2006年VOA标准英语-Experts Still Working on North Korean Nuclear C

By Al Pessin
Pentagon
10 October 2006

The U.S. Defense¹ Department says it is still evaluating data from the explosion and small earth tremor² in North Korea on Monday to determine whether it was in fact an underground nuclear test, as the North Korean government claims.

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Bryan Whitman  
  
Nearly two full days after the explosion in North Korea, U.S. officials, including Pentagon Spokesman Bryan Whitman, cannot say for sure whether it was a nuclear explosion or not.

He said, "We're continuing to assess the event to determine the veracity³ of the claim made by the North Korean government that they conducted an underground nuclear test."

Whitman says it takes time to analyze⁴ the seismic⁵ data, conduct atmospheric⁶ tests and do other work he cannot discuss to determine what caused the explosion. And he notes that the work is being done in several parts of the U.S. government and by government and private researchers around the world.

Former Defense Department technology official Philip Coyle, who is now with the Center for Defense Information, says the North Korean event is particularly hard to analyze.

He said, "Well, a reason it's taking so long is that it appears to be quite a small nuclear test. Perhaps less than a kiloton, which sounds like a lot but is actually small as nuclear devices go."

The former official, who has 40 years of experience in nuclear testing and evaluation⁷, says it is difficult to isolate⁸ the impact of such a small explosion among all the seismic movements detected by sensors⁹ in the region. 

 
Japan's Meteorological Agency staff is silhouetted¹⁰ while pointing the seismic wave measured in Japan's various points, Monday, October 9, 2006
  
But he says once the event is isolated¹¹, experts can determine whether it was an earthquake, a conventional explosion or a nuclear detonation¹². He says a nuclear explosion originates from a much smaller source than an earthquake or conventional explosion of the same magnitude.

In addition, Philip Coyle says efforts have no doubt been made to sample the air near North Korea. But he says any exhaust from such a small test could be very difficult to detect, and North Korea says there was no such exhaust.

Beyond that, Coyle says, intelligence agencies are also likely seeking indications of whether the test was real or not.

"There may be some intelligence that intelligence agencies will be able to get about it, for example, picking up on Internet traffic, voice messages, things like that. In may be that the National Security Agency will have some information also," he said.

Another analyst¹³, former CNN reporter Mike Chinoy of the Pacific Council on International Policy, who has visited North Korea 14 times, says although it is always difficult to know what the country's leaders are thinking, he cannot imagine they would pretend to conduct a nuclear test.

He said, "Without being privy¹⁴ to all the scientific and intelligence information, my own sense is that it would be unlikely for the North Koreans to risk the kind of reaction they're getting around the world, politically, or to take the step of announcing it this way, both the international community and their own people, if they weren't trying to explode something that had a nuclear component¹⁵."

Some analysts¹⁶ say the North Korean explosion may have been a failed nuclear test, or one that worked only partially¹⁷.

The Washington Times newspaper quotes unnamed U.S. intelligence officials as saying that is exactly what happened. And a South Korean newspaper quotes a North Korean diplomat¹⁸ as saying the same thing.

That would fit what is known so far about the North Korean explosion. Philip Coyle at the Center for Defense Information says there would not seem to be any reason for North Korea to do such a small test intentionally¹⁹, but the secretive state might have wanted to keep the world guessing.

"If North Korea's purpose here is to be seen as a major nuclear power, you might think they would want unambiguous test result[s]. But perhaps they meant to make it small. It's hard to know," he said.

On Tuesday, White House Spokesman Tony Snow said the world may never know for sure whether the North Korean explosion was nuclear. But the Pentagon spokesman, Bryan Whitman, said he believes experts will come up with a clear answer.

He said, "We don't have to guess. We don't have to speculate. We will know in time. And when we know, I'm sure you'll know."

Whitman would not say how long the analysis will take, but testing expert Philip Coyle says he thinks there should be a definitive²⁰ answer within another couple of days.

