英语听力：自然百科 行星旅行指南：火星 Mars—1

 Have you ever fantasized about going somewhere special? Somewhere far from crowds, off the beaten track. Somewhere out of this world?

 

Is it time to catch a rocket to the Red Planet?

 

Mars is filled with mysteries, Volcanoes 75,000 feet tall, huge canyons¹, 3000 miles across and 6 miles deep, all kinds of interesting features.

 

Awaiting you is some of the greatest scenery in our Solar System, on a world where water once ruled, then vanished into thin air. Where lost microbe empires may still survive underground. We've seen the postcards, and we do wish we were there.

 

Just the thought of being in this new world to see a landscape that no other

person had seen before, I think there are a lot of astronauts that would sign up to that.

 

But don't be fooled. Nothing about going to Mars will be easy. Danger awaits you on this the desolate² beauty, and perhaps Martians too.

 

If we find on Mars evidence for a second independent origin of life, that's hugely profound, because it tells us right away that life is common in the Universe.

 

Mars. Invaded by a robot and perhaps soon by an Earthling like you.

 

Would I like o go to Mars? Oh, in a heart beat. Absolutely. If there was anyway for me to go to Mars I wouldn't be screwing around with robots, I wanna go myself. 

 

There has never been a better time to boldly go where no human

has gone before, to follow in the footsteps of our robot pioneers and visit

the planets of the Solar System.

1 canyons   

n.峡谷( canyon的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This mountain range has many high peaks and deep canyons. 这条山脉有许多高峰和深谷。 来自辞典例句
• Do you use canyons or do we preserve them all? 是使用峡谷呢还是全封闭保存？ 来自互联网

2 desolate   

adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂

参考例句：

• The city was burned into a desolate waste.那座城市被烧成一片废墟。
• We all felt absolutely desolate when she left.她走后，我们都觉得万分孤寂。