apan's space agency (JAXA) has made history by successfully landing two robotic explorers on the surface of an asteroid¹.

近日，日本航天局（JAXA）的机器人探测器在一座小行星表面成功登陆，创造了历史。

The two small "rovers", which were despatched from the Hayabusa-2 spacecraft² last Friday, will move around the 1km-wide space rock known as Ryugu.

上周五从隼鸟二号航天器发射的两个小型“探测车”，将在这个宽为1公里、被称为“龙宫”的小行星上工作。

The asteroid's low gravity means they can hop³ across it, capturing temperatures and images of the surface.

该小行星上的低重力意味着探测器可以在上面跳跃，捕捉表面的温度和图像。

JAXA proudly tweeted pictures from the rovers, which reached Earth via the spaceship Hayabusa-2.

日本航天局自豪地发布了探测车的照片，这些照片是通过隼鸟2号飞船发回地球的。

Hayabusa-2 reached the asteroid Ryugu in June this year after a three-and-a-half-year journey.

经过三年半的旅程，隼鸟二号在今年六月到达了小行星“龙宫”。

While the European Space Agency had previously⁴ managed to land on an icy comet, this is the first spacecraft to place robot rovers on the surface of an asteroid.

虽然欧洲航天局以前设法在冰冷的彗星上降落，但这是第一个将机器人探测器成功降落在小行星表面的航天器。

Asteroids⁵ are essentially⁶ leftover⁷ building materials from the formation of the Solar System 4.6 billion years ago. Ryugu is a particularly primitive⁸ variety, and studying it could shed light on the origin and evolution of our own planet.

小行星基本上是由46亿年前太阳系形成时的剩余物质材料构成。其中“龙宫”小行星是由一种特殊的原始材料构成的，通过研究它，有助于揭示我们自己星球的起源和演变。