英语听力精选进阶版 7484（在线收听）

A series of massive explosions have shaken the Libyan capital Tripoli in what appears to be a major Nato air strike. Columns of smoke rose above the neighbourhood where Colonel Gaddafi's residential compound is located, as Andrew North reports from Tripoli.

北约对利比亚首都的黎波里发动大型空袭活动，造成一系列巨大爆炸。卡扎菲上校官邸所在的社区上空浓烟滚滚。Andrew North在的黎波里报道。

These appear to be the largest Nato strikes on Tripoli so far, and they are still going on. They began around 1:00 am local time with three thunderous explosions from the direction of Colonel Gaddafi's compound, followed by a series of even larger blasts much closer to our hotel. Plumes of smoke are now coming from the area around the Libyan leader's compound. The whole building shook, with the force of each explosion. There were flashes of bright light just before each blast, and aircraft were then heard overhead. Libyan anti-aircraft guns have been opening up into the night sky, firing streams of tracer around.

这似乎是目前为止北约对的黎波里发动的最大规模的空袭，而且现在仍在继续进行。当地时间凌晨1:00，卡扎菲上校居住的公寓方向传来三声雷鸣般的爆炸声，随后，我们的酒店附近出现了一系列更大的爆炸声。现在，这位利比亚领袖官邸周围地区浓烟滚滚。爆炸的威力非常大，整栋建筑都在摇晃。每次爆炸之前都火光冲天，能够听到头顶上飞机的声音。利比亚高射炮向夜空中发射，发射了大量炮弹。

Earlier, it emerged that France and Britain are to deploy attack helicopters against Libyan to try to break the military stalemate. France has dispatched 12 helicopters on an aircraft carrier; Britain is expected to send Apache helicopters based on the country's largest warship. Our defence correspondent Caroline Wyatt reports.

早些时候，法国和英国准备向利比亚派遣攻击直升机，试图打破军事僵局。法国已经派遣12架直升机搭乘航空母舰前往利比亚。英国预期将派遣最大的战船搭载阿帕奇攻击直升机前往。我们的国防记者Caroline Wyatt报道。

The move to use attack helicopters in the campaign marks a significant escalation of the conflict in Libya and a stepping-up of Nato's pressure on Colonel Gaddafi and his forces after weeks of near stalemate. Most of Colonel Gaddafi's troops have shed their uniforms and are using civilian vehicles and hiding armour near civilian buildings, including hospitals and schools, making targeting from fast jets high up in the skies much harder. However, there are dangers involved in the use of helicopters. They are more vulnerable to being hit by rocket-propelled grenades or heavy machine-gun fire and can't stay in the air as long as fast jets, so they need to be deployed carefully to reduce those risks.

在行动中使用攻击直升机的举动标志着经过几周的僵局之后，利比亚冲突的严重升级，标志着北约对卡扎菲上校和他的军队的压力急剧增加。卡扎菲上校大部分军队脱掉军装，使用民用车辆，隐藏在民事建筑附近，包括医院和学校，导致快速喷气式飞机从高空中确定袭击目标更加困难。然而，使用攻击直升机也有一定的危险性，因为直升机更容易受到高射炮或重机枪的攻击，不能像快速喷气式飞机那样在空中逗留那么长的时间。所以必须小心部署，以降低危险性。

The Syrian government has reacted defiantly to the European Union's decision to include President Bashar al-Assad among those subject to sanctions. The Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem said he was confident that Syria would emerge stronger and Mr Assad would remain as leader. The EU announced the new sanctions, which include a travel ban and asset freezes, in response to the violent suppression of anti-government protests over the past two months.

欧盟决定对叙利亚总统阿萨德实施制裁，叙利亚政府作出挑衅性的反应。外交部长Walid al-Muallem宣称，他相信叙利亚将会更加强大，阿萨德仍将是国家领袖。欧盟宣布了包括旅行禁令和财产冻结在内的新的制裁措施，作为对过去两个月政府暴力镇压抗议活动的反应。

At least 116 people are now known to have been killed by a tornado which struck the American city of Joplin in Missouri on Sunday evening. Adam Brooks reports from Washington.

