2015-04-29 BBC:星光七纪元-29

 The supernovae that Alex photographs are hundreds of millions of light years away. The only reason that he can photograph them so distinctly is because there are such colossal¹ explosions. And appreciating the power of a supernova's explosion has been the key to understanding the very composition of the universe. For centuries, scientists have known thta everything we see on  earth is made of ninety two elements, and the stars are made of the same ones. We can see it in their starlight.

  Different elements give off different colours when they are heated, when they are energized². So if we look at a growing cloud of gas in the sky, we can determine what chemicl  elements it's made from by seeing what colours it has. The calsium should produce a violet colour. Stronsuium, vow³ look at the stronsium go. sodium⁴, a bit like the light of  the flames. And finally I have got some copper⁵ here.

  Look at the remnant of a supernova and you spot the signature colours of some elements. Modern scientists can reveal the full story by splitting the light with a prism to create a spectrum⁶.

1 colossal   

adj.异常的，庞大的

参考例句：

• There has been a colossal waste of public money.一直存在巨大的公款浪费。
• Some of the tall buildings in that city are colossal.那座城市里的一些高层建筑很庞大。

2 energized   

v.给予…精力，能量( energize的过去式和过去分词 )；使通电

参考例句：

• We are energized by love if we put our energy into loving. 如果我们付出能量去表现爱意，爱就会使我们充满活力。 来自辞典例句
• I am completely energized and feeling terrific. 我充满了活力，感觉非常好。 来自辞典例句

3 vow   

n.誓(言)，誓约；v.起誓，立誓

参考例句：

• My parents are under a vow to go to church every Sunday.我父母许愿，每星期日都去做礼拜。
• I am under a vow to drink no wine.我已立誓戒酒。

4 sodium   

n.（化）钠

参考例句：

• Out over the town the sodium lights were lit.在外面，全城的钠光灯都亮了。
• Common salt is a compound of sodium and chlorine.食盐是钠和氯的复合物。

5 copper   

n.铜；铜币；铜器；adj.铜(制)的；(紫)铜色的

参考例句：

• The students are asked to prove the purity of copper.要求学生们检验铜的纯度。
• Copper is a good medium for the conduction of heat and electricity.铜是热和电的良导体。

6 spectrum   

n.谱，光谱，频谱；范围，幅度，系列

参考例句：

• This is a kind of atomic spectrum.这是一种原子光谱。
• We have known much of the constitution of the solar spectrum.关于太阳光谱的构成，我们已了解不少。