VOA常速英语2014--澳大利亚科学家证实117号元素的存在（在线收听）

Australian Scientists Confirm Existence of Element 117 澳大利亚科学家证实117号元素的存在

Most of the naturally-occurring elements have already been discovered, but that does not mean that new elements cannot be created - only that they are too unstable to exist for a long time.  Australian scientists recently reported creation of a new, super-heavy element.

The first 98 elements on the Periodic Table occur naturally, although some of them only in traces.

尽管有些只有极少量，但元素周期表上的前98个元素的发现自然而然。

The other 19-created in sophisticated laboratories-are extremely unstable and last only moments before decaying to more stable elements.

而其他由复杂实验室创造的19个元素则极其不稳定,在蜕变成更稳定的元素之前只持续极短的时间。

This includes the newest element-successfully created in a German laboratory by a multinational team of scientists led by Australian researchers. It's been temporarily named ununseptium, and is 40 percent heavier than lead.

这当中也包括德国实验室由澳大利亚研究人员领衔的多国科学家组成的团队成功创造的最新元素。它暂时被命名为ununseptium,比铅重40%。

117号超重元素存在.jpg

Professor David Hinde, of the Australian National University, says a beam of calcium-48 nuclei, coming from an accelerator, flies into a scattering chamber where it hits atoms of berkelium-249.

澳大利亚国立大学的大卫·辛德教授称利用加速器中的一束钙48核轰击散射室中锫249的原子。

"Inside this chamber then we have the target that the beam strikes, and our two large detectors which allow us to investigate which are the most suitable reactions to form super-heavy elements."

“在这个散射室中我们让目标受到轰击,而我们的两个大型探测器调查哪个是形成超重元素最合适的反应。”

Creation of new elements helps scientists better understand the chemistry and physics of atoms, but it may also lead to the discovery of new technologies.

创造新元素不仅可以帮助科学家更好地理解原子的化学和物理性质,还能引导发现的新技术。

"What we learn here we hope will have broader application in the future."

“我们希望所了解的在未来有广泛的应用。”

Russian scientists also reported the creation of ununseptium in 2010. But the international body that verifies new elements, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry,requires at least two independent successful experiments to confirm their existence.

俄罗斯科学家也在2010年公布了ununseptium的创造。但验证新元素的国际机构,国际纯粹和应用化学联合会需要至少两个独立的成功试验以验证它们的存在。

Evidence of the next element on the list-element 118-has also been found so scientists wonder if they will be able to create even more new elements.

随着元素周期表上的下一号元素，118号元素也被发现,科学家们猜测是否将能够创造更多的新元素。