Voyagers in Space
美音、自然拼读、分级阅读与词汇复习
Table of Contents One Tough Job.
一难工作目录 。
4 Planning.
4 规划。
6 The Main Task.
6 主要任务。
8 Jupiter.
8号木星.
9 Saturn.
9号土星.
10 Uranus.
天王星10号
11 Neptune.
海王星11号
12 The Golden Record.
12"金录".
13 The Final Task.
13 最终任务。
14 Conclusion.
14 结论。
15 Glossary.
15 词汇。
16 One Tough Job When the two Voyager spacecraft launched in 1977, they had a tough job ahead.
16个困难的工作 1977年两艘Voyager飞船发射时,前方的工作很艰巨.
Their mission was to explore Jupiter and Saturn, two of the solar system’s giant outer planets.
他们的任务是探索木星和土星,这是太阳系的两个巨大的外行星.
During their journey, they would face freezing temperatures and powerful radiation.
在旅途中,它们会面临寒冷的温度和强大的辐射.
If something broke, the space probes would just have to make do with what they had.
如果有东西坏了,太空探测器就只能用它们拥有的东西了。
Voyager 2 launches from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on August 20, 1977.
Voyager 2于1977年8月20日从佛罗里达州肯尼迪航天中心发射.
A Titan/Centaur rocket carries it into space.
土卫一/金陶尔火箭携带入太空.
Scientists designed the Voyagers to be tough.
科学家们设计Voyagers是强硬的.
Radiation shields and computer-controlled heaters protected their instruments.
辐射防护罩和计算机控制的加热器保护了它们的仪器.
The spacecraft also carried backups of important equipment, such as the thrusters used for steering.
航天器还携带了重要设备的备份,如用于向导的推进器.
Their computers were programmed to deal with problems that might happen.
他们的电脑是用来处理可能出现的问题的。
Computers in 1977 were very different from today’s machines, though.
1977年的计算机虽然与今天的机器大相径庭,
Modern smartphones have about 7,500 times more computing power and 240,000 times more memory than those operating the Voyager spacecraft!
现代智能手机的计算功率约为7500倍,内存为24万倍于运行Voyager飞船的!
Scientists guessed that the Voyagers would only last about five years in space.
科学家猜测沃亚格人将在太空中仅能持续约5年.
More than thirty-five years later, the twin spacecraft are still sending information back to Earth.
35多年后,双子飞船仍在将信息发回地球.
Can You Hear Me Now?
你能听到我吗?
As of 2014, Voyager 1 is about twelve billion miles away.
截至2014年,Voyager 1距离约120亿英里.
It communicates with Earth using a 22.
它使用22号机与地球通信.
4-watt transmitter that’s as strong as a refrigerator lightbulb.
4瓦的发射机,
Signals take about seventeen hours to arrive.
信号需要约17小时到达.
By that time, they’ve faded to about 0.
到那时,
2 billion-billionths (.
20亿(.
00000000000000000002) of a watt.
0000000000000002) 一瓦车.
NASA’s Deep Space Network uses 70-meter (230 ft.)
美国国家航空航天局的深空网络使用70米(230平方英尺)
dish antennas around the globe to catch the faint signal.
飞碟天线遍布全球 捕捉微弱信号
Planning The Voyager launches were carefully timed.
规划 Voyager号的发射经过了仔细的计时.
In the late 1970s, the four outer planets’ orbits placed them in nearly a straight line.
在20世纪70年代后期,四颗外行星的轨道将它们置于了近直线上.
With the planets so close together, it became possible to visit several of them during the same trip.
随着行星的相距如此相近,在同一次旅行中也得以访问多颗行星.
However, the spacecraft still had to travel billions of miles.
然而,飞船仍需要行驶数十亿英里.
Unfortunately, the rockets that launched the Voyagers into space could only get them to Jupiter—about halfway to Saturn.
