万物简史 第305期:地下的烈火(13)

 　　Four years later, Soviet¹ scientists decided² to try their luck on dry land. 4年以后，苏联科学家决定在陆地上碰碰运气。

　　They chose a spot on Russia's Kola Peninsula, near the Finnish border, and set to work with the hope of drilling to a depth of fifteen kilometers. 他们说干就干，在俄罗斯的科拉半岛离芬兰边境不远的地方选了个点，希望能钻到15公里的深度。

　　The work proved harder than expected, but the Soviets³ were commendably⁴ persistent⁵. 这项工作比预期的还要艰苦，但苏联人有着值得称道的韧劲儿。

　　When at last they gave up, nineteen years later, they had drilled to a depth of 12,262 meters, or about 7.6 miles. 到19年以后他们终于放弃的时候，他们已经钻到了12262米的深度。

　　Bearing in mind that the crust of the Earth represents only about 0.3 percent of the planet's volume 但是，我们没有忘记，地壳只代表地球大约0.3%的体积，

　　and that the Kola hole had not cut even one-third of the way through the crust, 科拉钻探还没有深入到地壳的三分之一，

　　we can hardly claim to have conquered the interior. 因此我们几乎无法声称已经征服了地球内部。

　　Interestingly, even though the hole was modest, nearly everything about it was surprising. 虽然这次钻探的深度有限，但所发现的一切几乎都令研究人员感到意外。

　　Seismic⁶ wave studies had led the scientists to predict, and pretty confidently, 地震波研究一直使科学家们预言，而且是很有把握地预言，

　　that they would encounter sedimentary rock to a depth of 4,700 meters, followed by granite⁷ for the next 2,300 meters and basalt from there on down. 他们会在4700米深处碰到沉积岩，接着往下是2300米厚的花岗岩，再往下是玄武岩。

　　In the event, the sedimentary layer was 50 percent deeper than expected and the basaltic layer was never found at all. 结果发现，沉积岩层要比预期的厚50%，而玄武岩层根本没有发现。

　　Moreover, the world down there was far warmer than anyone had expected, 而且，地下世界要比预期的暖和得多，

　　with a temperature at 10,000 meters of 180 degrees centigrade, nearly twice the forecasted level. 1万米深处的温度高达180摄氏度，差不多是预期的两倍。

　　Most surprising of all was that the rock at that depth was saturated⁸ with water—something that had not been thought possible. 最令人吃惊的是深处的岩石浸透了水——这一直被认为是不可能的事。

1 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

2 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

3 soviets   

苏维埃（Soviet的复数形式）

参考例句：

• A public challenge could provoke the Soviets to dig in. 公开挑战会促使苏联人一意孤行。
• The Soviets proposed the withdrawal of American ballistic-missile submarines from forward bases. 苏联人建议把美国的弹道导弹潜艇从前沿基地撤走。

4 commendably   

很好地

参考例句：

• So, workflow management technology is create, and then develop commendably. 于是工作流管理技术应运而生，并且蓬勃发展起来。 来自互联网
• Mr McCain is a commendably committed free-trader. 麦凯恩是一个标志明显的自由贸易主义者。 来自互联网

5 persistent   

adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的

参考例句：

• Albert had a persistent headache that lasted for three days.艾伯特连续头痛了三天。
• She felt embarrassed by his persistent attentions.他不时地向她大献殷勤，使她很难为情。

6 seismic   

a.地震的，地震强度的

参考例句：

• Earthquakes produce two types of seismic waves.地震产生两种地震波。
• The latest seismic activity was also felt in northern Kenya.肯尼亚北部也感觉到了最近的地震活动。

7 granite   

adj.花岗岩，花岗石

参考例句：

• They squared a block of granite.他们把一块花岗岩加工成四方形。
• The granite overlies the older rocks.花岗岩躺在磨损的岩石上面。

8 saturated   

a.饱和的，充满的

参考例句：

• The continuous rain had saturated the soil. 连绵不断的雨把土地淋了个透。
• a saturated solution of sodium chloride 氯化钠饱和溶液