英语听力：探索发现 2014-06-13 BBC 地平线：陨石的真相-14

 So was this a near miss for us?

 

If the asteroid¹ had been in a different part of its orbit, so it didn’t hit this year but it hit next year, it would have still hit us on February 15th. But instead of coming in over Russia, it would have come in over the UK and Ireland and would have entered the Earth’s atmosphere, in fact, entered the North Atlantic Ocean. 

 

In order for the meteorite² to strike anywhere near Britain, our paths through space would have had to be fundamentally different. So we know where asteroids³ come from and the forces that shape their date with destiny. But what exactly happens next? The moment that a meteor strikes? And what determines just how devastating⁴ that strike will be?

 

When the Chelyabinsk meteor reached our atmosphere, it was travelling at more than 65,000 kilometres per hour and measured more than 15 metres across. Apart from some unconfirmed reports of craters⁵ at the bottom of Lake Chebarkul, there’s surprisingly few signs of an impact. Little of the 7,000 tonnes of space rock that entered the atmosphere have been recovered. Perhaps 300 fragments. And yet, the effects were felt over 3,000 square kilometres. 

 

The question is how can apparently⁶ so little do so much harm? There’s a clue from the last time Earth experienced a meteor strike on this scale. 

1 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。

2 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。

3 asteroids   

n.小行星( asteroid的名词复数 )；海盘车，海星

参考例句：

• Asteroids,also known as "minor planets",are numerous in the outer space. 小行星，亦称为“小型行星”，在外太空中不计其数。
• Most stars probably have their quota of planets, meteorids, comets, and asteroids. 多数恒星也许还拥有若干行星、流星、彗星和小行星。

4 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

5 craters   

n.火山口( crater的名词复数 )；弹坑等

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》
• The battlefield was full of craters made by exploding shells. 战场上布满弹坑。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

6 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。