不幸的是,将沃亚格人射入太空的火箭只能将其送入木星——大约在土星的中途。
Scientists solved that problem by using Jupiter’s strong gravity to give the spacecraft a boost as it passed by.
科学家们利用木星的强大引力,在飞船经过时给予它助推力,从而解决了这个问题.
This technique is called a gravity assist.
这种技术被称为重力辅助.
A planet’s gravity can “bend” the direction a spacecraft is traveling and change its speed.
一颗行星的重力可以使航天器的行走方向 " 弯曲 " 并改变速度。
Passing just ahead of a planet will slow down a spacecraft, while passing just behind it will speed it up.
飞过行星前方会减慢飞船的速度 而飞过后方会加速飞船的速度
A Rare Opportunity The arrangement of planets when the Voyagers launched was an extremely rare event.
罕见的机会 沃亚格人发射时的行星安排是极为罕见的事件.
To understand why, imagine a clock with hands showing the hours, minutes, and seconds.
为了理解原因,想象一下一个手表 显示时间,分,秒。
Each hand circles the clock face at a different rate: once a minute, once an hour, or once every twelve hours.
每只手以不同的速度环绕钟面:一分一分一分一分一分一分一分一分一分一分一分一分一分.
Any time one hand passes another, the two line up.
每逢一手相传,两行相接.
However, all three align much less frequently.
然而,这三者相互配合的频率要低得多。
The planets’ orbits take much longer than the clock hands’ revolutions, so they line up even less frequently.
行星的轨道比起钟表革命需要更长的时间,因此它们排出更不频繁。
The four planets’ arrangement during the Voyager missions occurs only once every 175 years!
这四颗行星在沃亚格任务期间,每175年只发生一次!
Voyager 1 Launch Sept.
9月发射
5, 1977 Voyager 2 Launch Aug.
5,1977 Voyager 2 发射Aug.
20, 1977 Jupiter Mar.
20,1977 朱庇特·马.
5, 1979 Saturn Nov.
5,1979年土星11月号.
12, 1980 Jupiter July 9, 1979 Uranus Jan.
12, 1980 Jupiter July 9, 1979 天王星 Jan.
24, 1986 Neptune Aug.
24, 1986 (英语). Neptune Aug.
25, 1989 Saturn Aug.
25, 1989 土星奥克.
25, 1981 Voyager 2 Voyager 1 The Sun The Main Task At first, the Voyagers’ mission was to study Jupiter and Saturn, their larger moons, and Saturn’s rings.
25, 1981 Voyager 2 Voyager 1 The Sun The Main task (英语). 起初,沃亚格尔人的任务是研究木星和土星,它们更大的卫星和土星环.
The spacecraft carried cameras and scientific instruments, including sensors for radiation, magnetic fields, and plasma.
该航天器载有相机和科学仪器,包括辐射、磁场和等离子体传感器。
Using these instruments, the Voyagers collected information that changed how we understand our solar system.
利用这些仪器,沃亚格人收集了改变我们如何理解太阳系的信息。
Low-gain antenna High-gain antenna Boom for measuring magnetic fields Radio antenna Power supply Cosmic ray sensor Golden record Plasma sensor Low-energy charged particle sensor TV cameras Electromagnetic sensors What’s on Board?
低收益天线 高回报天线 测量磁场的爆炸 无线电天线 供电 宇宙射线传感器 金唱片 等离子体传感器 低能充电粒子传感器 电视相机 电磁传感器 董事会里有什么?
Jupiter The Voyagers’ first target was Jupiter, the solar system’s largest planet.
木星 第一个目标是木星 太阳系最大的行星
Scientists had already studied Jupiter through telescopes, but the Voyagers sent back new information.
科学家已经通过望远镜研究了木星,但沃亚格人发回了新的信息.
They showed that the Great Red Spot was a huge storm that constantly rotated counterclockwise.
他们显示"大红点"是一场连续逆时针旋转的巨大风暴.
