立冬啦 关于冬天不可不知的3个单词

The odd collection of weather words used in the media—such as "polar vortex"—are actually advanced technical terminologies for specific weather conditions. "Polar vortex" describes a wind pattern over the North and South Poles. "Bombogenesis" is a slang word used by meteorologists to describe a winter storm that forms quickly.
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体常会用一些奇怪的词汇来描述天气，但其实这些词汇都是用来形容某种特殊天气状况的高级专业术语。比如，“极地涡旋”指的是在南极和北极出现的一种气流。“炸弹生成”被气象学家用来形容快速形成的一种冬季暴风雪。
如何巧记这三个单词？词汇专家袁新民老师通过词根词缀，让你举一反三：袁老师帮你背单词之冬天来了。

Why haven't we heard these words before? According to Chris Vaccaro, a spokesperson for the National Weather Service, meteorologists are using these terms to describe weather conditions in areas that don't typically see such events; the use of these words is then accelerated through social media.
那么为什么我们以前没有听到过这些词呢？据美国国家气象局的发言人克里斯·瓦卡罗称，气象学家们用这些词汇来描述那些罕见地区的罕见天气状况，随后这些词通过媒体得到迅速传播。

Here are three winter weather terms that are particularly apropos this winter.
以下三个天气词汇是最适合用来描述今年冬天天气的三个新词。

Polar Vortex
极地涡旋

词汇专家袁新民老师说：
vortex/ˈvɔːteks;ˋvɔrtɛks/ 是vertex的变体。即vort=vert转,-ex名词后缀；风、水等旋转得很快形成的。A polar vortex, also known as a circumpolar vortex, is a wind current that circulates above the North and South Poles. The currents sit like spinning hats above the Poles.
极地涡旋，又叫环极涡旋，是环绕在南极和北极上空的一股气流，它就像一顶在极地上空不停旋转的草帽一样。

During the winter season, the northern polar vortex typically increases in strength as it is blanketed in 24 hours of darkness. Heat from the surface rises into the atmosphere and creates an area of low pressure above each Pole. The warm air becomes colder because of the lack of sunlight and is contained over the polar region by a jet stream.
冬天的时候，北极由于全天24小时被黑暗笼罩，因此极地涡旋的力度更强。陆地表面的热量上升到大气层中并在极地上空形成低气压。由于缺乏光照热空气变冷被高速气流包裹在极地地区上空。

When the jet stream—a result of colder air over the polar region pushing up against warmer air—is strong, the air stays trapped in the vortex above the polar region. But when the jet stream is weak, undulations or kinks in the jet stream cause polar air streams to travel farther south, an arm of cold air breaking out of an icy circle.
当由于极地地区上空的冷空气推动热空气造成的高速气流很强的时候，空气会被困在极地地区上空的涡旋中。而当高速气流较弱时，来回波动纠结的高速气流会导致极地空气气流向南快速移动，于是一股冷空气就形成了。

The polar vortex itself is nothing new. It has existed for many years, and "it will continue to be there," says Vaccaro. The term "has appeared in meteorologist glossaries dating back to at least the 1950s.
"极地涡旋本身并不是一个新的现象，它已经存在好几年了，而且“还会继续存在”，克里斯说。这个词出现在气象学词汇的时间可以至少追溯到二十世纪五十年代。