从月球汲取经验 ⏲️ 6分钟英语：英语精读讲义

6 Minute English from bbclearningenglish.com.

来自 bbclearningenglish.com 的 6 Minute English。

Hello,

你好，

this is 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English.

这里是 BBC Learning English 的 6 Minute English。

I'm Neil.

我是 Neil。

And I'm Georgie.

我是 Georgie。

That's one small step for man, 文化背景

这是个人的一小步，

one giant leap for mankind.

却是人类的一大步。

Famous words,

非常著名的话，

but do you know who said them?

但你知道是谁说的吗？

Of course,

当然，

that was Neil Armstrong,

那是 Neil Armstrong（尼尔·阿姆斯特朗），

the first person to land on the moon. 語法

第一个登上月球的人。

Right.

没错。

The Apollo 11 spacecraft landed Neil Armstrong on the moon 用詞

阿波罗11号宇宙飞船搭载着 Neil Armstrong 登上了月球，

on the 20th of July, 1969.

在1969年7月20日。

But in decades after that famous event,

但在那个著名事件之后的几十年里，

interest in returning to the moon faded away, 講解

重返月球的兴趣逐渐消退了，

until now.

直到现在。

Summer 2023 saw the start of a new race for the moon 講解

2023年夏天开启了一场新的探月竞赛，

between Russia's Luna-25 spacecraft

在俄罗斯的 Luna-25 探测器

and India's Chandrayaan-3.

和印度的 Chandrayaan-3（月船3号）之间展开。

Russia's rocket crashed on landing, 短語搭配

俄罗斯的火箭在着陆时坠毁，

but Chandrayaan-3 successfully touched down on the 23rd of August, 短語動詞

但 Chandrayaan-3 在8月23日成功着陆，

making India only the fourth country 語法

使印度成为仅仅第四个

to successfully land on the moon.

成功登陆月球的国家。

But why this sudden interest in going back to the moon?

但为什么会突然对重返月球产生兴趣呢？

That's what we'll be discussing in this program. 表達脈絡

这就是我们要在本节目中讨论的内容。

And as usual,

像往常一样，

we'll be learning some useful new vocabulary too.

我们也会学习一些有用的新词汇。

But before we blast off, 習語

但在我们起飞之前，

I have a question for you, Georgie.

我有个问题想问你，Georgie。

Everyone knows that Neil Armstrong was the first man on the moon

大家都知道 Neil Armstrong 是第一个登上月球的人，

and was followed by a second astronaut, Buzz Aldrin. 語法

紧随其后的是第二位宇航员 Buzz Aldrin（巴兹·奥尔德林）。

But who was the third Apollo astronaut

但是第三位阿波罗宇航员是谁，

who flew the command module 文化背景

负责驾驶指令舱，

while his crewmates walked on the moon? 語法

当他的两名队友在月球漫步时？

Was it A, Yuri Gagarin,

是A，Yuri Gagarin（尤里·加加林），

B, Michael Collins,

B，Michael Collins（迈克尔·科林斯），

or C, Alan Shepard?

还是C，Alan Shepard（艾伦·谢泼德）？

Hmm,

嗯，

I think it was Michael Collins.

我觉得是 Michael Collins。

Okay, Georgie,

好的，Georgie，

we'll find out the answer at the end of the program. 表達脈絡

我们将在节目结束时揭晓答案。

In some ways, 表達脈絡

在某些方面，

the current interest in the moon is really more about the origins of Earth. 表達脈絡

目前对月球的兴趣实际上更多地是关于地球的起源。

One theory is that during the early days of the solar system, 講解

有一种理论认为，在太阳系形成早期，

around 4 billion years ago,

大约40亿年前，

another planet crashed into Earth, 短語搭配

另一颗行星撞击了地球，

breaking off a part, which then formed the Moon. 短語動詞

撞下来了一部分，随后形成了月球。

Unlike the Earth's surface, which is constantly moving, 語法

不同于不断运动的地球表面，

the Moon is completely still,

月球是完全静止的，

frozen in time to create a perfectly preserved record 講解

被时间冻结，从而创造了一个完美保存的记录，

of what happened at the birth of the solar system. 習語

记录了太阳系诞生时发生的事情。

Here's astronomer Dr. Becky Smethurst

这里是天文学家 Becky Smethurst 博士

explaining more to BBC Radio 4 program Inside Science.

在 BBC Radio 4 的 Inside Science（科学探秘）节目中做出的更多解释。

Whereas on the Moon, it's just this inert rock. 講解

而在月球上，它只是这种惰性岩石。

There's no atmosphere.

没有大气层。

So every single thing that's happened to the Moon

所以对月球发生过的每一件事

in its 4 and 1/2 billion years' worth of history 短語搭配

在其45亿年的历史中

is still recorded there on it.

仍然记录在它上面。

And so if anyone's ever seen an image of the far side of the Moon, 文化背景

所以如果有人看过月球背面的图像，

so the side of the Moon that we cannot see from Earth,

就是我们在地球上看不到的月球的那一面，

is incredibly pockmarked. 用詞

它坑坑洼洼得令人难以置信。

There are craters all over that thing.

上面到处都是陨石坑。

And so this is a really big deal 習語

因此这是一件极其重要的事情，

when we're thinking about what happened to the early Earth as well,

当我们也在思考早期地球发生的事情时，

because we think all of the Earth's water

因为我们认为地球上所有的水

came from impacts with comets and asteroids 文化背景

都来自彗星和小行星的撞击

in the very early days of the solar system.

在太阳系的极早期。

The rock which makes up the Moon is inert. 短語動詞

构成月球的岩石是惰性的（inert）。

It doesn't move.