周日晚，密苏里州乔普林市遭遇龙卷风袭击，目前已有至少116人遇难。Adam Brooks在华盛顿报道。

The tornado's progress can be seen in a swathe of destruction nearly 10km long and 0.5km wide. It hit the centre of Joplin, Missouri, a city of 50,000 people, with winds estimated at more than 200km/h. Rescuers dug through hundreds of homes that have been pulverised by the storm, searching for survivors. Severe storms are expected throughout this week, and there are warnings that more tornadoes could appear in Missouri and in Arkansas, Kansas and Oklahoma in the coming days.

通过这条接近10千米长0.5千米宽遭到破坏的范围可以看到这次龙卷风的路径。这次龙卷风袭击了密苏里州乔普林市市中心，风速超过200km/h。这座城市共有50,000人口。搜救人员在被龙卷风摧毁的数百座房屋下挖掘，寻找幸存者。预期本周还会有几个严重的风暴袭击。相关部门预警称，未来几天会有更多龙卷风袭击密苏里，阿肯色，堪萨斯和俄克拉荷马州。

World News from the BBC

Ash from a volcanic eruption in Iceland has begun disrupting air traffic in Britain. Several airlines have cancelled services in and out of Scotland, and some flights over the Atlantic have also been delayed. Meteorologists say the future course of the ash cloud is difficult to forecast because of rapidly changing weather patterns. Last year, ash from another Icelandic volcano forced the cancellation of thousands of flights, causing travel chaos across Europe.

冰岛喷发的一座火山开始扰乱英国空中交通。几家航空公司取消了苏格兰内外的航班，跨越大西洋的几个航班也受到延误。气象学者表示，由于天气状况的迅速变化，火山灰未来的路径难以预测。去年，冰岛另外一座火山喷发的火山灰迫使数千个航班取消，造成整个欧洲的交通混乱。

President Obama has arrived in Britain on the second leg of his European tour. Earlier in Ireland, he praised the relationship between the Irish and American people, saying that never had a nation so small inspired so much in another. The president visited a village where his great-great-great-grandfather once lived. Peter Hunt followed the day's events.

奥巴马总统抵达英国，这是此次欧洲之行的第二站。此前，他在爱尔兰赞扬了爱尔兰和美国人民之间的友好关系，称从来没有一个小国在另外一个国家引起如此大的反响。奥巴马总统还访问了他的外高曾祖父曾经居住的村子。Peter Hunt报道。

A homecoming welcome in Dublin tonight for a black American president embracing his distant Irish ancestry. Barack Obama with his wife Michelle by his side told the crowd "We feel very much at home." Earlier in the day, the couple travelled to the tiny County Offaly village of Moneygall, where they drank Guinness. It was from here that Obama's great-great-great-grandfather left behind the famine in 1850 and immigrated to America. Mr Obama has been forced, because of the ash cloud, to fly to London tonight for the next part of his European tour.

今晚，都柏林为有着爱尔兰血统的黑人美国总统举行了省亲欢迎会。奥巴马总统和第一夫人告诉人们，“我们非常有回到家乡的感觉。”当天早些时候，奥巴马夫妇访问了曼尼格村，并品尝了吉尼斯黑啤酒。1850年，奥巴马的外高曾祖父就是从这个村子逃离饥荒，移民前往美国。由于火山灰的影响，奥巴马被迫飞往伦敦，为欧洲之行的下一站做准备。

Police in Colombia say they've seized a massive haul of cocaine. Sniffer dogs found more than 12 tonnes of the drug hidden in a shipment of brown sugar destined for Mexico. It's believed to belong to one of Colombia's most powerful drug gangs, the Rastrojos.

哥伦比亚警方表示他们缴获了大批可卡因。嗅探犬在前往墨西哥的运输红糖的船只中发现了超过12吨的可卡因。据信，这批毒品属于哥伦比亚最有势力的贩毒团伙Rastrojo。

And scientists say they've found a new animal species - a leech with razor-sharp teeth in the nose of a girl in a remote region of Peru. The leech is described in a top 10 list of new species. It also includes a spider that can span rivers with its web, a batfish that hops and a forest mushroom that glows day and night.

科学家表示他们发现了新的动物物种——在秘鲁偏远地区一个小女孩的鼻子内发现了有着像剪刀一样锋利的牙齿的水蛭。这种水蛭位于十大新物种之列。新物种还包括一种蜘蛛，它编织的网可以跨越河流，还有一种会跳跃的蝙蝠鱼和日夜发热的森林蘑菇。