They discovered a faint ring surrounding Jupiter, similar to those that orbit Saturn.
他们发现了一个围绕木星的微弱环, 类似于那些环绕土星的环.
They also found that Jupiter’s moons are different from each other and from other planets’ moons.
他们也发现木星的月球彼此不同,与其他行星相去甚远.
For example, the moon Europa is covered by a sheet of ice that scientists think might hide an ocean.
例如,月球"欧罗巴"被一幅冰盖所覆盖,科学家们认为可能隐藏出海洋.
Io, another of Jupiter’s moons, is covered with volcanoes that shoot gas and dust 306 kilometers (190 mi.)
木卫一(Io)是木星的另一颗月亮,覆盖着喷出气体和306公里(190 mi.
above its surface.
在它的地表之上,
Before the Voyager missions, the only known active volcanoes in our solar system were on Earth.
在Voyager任务之前 我们太阳系中唯一已知的活火山 就是在地球上
Scientists now know that Io is ten times more volcanically active than all of Earth!
科学家现在知道 木卫一的火山活性是地球的十倍
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the first of the outer planets.
木星是来自太阳的第五颗行星,也是外行星的第一颗.
Great Red Spot Saturn The Voyagers’ discoveries continued when they reached Saturn nine months apart, in 1980 and 1981.
大红点土星 1980年和1981年,沃亚格人的发现持续到相隔九个月的土星.
Close-up pictures showed new rings that could not be seen from Earth around the solar system’s second-largest planet.
特写照片显示,太阳系第二大行星周围的地上看不到新的环.
Saturn’s rings also contain unexpected kinks and spokes, like bicycle wheels.
土星的指环也包含出乎意料的动静和声响,如自行车轮.
Using time-lapse photos, scientists saw spokes forming and then dissolving again.
科学家们利用时间相片看到声波形成,然后再次分解.
Saturn’s moons were surprising as well.
土星的卫星也令人惊讶。
Several small moons act like “shepherds” for the ice and dust orbiting Saturn, keeping them in separate rings.
几颗小月球在绕土星行走的冰和尘埃中表现得像“花生”一样,使它们处于单独的环中。
Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, was surrounded by a thick haze—an atmosphere!
土星最大的月球泰坦被浓密的雾霾所包围!
This was such a shocking discovery that Voyager 1’s flight path was changed to give it a closer look.
如此惊人的发现, Voyager 1的飞行路线被改变,
Could Titan support life?
泰坦能支撑生命吗?
Some scientists think it could.
一些科学家认为它可以。
Saturn has the largest system of rings of any planet in our solar system.
土星拥有太阳系中任何行星上最大的环系.
Uranus After its Saturn flyby, Voyager 1 headed out of the area where most planets orbit the Sun.
天王星在被土星飞走后,活星一号飞出大部分行星绕太阳运转的区域.
It was flying toward interstellar space, the area beyond the Sun’s magnetic field.
它飞向星际空间,太阳磁场以外的区域。
However, Voyager 2’s position would let it continue toward Uranus.
然而,Voyager 2的立场将让它继续向天王星前进。
All its instruments were still working, so NASA decided to extend the mission.
它的所有仪器都还在工作,所以NASA决定延长任务.
No one knew what to expect from Uranus.
没人知道天王星会怎样
This strange-looking planet is tipped on its side, possibly due to a run-in with another planet-sized object.
这颗外观怪异的行星 可能是因为另一颗行星大小的物体 被撞倒了
Voyager 2 passed the planet in January 1986.
Voyager 2号于1986年1月通过该行星.
Its measurements showed that Uranus’s sideways position twists its magnetic field into a corkscrew “tail” following the planet.
它的测量显示,天王星的侧道位置将它的磁场扭曲为行星后的一个螺旋桨"尾".
Until then, scientists didn’t even know Uranus had a magnetic field!
科学家甚至不知道天王星有磁场。
The rings around Uranus clearly show how the planet is tipped on its side.
