VOA慢速英语2019 罕见登月视频将在登月50周年纪念日出售

Rare Moon Landing Video to Be Sold on 50th Anniversary

Gary George was a college student when he bought reels of videotape from the United States space agency NASA at a government surplus auction¹ in 1976. He spent $218 for more than 1,100 reels of tape.

1976年，加里·乔治在一次政府盈余拍卖会上从美国宇航局（NASA）买了几卷录像带，当时他还是一名大学生。他花了218美元买了1100多卷磁带。

It seems that George made a good investment. He might become a millionaire this month when the company Sotheby’s auctions² what it says is the only surviving original recording³ of man’s first steps on the moon.

乔治似乎做了一笔不错的投资。本月，苏富比拍卖会上，他可能成为百万富翁。据报道，这是唯一现存的人类登月第一步的原始记录。

George is a 65-year-old retired⁴ mechanical engineer from Las Vegas. He spoke⁵ about the tapes in a phone interview with the Reuters news agency. George said, “I had no idea there was anything of value on them.” He added, “I was selling them to TV stations just to record over.”

乔治是拉斯维加斯一名65岁的退休机械工程师。他在接受路透社的电话采访时谈到了这些录音带。乔治说，“我不知道它们有什么价值。”他补充说，“我把它们卖给电视台只是为了录制节目。”

But three of the tapes are valuable. They record the July 20, 1969 moon landing of the Apollo 11 mission.

但其中三盘录像带很有价值。它们记录了1969年7月20日阿波罗11号登月任务。 

George almost gave away the three moon videos. He was going to donate some of the tapes to a church. His father saw three tapes marked “Apollo 11 EVA.” EVA is a term used by NASA that means extra vehicular activity.

乔治差点把三个登月录像都送人了。他打算把一些磁带捐给教堂。他的父亲看到了三盘标有“阿波罗11号EVA”的磁带。EVA是美国宇航局使用的一个术语，意思是航天员舱外活动。

“He [George’s father] was really into the space program and he said, ‘I think I’d hang on to those. They might be valuable someday,’” George recalled. “So, for that very reason, I pulled them out and hauled them around the country for the next 43 years.”

“他（乔治的父亲）非常喜欢太空计划，他说，‘我想我会坚持保存这些录像带。也许有一天它们会很有价值。’”乔治回忆道。“因此，出于这个原因，在接下来的43年里，我把它们带出来，拖着它们走遍了整个国家。”

One of the videos has images of the first steps on the moon by astronaut Neil Armstrong.It includes his famous words, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

其中一个视频展示了宇航员尼尔·阿姆斯特朗在月球上迈出的第一步。其中包括他的名言:“这是一个人的一小步，人类的一大步。”

Another video shows astronaut Buzz Aldrin walking on the moon.

另一个视频展示了宇航员巴兹·奥尔德林在月球上行走。 

Sotheby’s spokeswoman Hallie Freer said the videos also show the astronauts planting the American flag on the moon and collecting soil and rock samples.

苏富比发言人哈里弗里尔说，录像还显示宇航员在月球上插上美国国旗，采集土壤和岩石样本。 

Freer said the tapes might sell for as much as $2 million when they go on auction on July 20: 50 years after the moon landing. She declined to give the financial terms between Sotheby’s and the seller.

弗里尔说，这些录像带将于7月20日，即登月50年后，以200万美元的价格拍卖。她拒绝透露苏富比与卖家之间的财务条款。

Collectors have paid large amounts of money for objects linked to space exploration. In 2017, Sotheby’s sold a bag used by Armstrong on the 1969 mission. The price: $1.8 million dollars.

收藏家们为了收藏太空探索有关的物品支付了大量的钱。2017年，苏富比在1969年的任务中出售了阿姆斯特朗使用的一个袋子。价格为180万美元。

Words in This Story

reel – n. an object that is used to hold and release film or tape

auction – n. a public sale at which things are sold to the people who offer to pay the most

original –adj. made or produced first, not a copy

hang on to – phrasal verb - to keep (something)

haul – v. to move or carry (something) with effort

1 auction   

n.拍卖；拍卖会；vt.拍卖

参考例句：

• They've put the contents of their house up for auction.他们把房子里的东西全都拿去拍卖了。
• They bought a new minibus with the proceeds from the auction.他们用拍卖得来的钱买了一辆新面包车。

2 auctions   

n.拍卖，拍卖方式( auction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They picked up most of the furniture at auctions in country towns. 他们大部分的家具都是在乡村镇上的拍卖处买的。 来自辞典例句
• Our dealers didn't want these cars, so we had to dump them at auctions. 我们的承销商都不要这些车子，因此我们只好贱价拍卖。 来自辞典例句

3 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

4 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

5 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。