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 tremor   

n.震动，颤动，战栗，兴奋，地震

参考例句：

• There was a slight tremor in his voice.他的声音有点颤抖。
• A slight earth tremor was felt in California.加利福尼亚发生了轻微的地震。

3 veracity   

n.诚实

参考例句：

• I can testify to this man's veracity and good character.我可以作证，此人诚实可靠品德良好。
• There is no reason to doubt the veracity of the evidence.没有理由怀疑证据的真实性。

4 analyze   

vt.分析，解析 (=analyse)

参考例句：

• We should analyze the cause and effect of this event.我们应该分析这场事变的因果。
• The teacher tried to analyze the cause of our failure.老师设法分析我们失败的原因。

5 seismic   

a.地震的，地震强度的

参考例句：

• Earthquakes produce two types of seismic waves.地震产生两种地震波。
• The latest seismic activity was also felt in northern Kenya.肯尼亚北部也感觉到了最近的地震活动。

6 atmospheric   

adj.大气的，空气的；大气层的；大气所引起的

参考例句：

• Sea surface temperatures and atmospheric circulation are strongly coupled.海洋表面温度与大气环流是密切相关的。
• Clouds return radiant energy to the surface primarily via the atmospheric window.云主要通过大气窗区向地表辐射能量。

7 evaluation   

n.估价，评价；赋值

参考例句：

• I attempted an honest evaluation of my own life.我试图如实地评价我自己的一生。
• The new scheme is still under evaluation.新方案还在评估阶段。

8 isolate   

vt.使孤立，隔离

参考例句：

• Do not isolate yourself from others.不要把自己孤立起来。
• We should never isolate ourselves from the masses.我们永远不能脱离群众。

9 sensors   

n.传感器，灵敏元件( sensor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There were more than 2000 sensors here. 这里装有两千多个灵敏元件。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Significant changes have been noted where sensors were exposed to trichloride. 当传感器暴露在三氯化物中时，有很大变化。 来自辞典例句

10 silhouetted   

显出轮廓的，显示影像的

参考例句：

• We could see a church silhouetted against the skyline. 我们可以看到一座教堂凸现在天际。
• The stark jagged rocks were silhouetted against the sky. 光秃嶙峋的岩石衬托着天空的背景矗立在那里。

11 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

12 detonation   

n.爆炸；巨响

参考例句：

• A fearful detonation burst forth on the barricade.街垒传来一阵骇人的爆炸声。
• Within a few hundreds of microseconds,detonation is complete.在几百微秒之内，爆炸便完成了。

13 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

14 privy   

adj.私用的；隐密的

参考例句：

• Only three people,including a policeman,will be privy to the facts.只会允许3个人，其中包括一名警察，了解这些内情。
• Very few of them were privy to the details of the conspiracy.他们中很少有人知道这一阴谋的详情。

15 component   

n.组成部分，成分，元件；adj.组成的，合成的

参考例句：

• Each component is carefully checked before assembly.每个零件在装配前都经过仔细检查。
• Blade and handle are the component parts of a knife.刀身和刀柄是一把刀的组成部分。

16 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

17 partially   

adv.部分地，从某些方面讲

参考例句：

• The door was partially concealed by the drapes.门有一部分被门帘遮住了。
• The police managed to restore calm and the curfew was partially lifted.警方设法恢复了平静，宵禁部分解除。

18 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

19 intentionally   

ad.故意地，有意地

参考例句：

• I didn't say it intentionally. 我是无心说的。
• The local authority ruled that he had made himself intentionally homeless and was therefore not entitled to be rehoused. 当地政府裁定他是有意居无定所，因此没有资格再获得提供住房。

20 definitive   

adj.确切的，权威性的；最后的，决定性的

参考例句：

• This book is the definitive guide to world cuisine.这本书是世界美食的权威指南。
• No one has come up with a definitive answer as to why this should be so.至于为什么该这样，还没有人给出明确的答复。