精美英文欣赏:火星

MARS

Mars According to the best evidence gathered by space probes and astronomers¹, Mars is an inhospitable planet, more similar to Earth's Moon than to Earth itself-a dry,stark,seemingly lifeless world. Mars' air pressure is equal to Earth's at an altitude of 100,000 feet. The air there is 95% carbon dioxide. Mars has no ozone² layer to screen out the Sun's lethal³ radiation. Daytime temperatures may reach above freezing, but because the planet is blanketed by the mere⁴ wisp of an atmosphere, the heat radiates back into space. Even at the equator, the temperature drops to 50 ℃ ( 60 ) at night. Today there is no liquid water, although valleys and channels on the surface show evidence of having been carved by running water. The polar ice caps are made of frozen water and carbon dioxide, and water may be frozen in the ground as permafrost.Despite these difficult conditions, certain scientists believe that there is a possibility of transforming Mars into a more Earth like planet. Nuclear reactors⁵ might be used to melt frozen gases and eventually build up the atmosphere. This in turn could create a "greenhouse effect" that would stop heat from radiating back into space. Liquid water could be thawed⁶ to form a polar ocean. Once enough ice has melted, suitable plants could be introduced to build up the level of oxygen in the atmosphere so that,in time, the planet would support animal life from Earth and even permanent human colonies. "This was once thought to be so far in the future as to be irrelevant," said Christopher McKay, a research scientist at the National Aeronautics⁷ and Space Administration. "But now it's starting to look practical.We could begin work in four or five decades." The idea of "terra forming" Mars, as enthusiasts⁸ call it, has its roots in science fiction. But as researchers develop a more profound understanding of how Earth's ecology supports life, they have begun to see how itmay be possible to create similar conditions on Mars. Don't plan on homesteading on Mars any time soon, though. The process could take hundreds or even thousands of years to complete, and the cost would be staggering.

火星

据宇宙探测器和天文学家收集的有力证据，火星是一个人类不能居住的星球。 它不像地球，而更像月球--一个干涸、荒芜，看上去没有任何生命的世界。 火星的气压相当于地球上十万英尺高空处的气压。 火星大气的构成中有95%是二氧化碳，而且，火星上没有能屏蔽太阳致命射线的臭氧层。 白天，那里的温度可以达到零上，但因为包裹火星的大气层极为稀薄，热量又会辐射回宇宙中。就算是在火星赤道，夜里的温度也在 50℃。 尽管火星上的山谷沟渠说明它曾经被流水蚀刻过，但如今那里已没有液态水了。 极地冰帽是由固态水和二氧化碳组成的，水也有可能存在于永久冻土之中。 尽管困难重重，某些科学家依然认为有可能把火星改造成类似地球的星球。 核反应可以用来融化冰冻的气体最终形成火星大气层。由此就可以产生温室效应，阻止热量散射回宇宙中。 液化的水可以融化成极地海洋。 足够量的冰融化后，可将地球上的植物移植上去。 植物又可以向大气层提供氧气。 久而久之火星就可以维持从地球过去的动物生命甚至成为人类的永久居留地。 "这一切在过去看起来遥远得近乎无稽"，国家航天局的一位研究人员，克里斯托弗 ·麦克凯说，" 但是现在已经开始展现出可能性。 四五十年后，我们就可以着手于这项工作。"这种支持者们称为"移居火星"的想法最早出现在科幻小说中。 但随着研究者对地球上生态如何支持生命的理解越来越深入，在火星上创造类似地球环境也显得越来越现实。 但千万别计划很快在火星上建造家园。 这个历程需要几百乃至上千年，而且耗费将是惊人的。

1 astronomers   

n.天文学者，天文学家( astronomer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Astronomers can accurately foretell the date,time,and length of future eclipses. 天文学家能精确地预告未来日食月食的日期、时刻和时长。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Astronomers used to ask why only Saturn has rings. 天文学家们过去一直感到奇怪，为什么只有土星有光环。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 ozone   

n.臭氧，新鲜空气

参考例句：

• The ozone layer is a protective layer around the planet Earth.臭氧层是地球的保护层。
• The capacity of ozone can adjust according of requirement.臭氧的产量可根据需要或调节。

3 lethal   

adj.致死的；毁灭性的

参考例句：

• A hammer can be a lethal weapon.铁锤可以是致命的武器。
• She took a lethal amount of poison and died.她服了致命剂量的毒药死了。

4 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

5 reactors   

起反应的人( reactor的名词复数 )； 反应装置； 原子炉； 核反应堆

参考例句：

• The TMI nuclear facility has two reactors. 三哩岛核设施有两个反应堆。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• The earliest production reactors necessarily used normal uranium as fuel. 最早为生产用的反应堆，必须使用普通铀作为燃料。

6 thawed   

解冻

参考例句：

• The little girl's smile thawed the angry old man. 小姑娘的微笑使发怒的老头缓和下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He thawed after sitting at a fire for a while. 在火堆旁坐了一会儿，他觉得暖和起来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 aeronautics   

n.航空术，航空学

参考例句：

• National Aeronautics and Space undertakings have made great progress.国家的航空航天事业有了很大的发展。
• He devoted every spare moment to aeronautics.他把他所有多余的时间用在航空学上。

8 enthusiasts   

n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A group of enthusiasts have undertaken the reconstruction of a steam locomotive. 一群火车迷已担负起重造蒸汽机车的任务。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Now a group of enthusiasts are going to have the plane restored. 一群热心人计划修复这架飞机。 来自新概念英语第二册