清理太空垃圾

 　　Rob: Hello and welcome to 6 Minute English. I’m Rob and joining me in the studio today is Jennifer. Welcome, Jennifer!

　　Jennifer: Hi there. Now Rob, I believe our subject for discussion this week is a load of rubbish?!

　　Rob: I wouldn’t put it exactly like that. We are talking about rubbish - or to use another word - junk - and hearing some language about a subject that is out of this world - space junk.

　　Jennifer: Yes, here on planet Earth we don’t like seeing rubbish or litter on our streets but in space the problem is far more serious and it could even be catastrophic - so it could lead to a serious disaster.

　　Rob: Well, we’ll hear more about that in a moment and also find out how scientists are going to clear up this mess. But, before that, I think we should blast off with a space-related question. Now, did you know, the Russian satellite, Sputnik, was the first man-made object to be blasted into space? Do you know in which year it was launched?

　　a) 1957

　　b) 1960

　　c) 1967

　　Jennifer: I think it was in the sixties perhaps so I’m going to say b) 1960.

　　Rob: Well, we will find out if you are right at the end of the programme. So, we’ve mentioned that junk - or debris¹ - floating around in space is a big problem. It can take a long time to tidy up your house so imagine the challenge that lies ahead in tidying up the great mess in outer space. That’s something that’s been discussed at a recent conference on space debris in Germany.

　　Jennifer: Well, tidying up space is not something I would like to do! But how did all this rubbish end up floating about up there in the first place?

　　Rob: A good question. For the past 50 years, man has been sending objects like rockets and satellites into orbit. In fact, even now around 70 satellites are sent into space every year. But when they are no longer needed they are just left up there and not disposed of - or put away somewhere where they won’t cause harm. They were never designed to be brought back down to Earth. Jennifer: These old fragments - or bits of technology continue to circle the Earth and become a threat to spacecraft which are operating up there. In 2009, for example, two satellites accidently hit each other - or collided - causing them to break into small pieces.

　　Rob: That’s added to the millions of small pieces of junk that are just floating around that might never be recovered - in other words collected and brought back down to Earth. Let's hear more about this Professor Richard Crowther, Chief Engineer at the UK Space Agency. What other issue does he compare this problem with?

　　Professor Richard Crowther, Chief Engineer at the UK Space Agency:

　　Perhaps the most alarming factor is, even if we stop launching anything in to orbit from now on we would still see collisions occurring between satellites currently up there. But we recognise that if we want to actively² manage this problem we have to do something now. It’s like global warming - we’re not 100% certain that a certain scenario³ will occur but we have a pretty good idea of what’s dominating and what’s influencing the evolution.

　　Rob: Professor Crowther mentioned an ‘alarming factor’, so a very worrying piece of information, that even if we didn’t put any more objects into space there is already a risk of the current satellites hitting each other. These satellites are the ones that we depend on for communications, watching TV, weather forecasting and for using satellite navigation - satnavs.

　　Jennifer: Well, that’s why he says we have to do something now. He predicts catastrophic - or very bad - collisions could occur every five to nine years unless something is done. He compares the problem with global warming. It’s serious. We’re not sure what might happen in the future but we do need to protect against it.

　　Rob: Maybe they need a huge vacuum cleaner, or what about a giant magnet to gather up all that metal clutter⁴?

　　Jennifer: Hmm, I think you’re talking rubbish - or saying things that will never happen. But there are some more realistic ideas being developed such as using nets, lasers to destroy the pieces of junk and a harpoon⁵ to catch them.

　　Rob: It sounds like science-fiction - something you just read about in stories. But are these ideas really being developed?

　　Jennifer: Yes, although research is in its very early stages. A harpoon could be fired at a redundant⁶ - or no longer working - satellite and then it would be pulled downwards⁷ to burn up in the atmosphere.

　　Rob: But, surely up in space, lasers and harpoons⁸ might be thought of as weapons which could be used in a space war?

　　Jennifer: Well, according to Professor Richard Crowther, it is something that will need managing. What does he suggest?

　　Professor Richard Crowther, Chief Engineer at the UK Space Agency

　　If you’ve watched James Bond films over the years, you know that anything with a harpoon, with a laser, with a net in space, has the potential to grab another spacecraft and destroy it, so what we need to do is build reassurance⁹ within the space community and demonstrate that the systems being proposed are peaceful in their nature but also peaceful in the intent and the way in which they are going to be used.

　　Jennifer: He talked about reassuring¹⁰ - or explaining - that the new technology is of a peaceful nature. That means it’s not for use in war or violence. He says the intent - or the purpose behind using it - is good not bad.

　　Rob: OK, well there’s one thing back on planet Earth that needs tidying up and that’s the answer to today’s question. Earlier I mentioned that the Russian satellite, Sputnik, was the first man-made object to be blasted into space. But did you know in which year it was launched?

　　Jennifer: I said b) 1960.

　　Rob: And I’m afraid you were wrong! It launched in 1957. OK, we’re almost out of time now, so Jennifer, could you remind us of some of the words and phrases we’ve heard today?

　　Jennifer: Yes. They were:

　　junk

　　mess

　　debris

　　disposed of

　　recovered

　　clutter

　　talking rubbish

　　redundant

　　Rob: Thanks. Let’s get our feet back on the ground now and say farewell. Bye for now!

1 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

2 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。

3 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

4 clutter   

n.零乱，杂乱；vt.弄乱，把…弄得杂乱

参考例句：

• The garage is in such a clutter that we can't find anything.车库如此凌乱，我们什么也找不到。
• We'll have to clear up all this clutter.我们得把这一切凌乱的东西整理清楚。

5 harpoon   

n.鱼叉；vt.用鱼叉叉，用鱼叉捕获

参考例句：

• The harpoon drove deep into the body of the whale.渔叉深深地扎进鲸鱼体内。
• The fisherman transfixed the shark with a harpoon.渔夫用鱼叉刺住鲨鱼。

6 redundant   

adj.多余的，过剩的；(食物)丰富的；被解雇的

参考例句：

• There are too many redundant words in this book.这本书里多余的词太多。
• Nearly all the redundant worker have been absorbed into other departments.几乎所有冗员，都已调往其他部门任职。

7 downwards   

adj./adv.向下的（地），下行的（地）

参考例句：

• He lay face downwards on his bed.他脸向下伏在床上。
• As the river flows downwards,it widens.这条河愈到下游愈宽。

8 harpoons   

n.鱼镖，鱼叉( harpoon的名词复数 )v.鱼镖，鱼叉( harpoon的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Greenpeace hopes to position its boats between the harpoons and the whales. 绿色和平希望他们的船能开到港口与鲸鱼群之间的地方。 来自互联网
• NIV Can you fill his hide with harpoons or his head with fishing spears? 7[和合]你能用倒钩枪扎满它的皮，能用鱼叉叉满它的头吗？ 来自互联网

9 reassurance   

n.使放心，使消除疑虑

参考例句：

• He drew reassurance from the enthusiastic applause.热烈的掌声使他获得了信心。
• Reassurance is especially critical when it comes to military activities.消除疑虑在军事活动方面尤为关键。

10 reassuring   

a.使人消除恐惧和疑虑的，使人放心的

参考例句：

• He gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. 他轻拍了一下她的肩膀让她放心。
• With a reassuring pat on her arm, he left. 他鼓励地拍了拍她的手臂就离开了。