VOA标准英语2013--Giant Airship Could Move Huge Amounts of Cargo

 

Giant Airship Could Move Huge Amounts of Cargo¹

The prototype unveiled in this immense World War II hangar near Los Angeles is just half the size of the final working model. But the prototype is massive, at 75-meters-long. It is wide, flattened² on the top, and covered with silver-colored Mylar, a tough kind of polyester.

The craft was built with $35 million in funding from the Pentagon and the U.S. space agency, NASA. The final version will double the length and provide eight times the cargo space, carrying up to 60 metric tons, all without ground support, says Shenny Yao of the company Aeros.

“No airports, no round crew," said Yao. "You do not need anything.”

The airship has a rigid³ structure made of carbon fiber⁴ and aluminum⁵, rotating propellers⁶ for takeoff and landing, and a ballast system that compresses helium to control the lift. Sometimes the craft is heavier than air, and sometimes lighter⁷.

Aeros founder⁸, an immigrant from Ukraine named Igor Pasternak, says it is not an airplane and not an ordinary airship.

“It is really its own category. It is a new type of air vehicle," said Pasternak.

With advanced computer controls, the ship can reach out-of-the-way places, bringing turbines to wind farms and moving other kinds of cargo thousands of kilometers, says Shenny Yao.

“Oil and gas" said Yao. "We talk to {companies that ship} fresh products like flowers. We talk to the fashion industry”

If it works as planned, the craft could reduce shipping⁹ costs, says Igor Pasternak.

“It is the workhorse of the air," he said. "It is the truck of the air.”

The prototype ship has been tested inside the hangar, rising and descending¹⁰ under its own power. Company spokesmen say an outdoor test is expected sometime this year. If the craft works as planned, and potential customers show interest, a commercial version could be production in two to three years. 

1 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

2 flattened   

[医]（水）平扁的，弄平的

参考例句：

• She flattened her nose and lips against the window. 她把鼻子和嘴唇紧贴着窗户。
• I flattened myself against the wall to let them pass. 我身体紧靠着墙让他们通过。

3 rigid   

adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的

参考例句：

• She became as rigid as adamant.她变得如顽石般的固执。
• The examination was so rigid that nearly all aspirants were ruled out.考试很严，几乎所有的考生都被淘汰了。

4 fiber   

n.纤维，纤维质

参考例句：

• The basic structural unit of yarn is the fiber.纤维是纱的基本结构单元。
• The material must be free of fiber clumps.这种材料必须无纤维块。

5 aluminum   

n.(aluminium)铝

参考例句：

• The aluminum sheets cannot be too much thicker than 0.04 inches.铝板厚度不能超过0.04英寸。
• During the launch phase,it would ride in a protective aluminum shell.在发射阶段，它盛在一只保护的铝壳里。

6 propellers   

n.螺旋桨，推进器( propeller的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The water was thrashing and churning about under the propellers. 水在螺旋桨下面打旋、翻滚。 来自辞典例句
• The ship's propellers churned the waves to foam. 轮船的推进器将海浪搅出泡沫。 来自辞典例句

7 lighter   

n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级

参考例句：

• The portrait was touched up so as to make it lighter.这张画经过润色，色调明朗了一些。
• The lighter works off the car battery.引燃器利用汽车蓄电池打火。

8 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

9 shipping   

n.船运（发货，运输，乘船）

参考例句：

• We struck a bargain with an American shipping firm.我们和一家美国船运公司谈成了一笔生意。
• There's a shipping charge of ￡5 added to the price.价格之外另加五英镑运输费。

10 descending   

n. 下行 adj. 下降的

参考例句：

• The results are expressed in descending numerical order . 结果按数字降序列出。
• The climbers stopped to orient themselves before descending the mountain. 登山者先停下来确定所在的位置，然后再下山。