天王星周围的星环 清楚地显示地球是如何被倾覆的
Neptune When the Uranus flyby went well, NASA sent Voyager 2 to Neptune as well.
海王星 天王星飞行顺利时,NASA也派了Voyager 2去海王星.
It reached the planet in August of 1989.
它于1989年8月到达了地球.
There, it discovered five new moons.
在那里,它发现了五个新月.
The largest moon, Triton, had geyser-like eruptions of dust and gas.
最大的月球特利顿 喷发出类似宝石的灰尘和气体
Then, like Voyager 1, Voyager 2 began its journey toward interstellar space.
之后,就像Voyager 1,Voyager 2开始了向星际空间的旅程.
Methane gas in Neptune’s atmosphere gives the planet its deep blue color.
海王星大气中的甲烷气体使地球呈现出深蓝色的颜色.
The Golden Record Gathering information is only part of the Voyagers’ mission.
金唱片收集信息只是Voyagers任务的一部分。
They are also carrying information out of the solar system—a message to non-Earth life forms, or aliens.
他们还在太阳系外传播信息——向非地球生命形式或外星人传递信息。
The message is on a twelve-inch “Golden Record” on the side of each spacecraft.
信息载于每个航天器一侧的12英寸“金色记录”。
The record includes music, art, and spoken greetings from around the world.
唱片包括音乐,艺术,以及来自世界各地的口述问候.
It also includes sounds from nature.
还包括来自自然界的声音.
The outside of the record has a map showing Earth’s location in the universe.
记录的外部有一张显示地球在宇宙中位置的地图.
Aliens could use it to find Earth, but that probably won’t happen anytime soon.
外星人可以用来寻找地球,
Voyager 1 won’t come close to another star for at least forty thousand years.
Voyager 1在至少四万年内不会靠近另一颗恒星。
Neither spacecraft will come close to another planet for millions of years.
在数百万年的时间里,航天器都不会靠近另一颗行星。
Famous American astronomer Dr.
美国著名天文学家 医生
Carl Sagan led the committee that chose what to include on each Golden Record.
卡尔·萨根(Carl Sagan)领导了选择将哪些内容列入每张"金唱片"的委员会.
The Final Task Now that the Voyagers have finished exploring planets, they have a new job: the Interstellar Mission.
最终任务,现在沃亚格人已经完成了探索行星的工作,他们有了新的工作:星际任务.
They are the first probes to explore space beyond our solar system.
它们是第一个探索太阳系以外的空间的探测器。
In August 2012, Voyager 1 left our solar system and began this new journey.
2012年8月,Voyager 1号离开我们的太阳系,开始了这个新的旅程.
The First Messages to Aliens The Golden Record isn’t the first message humans have sent into space.
《给外星人的第一信息》不是人类送入太空的第一批信息。
Pioneer 10 and 11 are the only other human-made objects currently headed out of the solar system.
先驱者10和11是目前唯一一个从太阳系外出的人造物体.
Each carries a metal plaque showing drawings of a man, a woman, and Earth’s position in the universe.
每个都带有一个金属牌子,显示一个男人、一个女人和地球在宇宙中的位置。
Conclusion “The Voyager mission has opened up our solar system in a way not possible before the Space Age,” says Voyager project scientist Dr.
结论 “Voyager任务在太空时代之前不可能以某种方式打开了我们的太阳系。”
Edward Stone.
爱德华·斯通.
The two spacecraft ended up exploring all of the solar system’s giant outer planets and forty-eight of their moons.
两艘宇宙飞船最终探索了太阳系所有巨大的外行星和48个它们的月球.
Now the Voyagers are giving us a glimpse of interstellar space.
现在Voyagers正在给我们一瞥星际空间。
Like two small bottles in the universe’s immense ocean, they carry a message from Earth to whatever lies beyond.
和宇宙巨大海洋中的两瓶小瓶子一样,它们传递着从地球传到外面的讯息。