Communication satellites using the sun's gravity to focus radio waves(credit: Claudio Maccone)

通信卫星使用太阳引力聚集无线电波。

Scientists think the sun could be the best communicationdevice forcontacting intelligent extraterrestriallife.

科学家认为太阳是联系外星生命最好的通讯装置。

A new study suggests that the sun’s gravity could be usedto create agiant telescopethat would magnify signals, both incomingand outgoing. The study also suggests that stronger signals could be achievedby using relay spacecraft to create a network connected by “radio bridges.”

一个研究小组表示太阳引力可以作为极大望远镜使用放大信号，不管是进来的还是出去的信号。同时研究组还表示航天器的转播设备可以使用无线桥网络连接获得强烈的信号。

Claudio Maccone, technical director of the Paris-based InternationalAcademy of Astronautics, and author of this new study on the mechanics of theproposed technique, explained, “If we use the sun as a gravitational lens, thenwe can keep in touch with our own probes even at considerable interstellardistances.”

法国基础航天学国际学院技术总监Claudio Maccone，同时也是这个研究小组的力学创始人，解释说，“如果我们使用太阳作为引力透镜，那么我们可以不断探索，即使是相当遥远的星际距离。”

The study appeared in a recent issue of the journalActa Astronautica.

这份研究报告发表在最近的航空学报杂志上。