运输詹姆斯·韦伯太空望远镜：他们是如何移动世界上最珍贵物体的：英语精读讲义

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On Christmas Day 2021,

在2021年的圣诞节，

the James Webb telescope finally launched

詹姆斯·韦伯望远镜终于发射升空，

on its long journey to explore our universe.

开启了探索宇宙的漫长旅程。

After years of delays and billions of dollars spent,

经过多年的延期并耗资数十亿美元，

the telescope was now on its way to Lagrange point 2, 講解

这台望远镜正在前往拉格朗日L2点的途中，

an area in space 1.5 million km away from Earth.

这是距离地球150万公里的太空区域。

The telescope took 30 days to get there.

望远镜花了30天时间才到达那里。

But before James Webb ever left the ground,

但在詹姆斯·韦伯离开地面之前，

it went through a journey that was perhaps even more extraordinary. 短語動詞

它经历了一段或许更为非凡的旅程。

The story of James Webb is pretty crazy.

詹姆斯·韦伯的故事非常疯狂。

In fact,

事实上，

it's almost a miracle

这台望远镜能成功进入太空

that the telescope ever made it into space at all. 語法

简直就是一个奇迹。

Development of the telescope began

望远镜的研发始于

all the way back in 1996, 短語搭配

遥远的1996年，

and the launch was expected to take place in 2007. 短語動詞

最初预计在2007年发射。

Between then and its eventual launch in 2021,

从那时起到2021年最终发射期间，

the telescope went through a major redesign in 2005,

望远镜在2005年经历了一次重大重新设计，

suffered a ripped sunshield,

遭遇过遮阳板撕裂，

almost got cancelled by the US Congress,

差点被美国国会取消，

and even survived the COVID pandemic.

甚至挺过了新冠疫情。

All of this meant that the budget went from $500 million to $10 billion 語法

这一切意味着它的预算从5亿美元飙升到了100亿美元

by the time it was complete. 語法

直到其建造完成。

Because of this,

正因为如此，

NASA now had the world's most precious and valuable object in its hands, 習語

NASA现在手中掌握着世界上最珍贵、最有价值的物品，

and it had to be sent 9,000 km around the world to the launch site.

并且需要将它运送9000公里到世界另一端的发射场。

But before NASA even considered how it would traverse this complicated route,

但在NASA考虑如何走完这条复杂路线之前，

it had to find a way to package this rather valuable object. 短語搭配

他们必须想办法把这个相当贵重的物品打包好。

Cardboard box technology had improved greatly over the last decade,

虽然纸箱技术在过去十年里有了极大的改进，

but Webb needed something a little stronger. 表達脈絡

但韦伯望远镜需要更坚固的东西。

And so,

因此，

NASA built a custom shipping container called Stars,

NASA定制了一个名为 Stars 的运输容器，

which would protect the telescope during its journey

旨在在旅途中保护望远镜，

and act as a mobile clean room. 講解

并作为一个移动的无尘室。

The instruments on Webb are so sensitive that even a speck of dust or a fingerprint 語法

韦伯上的仪器极为敏感，哪怕是一粒灰尘或一个指纹

could cause serious damage to them.

都可能对它们造成严重的损坏。

This container was so clean that no more than 100 particles, 語法

这个容器非常干净，不超过100个颗粒，

much smaller than the width of a human hair,

远小于人类头发的宽度，

could be present inside the container.

被允许存在于容器内。

Each nut and bolt on the container was inspected with ultraviolet light

容器上的每个螺母和螺栓都要用紫外线进行检查，

to reveal any unwanted contaminants.

以发现任何多余的污染物。

Only once it was perfectly clean, 語法

只有在它完全干净之后，

could Webb be loaded into the container.

韦伯才能被装进容器里。

This process took nearly a month,

这个过程花了将近一个月的时间，

as the telescope had to be carefully folded into its launch configuration

因为望远镜必须像一件巨大的折纸作品一样，

like a giant piece of origami. 表達脈絡

小心地折叠成发射时的形态。

But before James Webb was even assembled,

但在詹姆斯·韦伯甚至还没组装之前，

the telescope's mirror also had to go through a crazy journey.

望远镜的镜面也不得不经历一段疯狂的旅程。

The 18 giant hexagonal segments that form Webb's mirror

构成韦伯镜面的18块巨大的六边形镜片

are made from a metal called beryllium.

