新奇事件簿 卢森堡支持小行星采矿业

The tiny European nation of Luxembourg is not well known as a major player in the space race. However, its government has just made big investments in the future industry of asteroid¹ mining. Private companies will mine asteroids² near the Earth for water and minerals. Some of the things they mine will one day help fuel trips to Mars and beyond. Luxembourg's government is looking at research and development projects to make sure it is one of the leading countries in this new industry. Minister for the economy Etienne Schneider said: "Our aim is to open access to a wealth of previously³ unexplored mineral resources on lifeless rocks speeding through space, without damaging natural habitats."

就太空竞赛而言，欧洲小国卢森堡名不见经传。然而，卢森堡政府将支持太空采矿业。私人企业有望在地球附近的小行星上采集矿产和水资源。这些矿产资源或将为登陆火星，或更遥远行星提供动力。政府正进行研发，确保卢森堡成为该领域先驱。经济大臣埃蒂安·施耐德表示：“我们的目的是要在不破坏自然生态的情况下开发矿产业，这片尚未被开发的太空资源。”

Luxembourg is not the only country to look up to the skies for new places to mine. In 2015, US president Barack Obama signed a law that will let American companies mine space resources. In January, the European Space Agency shared a vision for a research village on the Moon. This would be used as a base for mining companies. The US company Deep Space Industries said space resources will allow greater exploration of the solar system without the need to mine resources on Earth. However, there could be problems ahead for mining companies. The Outer Space Treaty of 1967 says that natural resources in space are part of mankind's 'common heritage'. This means private companies may not be able to mine asteroids.

然而，卢森堡却不是唯一一个支持太空采矿的国家。2015年，总统奥巴马通过太空采矿法案。1月份，欧洲航天局要建“月球村”。它将成为采矿公司的基地。美国公司“深空工业”表示，太空资源将让人类更好地探索太阳系，而无需开采地球的矿产资源。然而，矿产公司也将麻烦重重。据1967年《外层空间条约》规定，外太空自然资源为人类“共同遗产”。这意味着私人公司无权开采小行星。

1 asteroid   

n.小行星；海盘车(动物)

参考例句：

• Astronomers have yet to witness an asteroid impact with another planet.天文学家还没有目击过小行星撞击其它行星。
• It's very unlikely that an asteroid will crash into Earth but the danger exists.小行星撞地球的可能性很小，但这样的危险还是存在的。

2 asteroids   

n.小行星( asteroid的名词复数 )；海盘车，海星

参考例句：

• Asteroids,also known as "minor planets",are numerous in the outer space. 小行星，亦称为“小型行星”，在外太空中不计其数。
• Most stars probably have their quota of planets, meteorids, comets, and asteroids. 多数恒星也许还拥有若干行星、流星、彗星和小行星。

3 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。