国家地理:送给外星人的地图(8)（在线收听）

Dad's map, of course, is still out there -- but chances are slim to zero that the Pioneers or Voyagers carrying it will be intercepted. Though all four spacecraft are on interstellar trajectories, space is big, and the next stellar systems on the horizon are many thousands of years away. Plus, the spacecraft are tiny and will be completely quiet within the next couple of decades, making them extremely hard to detect.

当然，爸爸的地图仍在--但搭载它的“先驱者号”或“旅行者号”被截获的希望越来越渺茫。虽然四艘探测器全部处在星际轨道上，但宇宙太大了，还要再过几千年它们才会遇到下一个星系。此外，这些航天飞船都很小，当它们在接下来的几十年里彻底停止发送信号时，就更难被探测到了。

As for sending the new map: There's no Voyager-like space probe scheduled for launch anytime soon. But if this map did hitch a ride beyond our solar system, and if it got scooped up by intelligent space aliens, the map should be quite easy for them to read and follow.

至于发送新地图：短期内不会发射类似“旅行者号”的太空探测器了。但如果这张地图真的在太阳系之外搭上了顺风车，如果它被聪明的外星人发现，那么这张地图对他们来说应该很容易阅读和理解。

That raises all sorts of questions: Would extraterrestrial beings at those distances have the means to reach Earth? If so and they head our way, what if they don't come in peace? What if they're hangry? And what if they're not vegetarians?

这就引出了各种各样的问题：距离那么远的外星生物有办法到达地球吗？如果可以实现，他们朝我们飞来，但不是带着和平的目的呢？如果他们饿极成怒了怎么办？如果他们不是素食主义者呢？

Here's the fundamental question that didn't stop Carl and Dad: Is it a good idea to randomly send our address into the cosmos? Today, some folks would have no reservations, given that earthly transmissions already are leaking into space and, traveling at the speed of light, are detectable by anyone with a decent radio telescope living within a hundred light-years of us. Other folks, perhaps more cautiously, would hold off on announcing our presence until we know if ETs have honorable intentions.

有一个根本的问题并没有阻止卡尔和爸爸：随意把我们的地址发送到宇宙中真的是个好主意吗？现如今，有些人可能会对此毫不在意，因为地球上的信息已经泄露到太空中，并且以光速传播，任何生活在我们周围100光年以内的生物，只要有一台像样的射电望远镜，就能发现这些信息。其他人，也许更谨慎，会推迟宣布我们的存在，直到我们清楚了外星人的意图是否高尚。