VOA慢速英语--在太空存放一年的法国葡萄酒将返回地球

SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft landed off the coast of Florida Wednesday night carrying research materials, equipment and 12 bottles of French wine.

But not just any wine!

These bottles of wine and some grapevines had spent about a year in the International Space Station, orbiting the world in the name of science.

The wine will not be opened until the end of February. That is when Space Cargo¹ Unlimited² plans to open a bottle or two for an out-of-this-world wine tasting in Bordeaux, France.

Agricultural science is the main goal of the research, says Nicolas Gaume, the company's chief and co-founder. But he admits it will be fun to try the wine. He will be among the lucky few taking a taste, along with some French wine experts.

Months of chemical testing will follow. Researchers want to see how space changed the wine's sedimentation³ and bubbles. Sedimentation is the process in which material is carried to the bottom of a liquid.

Gaume told the Associated Press that his company's goal is to try to understand "how we're going to have an agriculture tomorrow that is both organic and healthy and able to feed humanity." Gaume added, "we think space has the key."

With climate change, Gaume added agricultural products like grapes will need to be able to live in more difficult conditions. Through a series of space experiments, Space Cargo Unlimited hopes to take what is learned to make plants stronger on Earth.

There is another reason for doing such space research. Gaume expects future explorers to the moon and Mars will want to enjoy some of Earth's nice things. "Being French, it's part of life to have some good food and good wine," he said.

The wine bottles were kept in steel containers for safety when they went to the space station on a Northrop Grumman ship in November 2019. The 320 pieces of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon vines, called canes⁴ in the grape-growing business, left on the SpaceX spacecraft last March.

At this time, SpaceX's Dragon is the only spacecraft capable of returning space station experiments and other items to Earth. Others burn up in the atmosphere on their return.

Words in This Story

wine – n. an alcoholic⁵ drink made from the juice of grapes

grapevine – n. a climbing plant on which grapes grow

bubble – n. a tiny, round ball of air or gas inside a liquid

organic – adj. of food : grown or made without the use of artificial chemicals key

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 unlimited   

adj.无限的，不受控制的，无条件的

参考例句：

• They flew over the unlimited reaches of the Arctic.他们飞过了茫茫无边的北极上空。
• There is no safety in unlimited technological hubris.在技术方面自以为是会很危险。

3 sedimentation   

n.沉淀，沉积

参考例句：

• Sedimentation, the damage of a breach are problems, too. 而且沉积和决口的问题，也是存在的。 来自英语晨读30分（高二）
• Sedimentation and denudation play a role in exceptional cases. 沉积和剥蚀作用的影响只在特殊情况下起作用。

4 canes   

n.（某些植物，如竹或甘蔗的）茎( cane的名词复数 )；（用于制作家具等的）竹竿；竹杖

参考例句：

• Sugar canes eat sweet. 甘蔗吃起来很甜。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I saw several sugar canes, but wild, and for cultivation, imperfect. 我还看到一些甘蔗，因为是野生的，未经人工栽培，所以不太好吃。 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 文学

5 alcoholic   

adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者

参考例句：

• The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
• Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。