Italian Ship Makes Farthest Southern Journey

Italian Ship Makes Farthest Southern Journey

An Italian ship in waters near Antarctica has sailed further south than any ship has done before. The ship was able to make it so far south because of an unusual lack of ice in the Antarctic¹.

The ship, called the Laura Bassi, made it into the Bay of Whales in the Ross Sea. The location was confirmed by Italy's Institute of Oceanography and Applied² Geophysics.

The Laura Bassi is carrying scientists researching in the Antarctic. Franco Sedmak is the ship's captain. He expressed both happiness and sadness when he spoke³ with Italy's ANSA news agency⁴.

"I am happy with setting⁵ a record, but at the same time I am sad to see that things are really changing here in Antarctica and in the world in general," he said.

Sedmak attempted a similar trip in 2017 but could not make it as far because the ice was too thick. He said this time, there was much less ice.

"I never thought that I would find such a melting of the ice after a few years to be able to go as far south as we managed this year," Sedmak said.

Satellite images in 2022 showed the area around Antarctica is losing ice very quickly.

Researchers on the ship are studying water temperatures and the health of fish in the area. They took samples as far down as 216 meters to help them get a better understanding of the sea currents. Early results show that the water remained extremely cold and that there is still a large number of young fish. 

Words in This Story

location –n. a place in the world or on a map

manage –v. to be able to accomplish or do something

current –n. the movement or flow of a body of water

1 Antarctic   

adj.南极(区)的；n.(the A-)南极洲，南极圈

参考例句：

• The Antarctic is a mountainous area.南极洲是一个多山的地区。
• It is well known that penguins live in the Antarctic.企鹅生活在南极洲是众所周知的。

2 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

3 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

4 agency   

n.经办；代理；代理处

参考例句：

• This disease is spread through the agency of insects.这种疾病是通过昆虫媒介传播的。
• He spoke in the person of Xinhua News Agency.他代表新华社讲话。

5 setting   

n.背景

参考例句：

• The play has its setting in Vienna.该剧以维也纳为背景。
• Where and when a story takes place is called the setting.故事发生的地点和时间称为故事背景。