是由一种叫做铍的金属制成的。

This metal was chosen to keep the overall mass of the mirror extremely low

选择这种金属是为了让镜面的整体质量保持在极低的水平，

while still retaining lots of strength. 語法

同时还能保持极高的强度。

Despite being about three times larger than Hubble's mirror, 語法

尽管韦伯的镜面比哈勃的镜面大三倍左右，

Webb's mirror only had a fraction of the mass.

但它的质量却只有哈勃的一小部分。

But in order to construct these perfectly polished mirror segments,

但为了制造出这些完美抛光的镜片，

they had to make 14 stops at 11 locations

它们必须在11个地点停留14次，

all across the US.

遍布全美。

The first journey started in the mountains of Utah,

第一次旅程始于犹他州的山区，

where the beryllium powder was mined

在那里开采出铍粉，

and shipped to Ohio,

然后运往俄亥俄州，

where it was purified and turned into individual mirror blanks. 短語動詞

在那里提纯并制成一个个镜面毛坯。

Then the blanks were sent to Alabama,

接着，这些毛坯被送往阿拉巴马州，

where each one was machined into a honeycomb structure

每块都被加工成蜂窝结构

to reduce mass.

以减轻重量。

The next destination was California,

下一个目的地是加利福尼亚州，

where the mirrors were polished to the exact shape,

在那里镜面被抛光成精确的形状，

perhaps the most crucial part of the process.

这可能是整个过程中最关键的一步。

After this,

在这之后，

the segments made several trips across the country

这些镜片在全国各地进行了多次旅行，

undergoing years of testing

经历了长达几年的测试，

to check that they were polished correctly.

以确保它们被抛光得准确无误。

On the ninth journey,

在第九次旅程中，

the mirror segments traveled to New Jersey,

镜片被运到了新泽西州，

where gold was evaporated over them inside of a vacuum chamber

在那里的真空舱内，黄金被蒸发附着在它们表面，

to form a very thin coating.

形成一层极薄的涂层。

After some more testing,

经过更多的测试后，

the mirror segments ended up in Maryland, 短語動詞

这些镜片最终到达了马里兰州，

where they were assembled together

在那里它们被组装在一起，

and attached to the main instrument module.

并安装到主仪器模块上。

After years of even more testing,

又经过几年的进一步测试，

the telescope arrived in Redondo Beach,

望远镜抵达了雷东多海滩，

where it was finally attached

在那里它终于被安装到了

to its enormous sunshield.

它那巨大的遮阳板上。

17 years after the first mirror segment had been produced,

第一块镜片生产出来的17年后，

James Webb was now ready to make its last journey on Earth.

詹姆斯·韦伯终于准备好踏上它在地球上的最后一次旅程。

The first leg of the trip involved getting from the Northrop Grumman facility 用詞

旅程的第一段是从诺斯罗普·格鲁曼工厂出发

in Redondo Beach

位于雷东多海滩

to a port in Seal Beach,

前往海豹滩的一个港口，

where a ship would be waiting to take the telescope to French Guiana.

那里有一艘船正等着把望远镜运往法属圭亚那。

Although the first journey was just 41 km,

尽管第一次行程只有41公里，

the transport team only had one chance to make it happen. 短語搭配

但运输团队只有一次机会来确保万无一失。

Before Webb hit the road, 習語

在韦伯上路之前，

they used satellite images to inspect every single part of the route

他们使用卫星图像检查了路线的每一个部分，

to find all of the possible hazards

找出所有可能存在的危险，

that would get in their way. 習語

避免它们阻碍行程。

Every pothole had to be filled,

每一个坑洞都必须被填平，

and many traffic lights had to be lifted in order for the container to fit underneath. 語法

许多交通信号灯必须被抬高，以便运输容器能从下方通过。

To reduce the impact to the public and for the safety of Webb,

为了减少对公众的影响以及出于对韦伯安全的考虑，

the telescope traveled during the night.

望远镜在夜间运输。

However, this meant that it just had a 6-hour window to make its 41-km journey. 用詞

然而，这意味着他们只有6个小时的窗口期来完成这41公里的旅程。

This sounds easy,

这听起来很容易，

but since the container was so big and heavy,

但因为容器又大又重，

it could only travel at around 8 km/h.

它的行驶速度只能达到大约8公里/小时。

And so,

因此，

just in case any problems did occur, 短語搭配

为了以防万一出现任何问题，

NASA had selected various safe havens along the way

NASA在沿途选择了几处安全的避难所，

where Webb could take shelter 短語搭配

韦伯可以在那里避难

and receive maintenance.

并接受维护。

With Webb ready to go, 語法

一切准备就绪后，

it left the factory at midnight

韦伯在午夜时分离开了工厂，

along with a convoy of support vehicles

随行的还有一支由保障车辆组成的护卫车队，

and police escorts.

