可以追溯到雕像最初于1875年至1884年间的建造时期。作为法国赠送的礼物，自由女神像最初是为了纪念1876年美国建国一百周年。
Now, as the US enters its next 250 years, there have been an additional four decades of spaceflights when other objects from American history have been carried into Earth orbit. Which raises the question: What is the oldest known piece of Americana to have been launched off the planet? 如今，随着美国进入下一个250年，在过去的四十年航天飞行中，还有其他美国历史文物被送入了地球轨道。这就引出了一个问题：已知被送入太空的最古老的美国历史文物是什么？
For the purposes of this article, Americana refers to any piece of memorabilia that dates as far back as the Revolutionary War and the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. There are certainly older objects that have entered space—a 1611 Jamestown “luggage tag” from the first permanent English settlement was flown on Atlantis in 2007, for example—but fall outside this article’s scope. 在本文中，“美国历史文物”（Americana）指的是任何可以追溯到美国独立战争和1776年《独立宣言》签署时期的纪念品。当然，确实有更古老的物品进入过太空——例如，2007年“亚特兰蒂斯号”搭载了一枚来自英国首个永久定居点詹姆斯敦的1611年“行李牌”——但这超出了本文的讨论范围。
John Glenn, one of the original Mercury astronauts and a US senator, was the oldest person to fly into space when he launched on a 1998 Discovery mission at the age of 77. Among the items he chose to take with him were two connected to early American history. 约翰·格伦（John Glenn）是最初的“水星计划”宇航员之一，也是美国参议员。1998年，77岁的他搭乘“发现号”执行任务，成为当时飞入太空年龄最大的人。他选择携带的物品中，有两件与美国早期历史有关。
“After consultation with staff in the Office of Senate Curator, the Senate Historical Office and Senate Library, Senator Glenn selected this ‘Manual of Parliamentary Practice’ for the STS-95 OFK,” the Senate Curator’s Office described in a 2023 article, referring to the Official Flight Kit that held mementos and memorabilia for post-flight presentation. “The ‘Manual of Parliamentary Practice’ was a practical choice because of its relatively small size and weight, but it is also a meaningful text in Senate history.” “在咨询了参议院馆长办公室、参议院历史办公室和参议院图书馆的工作人员后，格伦参议员为STS-95任务的官方飞行包（OFK）选择了这本《议事规则手册》，”参议院馆长办公室在2023年的一篇文章中写道，OFK是指用于存放飞行后展示纪念品的官方飞行包。“选择《议事规则手册》是一个务实的决定，因为它体积小、重量轻，而且它是参议院历史上具有重要意义的文献。”
Written by Thomas Jefferson in 1801 while he was serving as vice president (and therefore the head of the Senate), the manual influenced both houses of Congress as to how to approach order and decorum. Glenn also took with him a 13-star flag that was used to identify General George Washington on the battlefield. 这本手册由托马斯·杰斐逊于1801年担任副总统（即参议院议长）期间编写，对国会两院如何处理秩序和礼仪产生了深远影响。格伦还带了一面曾在战场上用于识别乔治·华盛顿将军的13星旗帜。
Both the flag and the manual, though, were reproductions. The originals are in museums and deemed too fragile and irreplaceable to risk being launched into space. The copy that Glenn flew was a 1993 reprint, and the flag was made for Glenn to fly in 1998. 不过，旗帜和手册都是复制品。原件保存在博物馆中，因过于脆弱且不可替代，不宜冒风险送入太空。格伦携带的是1993年的重印本，而那面旗帜则是专门为格伦1998年的飞行任务制作的。
Another replica flag steeped in American history was aboard the International Space Station from November 2014 through June 2015. NASA astronaut Terry Virts was provided the 15-star flag by Fort McHenry in Maryland, after it was flown over the historic site for Flag Day during the bicentennial year of the Battle of Baltimore. The original of that flag was seen by Francis Scott Key to “yet wave,” leading him to write a poem that became the US anthem, The Star-Spangled Banner, in 1814. 另一面充满美国历史气息的复制旗帜曾于2014年11月至2015年6月期间在国际空间站上停留。这面15星旗帜由马里兰州的麦克亨利堡提供给NASA宇航员特里·维尔茨（Terry Virts），此前它曾在巴尔的摩战役两百周年纪念日的国旗日当天在这一历史遗址上空飘扬。那面旗帜的原件曾让弗朗西斯·斯科特·基（Francis Scott Key）看到它“依然飘扬”，从而写下了一首诗，并在1814年成为了美国国歌《星条旗》。
In May 1869, a 17.6-karat gold spike was used to ceremonially complete the First Transcontinental Railroad at Promontory Summit in the then-Utah Territory. Today, the site is a National Historical Park located near where Northrop Grumman builds and tests solid rocket motors for space launch vehicles. Ninety-six years later, a replica of the Golden Spike was launched on Atlantis with the STS-38 crew. It was another spike, however, that is believed to be the oldest Americana artifact to have flown into space. 1869年5月，一枚17.6克拉的金钉被用于在当时犹他领地的普罗蒙特里峰举行仪式，标志着第一条横贯大陆铁路的完工。如今，该遗址是一个国家历史公园，位于诺斯罗普·格鲁曼公司制造和测试航天运载火箭固体火箭发动机的地点附近。96年后，一枚金钉的复制品随STS-38机组人员搭乘“亚特兰蒂斯号”进入太空。然而，另一枚钉子被认为是历史上被送入太空的最古老的美国文物。
“In honor of the 200th anniversary of the commissioning of the USS Constitution, ‘Old Ironsides,’ this copper spike, an original component of the hull of the USS Constitution, [was launched into space].” “为纪念‘老铁壳号’（USS Constitution）服役200周年，这枚作为‘老铁壳号’船体原始部件的铜钉，[被送入了太空]。”