它不移动。

It's also full of craters, 短語搭配

它上面也布满了陨石坑（craters），

large holes in the ground caused by something hitting it. 語法

也就是由物体撞击地面形成的大坑。

The Moon has so many of these craters,

月球上有非常多这样的陨石坑，

it's described as pockmarked, 短語搭配

所以被描述为坑坑洼洼的（pockmarked），

having a surface that's covered in small marks and scars. 短語搭配

指表面布满小坑和疤痕。

These craters play an important part in the story. 短語搭配

这些陨石坑在整个故事中扮演着重要角色。

Because the Moon's surface does not change, 表達脈絡

因为月球表面是不变的，

finding water there would explain a lot 語法

在那里发现水将会解释很多

about how water and therefore life started on Earth.

关于水以及由此诞生的生命是如何在地球上开始的。

That's why Dr. Smethhurst calls the Moon mission a big deal, 語法

这就是为什么 Smethurst 博士称这次探月任务为一件大事（a big deal），

meaning important or significant.

意思是重要的或意义重大的。

That's right.

没错。

Astronomers know that comets are full of ice 短語搭配

天文学家知道彗星上充满了冰，

and think comets brought water to Earth

并认为彗星在撞击地球时

when they crashed into it.

把水带到了地球。

Evidence of those crashes has been erased 語法

这些撞击的痕迹已经被抹去了

by the constantly moving surfaces on Earth,

因为地球表面在不断移动，

but not on the Moon. 表達脈絡

但在月球上并没有。

So comparing water from the Moon with water on Earth 短語搭配

因此将月球上的水与地球上的水进行比较

could provide scientists with vital information, 短語搭配

可以为科学家提供至关重要的信息，

as Dr. Smethurst explained to BBC Radio 4's Inside Science.

正如 Smethurst 博士向 BBC Radio 4 的 Inside Science 所解释的那样。

Yeah, so they'll be looking essentially

是的，所以他们基本上会去寻找

to see if it has the same characteristics 短語搭配

看看它是否具有相同的特征

as water here on Earth.

与地球上的水相比。

And then we can sort of trace that back 短語動詞

然后我们可以可以说是去追根溯源

from sort of the crater history as well

也从某种陨石坑的历史中

to working out what actually happened, 短語動詞

找出到底发生了什么，

how long has it been there for as well.

以及它在那里存在了多长时间。

Also various other minerals that might be there,

还有可能在那里存在的其他各种矿物质，

these very heavy minerals that we know come from comets and asteroids. 用詞

这些我们知道来自彗星和小行星的非常重的矿物质。

Again, that would be this sort of smoking gun 習語

同样，那就像是确凿的证据（smoking gun）

to be like, 用詞

会让人觉得，

"Yes, that's where this water came from."

"是的，这就是水的来源。"

And it's likely that Earth's water came from there as well. 語法

而且很可能地球上的水也是从那里来的。

Scientists can trace the existence of water on the Moon back

科学家可以追溯月球上水的存在

to find out what happened on Earth.

从而找出地球上发生了什么。

If you trace something back,

如果你追根溯源（trace something back），

you discover the causes of something

你就能发现某事的原因

by investigating how it developed.

通过调查它是如何发展的。

For this reason, 表達脈絡

出于这个原因，

Dr. Smethurst says finding water on the Moon

Smethurst 博士说在月球上发现水

would be finding a smoking gun,

就等同于找到了确凿证据（smoking gun），

a modern idiom meaning indisputable evidence or proof. 用詞

一个现代习语，意思是无可争辩的证据或证明。

We've learned a lot about the Moon,

我们已经了解了很多关于月球的知识，

but we still don't know the answer to your question,

但我们仍然不知道你那个问题的答案，

Neil.

Neil。

Who was the third Apollo astronaut

第三位阿波罗宇航员是谁

on that famous first landing in 1969?

在1969年那次著名的首次登月行动中？

I said it was Michael Collins.

我说是 Michael Collins。

Which was the correct answer.

这正是正确答案。

Michael Collins never set foot on the Moon himself, 習語

Michael Collins 本人从未踏上过月球，

but afterwards said the experience of looking back at Earth

但后来他说，这种回望地球的经历

from the Apollo spacecraft changed his life forever. 短語搭配

从阿波罗宇宙飞船上，永远改变了他的一生。

Okay, let's recap the vocabulary 表達脈絡

好了，让我们来复习一下词汇

we've learned from our trip to the Moon,

我们从这次月球之旅中学到的，

starting with inert,

首先是 inert，

not moving or unable to move.

意思是静止的或无法移动的。

A crater is a very large hole in the ground.

crater（陨石坑）是指地面上的一个大洞。

Pockmarked means marked by small holes and scars.

pockmarked（坑坑洼洼）指布满小坑和疤痕。

If you say something is a big deal,

如果你说某件事是 a big deal，

it's important or significant in some way.

它在某种程度上就是重要的或意义重大的。

To trace something back means to discover its causes

trace something back 意思是发现其原因

by examining how it developed.

通过检查它是如何演变的。

And finally,

最后，

the idiom a smoking gun refers to indisputable evidence

习语 a smoking gun 指的是无可争辩的证据

or conclusive proof of something.

或是某事的确凿证明。

Once again,

再一次，

our 6 minutes are up. 短語動詞

我们的6分钟时间到了。

Join us next time for more scintillating science 講解

欢迎下次继续收听更多妙趣横生的科学内容

and useful vocabulary here at 6 Minute English.

以及这里 6 Minute English 的实用词汇。

Goodbye for now.

暂时再见。

Goodbye.

再见。

6 Minute English from bbclearningenglish.com.

来自 bbclearningenglish.com 的 6 Minute English。