以及警察护送。

The crazy thing is that no roads were fully closed down,

疯狂的是，沿途没有任何道路被完全封闭，

and regular traffic had to be carefully escorted around the telescope as it moved down the highway.

当望远镜在公路上移动时，常规交通必须被小心翼翼地引导绕开它。

Several trucks carrying pressurized bottles of dry air followed Webb,

几辆装载着干燥空气增压瓶的卡车紧紧跟随着韦伯，

constantly keeping its container topped up with the cleanest air. 短語動詞

不断地向容器内补充最纯净的空气。

Eventually,

最终，

the telescope arrived at the port in the early hours of the morning.

望远镜在清晨时分抵达了港口。

Webb had successfully completed its first leg of the journey,

韦伯成功完成了它旅程的第一阶段，

but this was only the beginning. 表達脈絡

但这仅仅是个开始。

Webb was then loaded onto a French cargo ship,

随后，韦伯被装上了一艘法国货船，

a process that involved first driving the container onto a barge

这一过程首先需要将运输容器开到一艘驳船上，

and rotating it to face

并将其旋转至面对着

the cargo ship's loading ramp.

货船的装货坡道。

The container had to be kept almost exactly level throughout the journey.

在整个旅程中，容器必须几乎完全保持水平。

So to avoid any rough seas,

因此，为了避免遇到波涛汹涌的海面，

NASA worked with the crew of the ship and planned a route

NASA与船员合作规划了一条航线，

that would take them through

将带领他们穿过

the calmest parts of the ocean.

海洋中最平静的海域。

This journey took 16 days in total,

这段旅程总共历时16天，

passing through the Panama Canal

穿过巴拿马运河，

and sailing up the Kourou River

顺库鲁河而上，

to reach its destination at the Guiana Space Center.

最终到达位于圭亚那太空中心的目的地。

All in all, 表達脈絡

总而言之，

the James Webb telescope took about 13 years to build,

詹姆斯·韦伯望远镜大约花了13年时间建造，

from the very first pieces being put together in 2004 語法

从2004年拼装第一批部件开始，

to having a finished telescope in 2017.

到2017年望远镜完工。

It wasn't just a NASA project. 表達脈絡

这不仅仅是一个NASA的项目。

Space partners from all over the world

来自世界各地的太空合作伙伴

contributed parts to the telescope

都为这台望远镜提供了部件，

even before it made its journey to the launchpad.

甚至在它踏上前往发射台的旅程之前也是如此。

And now that the telescope is finally where it needs to be, 語法

而现在，望远镜终于到达了它应该在的地方，

we can look forward to the incredible discoveries 短語動詞

我们可以期待它带来的惊人发现，

it will make about our universe

关于我们宇宙的发现，

and the amazing pictures it will reveal.

以及它将展现的令人惊叹的照片。

If you want to make your own incredible discoveries,

如果你想自己去探索不可思议的发现，

check out brilliant.org,

请访问 brilliant.org，

an online learning platform that helps you learn everything STEM related

这是一个在线学习平台，可帮助您学习与STEM相关的一切知识，

in an interactive way.

通过互动的方式。

Brilliant is the best way to learn stuff,

Brilliant 是学习知识的最佳途径，

since it teaches you to think critically about problems

因为它教会你批判性地思考问题，

and truly understand them.

并真正理解它们。

You can learn at your own pace 短語搭配

您可以按照自己的节奏学习，

and at any time

且随时随地，

through the many interactive courses

通过众多互动课程，

available on Brilliant.

在 Brilliant 上获取。

If you have any interest in things like space,

如果你对太空等事物有任何兴趣，

science, math, and engineering,

科学、数学以及工程学，

then Brilliant has you covered. 習語

那么 Brilliant 都能满足你的需求。

Brilliant has a range of interactive courses designed to give you a deep understanding 語法

Brilliant 拥有一系列互动课程，旨在让您深入理解

of how and why things work,

事物是如何运作以及为何运作的，

so you can apply them to everyday life.

这样您就可以将它们应用到日常生活中。

To get started for free,

要免费开始学习，

visit brilliant.org/primalspace

请访问 brilliant.org/primalspace，

or click the link in the description.

或者点击简介里的链接。

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前200名注册的用户还将获得 Brilliant 年度高级订阅的20%折扣。

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考虑成为一名赞助者吧，

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在那里您可以对每个视频发表您的看法，

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并获得我们 Discord 服务器的专属访问权限。

Thank you very much for watching,

非常感谢您的观看，

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我们下期视频再见。