安第斯冰川揭示气候变化的秘密

AS IT IS 2015-09-01 Andean Glaciers² Reveal Secrets of Climate Change 安第斯冰川揭示气候变化的秘密

Ice caps, very large sheets of ice, do not only exist at the earth’s poles. There are tropical ice caps in mountain ranges, too. The largest is the Quelccaya Ice Cap, on top of the Andes Mountains in Peru.

But the Quelccaya Ice Cap is melting quickly. Experts say it might be gone in the next 20 years. Scientists are taking samples to gather valuable information about climate change stored in Quelccaya’s ice.

The Andes Mountains stretch across the nations of Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru. The countries rely on large glaciers for their water supply. But a 2009 report by the World Bank warns that climate change might lead to glaciers completely disappearing. This could put water, energy, food sources and residents in those regions at risk.

Experts say that in the past 30 years, the world's tropical glaciers have lost more than 20 percent of their ice and snow.

Lonnie Thompson is a climate scientist with Ohio State University.

"The day will come when there will no longer be a Quelccaya Ice Cap, and the history that is preserved here will no longer be available. So in many ways, we are also salvaging³ a history of our past that will be lost as the earth continues to warm."

Scientists study climate change and volcanic⁴ eruptions⁵ by looking at air bubbles and dust particles trapped in the ice. Evidence shows that pollution in South America was started by humans in the 1500s. That is when explorers from Spain forced the native people to mine silver.

But the highest increase in pollution and the fastest melting of ice started in the 20th century. Photographs show some glaciers have lost almost 50 percent of their ice and snow over the past 33 years.

"We can see that the glaciers have been retreating more and more with time,” said researcher Roxana Sierra. “This is because the temperature has been increasing."

Scientists say only a few places remain on Earth today where human impact on air quality can be measured. The Quelccaya Ice Cap is one of those places where scientists can study how the Industrial Revolution -- from 1750 to 1850 – changed the air we breathe.

Words in this Story

glacier¹ – n. a very large area of ice that moves slowly down a slope or valley or over a wide area of land

salvage⁶ – v. to save something valuable or important; to prevent the loss of something

tropical – adj. of or relating to the part of the world that is near the equator where the weather is very warm

1 glacier   

n.冰川，冰河

参考例句：

• The glacier calved a large iceberg.冰河崩解而形成一个大冰山。
• The upper surface of glacier is riven by crevasses.冰川的上表面已裂成冰隙。

2 glaciers   

冰河，冰川( glacier的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Glaciers gouged out valleys from the hills. 冰川把丘陵地带冲出一条条山谷。
• It has ice and snow glaciers, rainforests and beautiful mountains. 既有冰川，又有雨林和秀丽的山峰。 来自英语晨读30分（高一）

3 salvaging   

（从火灾、海难等中）抢救（某物）( salvage的现在分词 )； 回收利用（某物）

参考例句：

• A shipping company has made a claim for the cost of salvaging a sunken ship. 某轮船公司要求赔赏打捞沉船的费用。（make a claim 要求）
• It is not uncommon to hear that a shipping company has made a claim for the cost of salvaging a sunken ship. 航运公司为打捞沉船的费用而提出要求，这并非奇闻。

4 volcanic   

adj.火山的；象火山的；由火山引起的

参考例句：

• There have been several volcanic eruptions this year.今年火山爆发了好几次。
• Volcanic activity has created thermal springs and boiling mud pools.火山活动产生了温泉和沸腾的泥浆池。

5 eruptions   

n.喷发，爆发( eruption的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There have been several volcanic eruptions this year. 今年火山爆发了好几次。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Over 200 people have been killed by volcanic eruptions. 火山喷发已导致200多人丧生。 来自辞典例句

6 salvage   

v.救助，营救，援救；n.救助，营救

参考例句：

• All attempts to salvage the wrecked ship failed.抢救失事船只的一切努力都失败了。
• The salvage was piled upon the pier.抢救出的财产被堆放在码头上。