科学家发现引力波 印证爱因斯坦预言

 　　David Reitze, executive director of the U.S.-based Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory¹, also known as LIGO, made the announcement in Washington D.C.

　　"Ladies and gentlemen, we have detected gravitational waves, we did it!"

　　The gravitational waves that were detected were produced during the final fraction of a second of the merger³ of two black holes as they produced a single, more massive spinning black hole.

　　This collision of two black holes had been predicted but never observed.

　　The astronomer⁴ also gave a simpler explanation on gravitational waves using ripples⁵ in a pond as a metaphor⁶.

　　科学家发现引力波 印证爱因斯坦预言

　　"Gravitational waves, sort of at a fundamental level, are very similar to that. In this case, the rock, is some big massive object, some accelerating object, and the surface of the pond is the space. It's basically a space. So when a big object moves and accelerates, you have two objects, orbiting around one another, it's creating these ripples that travel outward, and that's what a gravitational wave is. It's like ripples on a pond, but the ripples in this case are in space themselves."

　　The gravitational waves were detected on Sept. 14 last year by the twin LIGO detectors⁷, located in Livingston, Louisiana; and Hanford, Washington State.

　　Based on the observed signals, LIGO scientists estimated that the black holes involved in the event were about 29 and 36 times the mass of the Sun, and the collision took place 1.3 billion years ago.

　　Mass, about three times that of the Sun, was converted into gravitational waves in a fraction of a second -- with a peak power output about 50 times that of the whole visible universe.

　　John Mather, a senior scientist at NASA, says the discovery may prove it is possible that a binary⁸ black hole could exist.

　　"We know from previous work that neutron⁹ stars, which turn into pulsars, can be binary, that they can be in pairs. We never knew for sure that they would be stars that could turn into black holes in pairs and then merge² together to form this coalescing¹⁰ black hole and make this huge burst of gravitational energy to come out. This is not just a technological¹¹ accomplishment¹² in a word, and it's not just confirming that Einstein was right. This is saying that we now know something that we didn't already know about astronomy. It's spectacular."

　　Gravitational waves, first theorized by Albert Einstein in 1916 as part of his theory of general relativity, which is one of the two pillars of modern physics, are extraordinarily¹³ faint ripples in space-time, the hard-to-fathom fourth dimension.

　　Some physicists¹⁴ say this new discovery provides us with a completely new way of studying the universe, and may lead to the finding of things that existed out of our knowledge.

1 observatory   

n.天文台，气象台，瞭望台，观测台

参考例句：

• Guy's house was close to the observatory.盖伊的房子离天文台很近。
• Officials from Greenwich Observatory have the clock checked twice a day.格林威治天文台的职员们每天对大钟检查两次。

2 merge   

v.(使)结合，(使)合并，(使)合为一体

参考例句：

• I can merge my two small businesses into a large one.我可以将我的两家小商店合并为一家大商行。
• The directors have decided to merge the two small firms together.董事们已决定把这两家小商号归并起来。

3 merger   

n.企业合并，并吞

参考例句：

• Acceptance of the offer is the first step to a merger.对这项提议的赞同是合并的第一步。
• Shareholders will be voting on the merger of the companies.股东们将投票表决公司合并问题。

4 astronomer   

n.天文学家

参考例句：

• A new star attracted the notice of the astronomer.新发现的一颗星引起了那位天文学家的注意。
• He is reputed to have been a good astronomer.他以一个优秀的天文学者闻名于世。

5 ripples   

逐渐扩散的感觉( ripple的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The moon danced on the ripples. 月亮在涟漪上舞动。
• The sea leaves ripples on the sand. 海水在沙滩上留下了波痕。

6 metaphor   

n.隐喻，暗喻

参考例句：

• Using metaphor,we say that computers have senses and a memory.打个比方，我们可以说计算机有感觉和记忆力。
• In poetry the rose is often a metaphor for love.玫瑰在诗中通常作为爱的象征。

7 detectors   

探测器( detector的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The report advocated that all buildings be fitted with smoke detectors. 报告主张所有的建筑物都应安装烟火探测器。
• This is heady wine for experimenters using these neutrino detectors. 对于使用中微子探测器的实验工作者，这是令人兴奋的美酒。 来自英汉非文学 - 科技

8 binary   

adj.二，双；二进制的；n.双(体)；联星

参考例句：

• Computers operate using binary numbers.计算机运行运用二进位制。
• Let us try converting the number itself to binary.我们试一试，把这个数本身变成二进制数。

9 neutron   

n.中子

参考例句：

• Neutron is neutral and slightly heavier than the proton.中子是中性的，比质子略重。
• Based on the neutron energy,the value of weighting factor was given.根据中子能量给出了相应的辐射权重因子的数值。

10 coalescing   

v.联合，合并( coalesce的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• A mental model begins coalescing in their minds. 一个意识模型开始结合到他们的脑子里。 来自互联网
• On the basis of coalescing this kind of element can separate oil from compressed air. 采用凝聚原理，分离压缩空气中的油份。 来自互联网

11 technological   

adj.技术的；工艺的

参考例句：

• A successful company must keep up with the pace of technological change.一家成功的公司必须得跟上技术变革的步伐。
• Today,the pace of life is increasing with technological advancements.当今， 随着科技进步，生活节奏不断增快。

12 accomplishment   

n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能

参考例句：

• The series of paintings is quite an accomplishment.这一系列的绘画真是了不起的成就。
• Money will be crucial to the accomplishment of our objectives.要实现我们的目标，钱是至关重要的。

13 extraordinarily   

adv.格外地；极端地

参考例句：

• She is an extraordinarily beautiful girl.她是个美丽非凡的姑娘。
• The sea was extraordinarily calm that morning.那天清晨，大海出奇地宁静。

14 physicists   

物理学家( physicist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• For many particle physicists, however, it was a year of frustration. 对于许多粒子物理学家来说，这是受挫折的一年。 来自英汉非文学 - 科技
• Physicists seek rules or patterns to provide a framework. 物理学家寻求用法则或图式来构成一个框架。