英语听力：探索发现 2014-05-16 BBC 地平线：陨石的真相-3

 I was shocked. I was truly shocked. I never thought Iwould see an event like this over a major city during my lifetime.

 

We couldn’t predict this was going to happen. The pieceof rock that actually entered the atmosphere was relatively¹ small, maybe only afew meters across. And so we couldn’t see this before it entered. 

 

When something like this happens, there is no doubtabout it, it’s frightening. But I have to admit, as a geologist², witnessing aonce-in-a-lifetime event, it’s utterly³ thrilling. 

 

You only had to look at social media to see thatscientists all over the UK and around the world were getting very, very excitedabout this as the news broke.

 

It was exciting. It was exciting for me as ameteoriticist because you immediately want to know what is it? What’s landed? Isit a bit of Mars or a bit from an asteroid⁴? 

 

I was almost ashamed that I had such greatexcitement about seeing this event and knowing that meteorites⁶ had fallenbecause people had been injured. 

 

Chebarkul was the biggest meteorite⁵ to strike theEarth since we’ve had the technology to measure them. From its journey throughthe atmosphere to its spectacular end, every moment was captured. 

 

One of the best documented 16 seconds in scienceever.

 

The best 16 seconds of science.

 

Professor Alan Fitzsimmons is one of the scientistswho’s been examining the meteorite footage frame by frame.

 

1 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

2 geologist   

n.地质学家

参考例句：

• The geologist found many uncovered fossils in the valley.在那山谷里，地质学家发现了许多裸露的化石。
• He was a geologist,rated by his cronies as the best in the business.他是一位地质学家，被他的老朋友们看做是这门行当中最好的一位。

3 utterly   

adv.完全地，绝对地

参考例句：

• Utterly devoted to the people,he gave his life in saving his patients.他忠于人民，把毕生精力用于挽救患者的生命。
• I was utterly ravished by the way she smiled.她的微笑使我完全陶醉了。

4 asteroid   

n.小行星；海盘车(动物)

参考例句：

• Astronomers have yet to witness an asteroid impact with another planet.天文学家还没有目击过小行星撞击其它行星。
• It's very unlikely that an asteroid will crash into Earth but the danger exists.小行星撞地球的可能性很小，但这样的危险还是存在的。

5 meteorite   

n.陨石；流星

参考例句：

• The meteorite in Jilin Exhibition Hall is believed to be the largest in the world.吉林展览馆的陨石被认为是世界上最大的。
• The famous Murchison meteorite smashed into the Australian ground in 1969.1969年著名的默奇森陨石轰然坠落在澳大利亚。

6 meteorites   

n.陨星( meteorite的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Small meteorites have left impact craters all over the planet's surface. 这个行星的表面布满了小块陨石留下的撞击坑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• One theory about the existence of extraterrestrial life rests on the presence of carbon compounds in meteorites. 地球外存在生命的理论是基于陨星上存在碳化合物质这一事实的。 来自《简明英汉词典》