英语听力精选进阶版 7201（在线收听）

Background: 日本宇航员称他们发现了众多没有环绕恒星运行的“行星”。刊登在《自然》杂志中的文章介绍说，科学家们发现了10颗与木星大小相同的，并处于太阳系之外的行星。

The researchers claim to have found 10 dark gas giants floating at the heart of our Milky Way without any nearby star to illuminate them. Astronomers have long suspected such rogue planets existed, but this is the first evidence, and the Japanese team believe there could be as many out there as there are stars, a finding likely to shock many.

How they came into being is unclear. One theory is that they may be cast-outs, forgotten worlds ejected from infant solar systems by gravitational forces or interplanetary collisions.

Strictly speaking, the objects aren't even planets, as by definition planets orbit a star or the remains of one. But should the researchers have their calculations right, then strange dark orbs which look very much like planets are out there, far far from any shining star.

Glossary 词汇表

a gas giant 巨大的气团 

rogue 流浪的，脱离群体的 

to come into being 怎么形成的 

a cast-out （被）驱逐出来的 

to be ejected from 驱逐，逐出 

a gravitational force 地心引力 

an interplanetary collision 行星之间的碰撞 

strictly speaking 严格来说 

the remains of 某物的残余，残骸 

an orb 圆形天体物

Questions and Answers

1. Where have the scientists found the huge planets? 

They found them in the centre of our galaxy, the Milky Way.

2. How were they made? 

According to one theory, they may have been discarded from newly created solar systems.

3. Why aren't the objects considered to be proper planets? 

Because the word 'planet' is used to describe objects that go round a star or part of it.

4. True or false? A gas giant is a large planet that is not mainly made of rock or other solid matter. 

True. And there are four gas giants in our solar system: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.