I set foot on the platform and waited. The darkness was so profound I couldn't see even Captain Nemo.  我走到平台上，我在那里等着。黑暗是完全绝对的，就是尼摩船长的影子我也看不见。

However, looking at the zenith directly overhead, I thought I caught sight of a feeble glimmer, a sort of twilight filtering through a circular hole.  同时我注视空中的顶点，正在我的头上面，我觉得是看到一种隐约浮游的微光，一称在圆涧中所有的曙光。

Just then the beacon suddenly went on, and its intense brightness made that hazy light vanish. 这时候，探照灯忽然亮了，它那辉煌的光把那模糊的光驱散了。

This stream of electricity dazzled my eyes, and after momentarily shutting them, I looked around.  我受电光的突然照耀，觉得晃眼，略为闲了一下眼睛。我再睁开来注视。

The Nautilus was stationary. It was floating next to an embankment shaped like a wharf.  诺第留斯号静止不动。它靠近作为码头的岸边浮着。

As for the water now buoying the ship, it was a lake completely encircled by an inner wall about two miles in diameter, hence six miles around.  这时浮起它来的海面是有高墙围起来的圆形的湖，长二海里，周围六海里。

Its level-as indicated by the pressure gauge-would be the same as the outside level, because some connection had to exist between this lake and the sea.  压力表指出，它的水平面等于外海的水平面，这湖必然跟大海相通。

Slanting inward over their base, these high walls converged to form a vault shaped like an immense upside-down funnel that measured 500 or 600 meters in height.  周围的高墙，下部倾斜，上面是穹窿的圆顶，形状很像倒过来的漏斗，高度为为五百至六百米。

At its summit there gaped the circular opening through which I had detected that faint glimmer, obviously daylight. 顶上有一个圆孔，我刚才就从这孔看到一些稀微的光线，这光的来源显然是那白日的光。

Before more carefully examining the interior features of this enormous cavern, and before deciding if it was the work of nature or humankind, I went over to Captain Nemo. 在更仔细地考察这巨大岩洞的内部情形之前，在自己没有想想这洞是天然的或人为的作品之前，我就向尼摩船长面前走去。我说。