VOA标准英语2010-European Ash Cloud Continues to Spread, H

Passengers take a rest at Roissy Charles de Gaulle Airport, outside Paris, as hundreds of commercial flights across northern Europe are canceled by a drifting plume¹ of volcanic² ash originating from Iceland, 16 Apr 2010

A huge cloud of volcanic ash from Iceland has disrupted air travel across Europe for a second day, as stranded³ passengers face the most extensive shutdown of airspace since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

 

The skies above large parts of Europe were empty for a second day Friday, as air safety authorities warned that the cloud of ash from Iceland's volcano is spreading.

Brian Flynn, head of operations at the European air traffic control body, addressed a press conference in Brussels.

"Today the situation has deteriorated⁴ somewhat," he said.  "We would be expecting 29,500 flights today. We think we will only have about 12- or 13,000 flights able to operate. So effectively we will be losing more than 50 percent of the normal passenger movements in Europe today."

Civilian⁵ aircrafts are right now not flying in Britain, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Estonia, the north of France including all Paris airports, northern parts of Germany, parts of Poland including Warsaw airport and the Czech Republic.

And Flynn says the cloud is spreading. "The southern part of Europe is for the most part clear but the volcanic ash cloud is anticipated to extend slightly further south and eastward⁶ during this night," he said.

 

The volcano on a glacier⁷ in Iceland erupted Wednesday.

The volcano has sent a massive cloud of microscopic⁸ ash particles swirling⁹ across northern Europe - particles that air specialists say are highly abrasive¹⁰ and could cause aircraft engines to fail.

They could also be bad for people's health, the World Health Organization said Friday.

Spokesperson David Epstein says the ash, which is drifting at an altitude of almost 10 kilometers, could be harmful when it hits the ground.

"These are the same kind of fine matter found in normal air pollution. These can be sulfate, nitrate, ammonia, sodium¹¹ chloride and if these are small particles they can be dangerous because if they are inhaled¹² they can reach the lungs."

Epstein says when the ash does settle people should remain indoors as much as possible. The United Kingdom Health Protection Agency warned that the ash could cause itchy eyes, a runny nose, sore throat or dry cough.

Colin Macpherson, a professor of Earth sciences at Britain's Durham University, says it's impossible to know how long the volcano will continue to erupt. The last time this volcano did erupt in the early 19th century, he says, it lasted two years.

"Some volcanic eruptions¹³ last for just a few days. Others last for months or even years. There is no clear way of predicting at the present time how long this activity might go on for," he said.

But he says, it's because of current wind patterns that the volcano is having such a major affect on European air travel. "It's because we have the prevailing¹⁴ wind at the moment coming from the north, pulling the material down towards Western Europe that we're seeing the impact on the travel of so many people," said Macpherson.

In the spring and summer, he says, he would expect the prevailing winds in Western Europe to come from the West or Southwest - which would mean that the ash would be pushed towards the Arctic or Siberia.

 

1 plume   

n.羽毛；v.整理羽毛，骚首弄姿，用羽毛装饰

参考例句：

• Her hat was adorned with a plume.她帽子上饰着羽毛。
• He does not plume himself on these achievements.他并不因这些成就而自夸。

2 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。

3 stranded   

a.搁浅的，进退两难的

参考例句：

• He was stranded in a strange city without money. 他流落在一个陌生的城市里， 身无分文，一筹莫展。
• I was stranded in the strange town without money or friends. 我困在那陌生的城市，既没有钱，又没有朋友。

4 deteriorated   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Her health deteriorated rapidly, and she died shortly afterwards. 她的健康状况急剧恶化，不久便去世了。
• His condition steadily deteriorated. 他的病情恶化，日甚一日。

5 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

6 eastward   

adv.向东；adj.向东的；n.东方，东部

参考例句：

• The river here tends eastward.这条河从这里向东流。
• The crowd is heading eastward,believing that they can find gold there.人群正在向东移去，他们认为在那里可以找到黄金。

7 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。

8 microscopic   

adj.微小的，细微的，极小的，显微的

参考例句：

• It's impossible to read his microscopic handwriting.不可能看清他那极小的书写字迹。
• A plant's lungs are the microscopic pores in its leaves.植物的肺就是其叶片上微细的气孔。

9 swirling   

v.旋转，打旋( swirl的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Snowflakes were swirling in the air. 天空飘洒着雪花。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• She smiled, swirling the wine in her glass. 她微笑着，旋动着杯子里的葡萄酒。 来自辞典例句

10 abrasive   

adj.使表面磨损的；粗糙的；恼人的

参考例句：

• His abrasive manner has won him an unenviable notoriety.他生硬粗暴的态度让他声名狼藉。
• She had abrasions to her wrists where the abrasive rope had scraped her.她的手腕有多出磨伤，那是被粗糙的绳子擦伤的。

11 sodium   

n.（化）钠

参考例句：

• Out over the town the sodium lights were lit.在外面，全城的钠光灯都亮了。
• Common salt is a compound of sodium and chlorine.食盐是钠和氯的复合物。

12 inhaled   

v.吸入( inhale的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. 她合上双眼，深深吸了一口气。
• Janet inhaled sharply when she saw him. 珍妮特看到他时猛地吸了口气。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 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

14 prevailing   

adj.盛行的；占优势的；主要的

参考例句：

• She wears a fashionable hair style prevailing in the city.她的发型是这个城市流行的款式。
• This reflects attitudes and values prevailing in society.这反映了社会上盛行的态度和价值观。