大学英语自学教程 下册 un02

[08:20.01]The earth is one of nine planets which move in orbit round the sun.
[08:23.20]地球是沿轨道围绕太阳运行的九大行星之一.
[08:26.38]These nine planets,together with the sun,
[08:28.76]这九大行星和太阳一起
[08:31.14]make up what is called our solar system.
[08:33.32]组成了所谓的我们的太阳系.
[08:35.50]How this wonderful system started?
[08:37.42]这个奇妙的星系是怎样开始的?
[08:39.34]and what kept it working with such wonderful accuracy is largely a mystery
[08:42.28]什么使它保持极精确的运行?从相当程度上讲这是个谜.
[08:45.22]but astronomers tell us
[08:46.84]但天文学家告诉我们
[08:48.46]that it is only one of millions of similar systemsin space,and one of the smallest.
[08:52.04]太阳系只是太空里几百个相似的星系之一,并且是最小的星系之一.
[08:55.61]The stars which we see glittering in the sky on a dark and cloudless night
[08:58.79]在漆黑无云的夜晚,我们看到的在空中闪烁的星星
[09:01.96]are almost certainly the suns of other solar systems more or less like our own,
[09:05.14]几乎都是其他多少与我们的星系中的恒星.
[09:08.31]but they are so far away in space
[09:10.28]但它们在太空中距离我们如此遥远
[09:12.25]that it is unlikely that we shall ever get to know very much about them.
[09:15.18]以至于我们不可能对其了解太多.
[09:18.11]About our own solar system,however,we are learning more every day.
[09:21.08]然而对于我们的太阳系,每天我们都会了解到更多的东西.
[09:24.06]Before the American and Russian astronauts
[09:28.22]made their thrilling journeys into outer space
[09:30.59]在美国和俄罗斯宇航员进行激动人心的太空旅行之前,
[09:32.97]it was difficult for us to realise
[09:36.91]what our earth looked like from hundreds of thousands of miles' away,
[09:39.64]我们很难认识到从数十万英里以外的地方看地球会是什么样子.
[09:42.37]but the photographs which the astronauts were able to take
[09:47.23]show us the earth in space
[09:48.97]但宇航员们能够拍到的照片为我们太空中地球
[09:50.71]looking not very different from what the moon looks like when we look at it from the eart.
[09:53.63]看上和我们在地球上看到的月亮没有什么大的不同.
[09:56.56]The earth is,however,very different from the moon,
[09:58.88]然而,地球与月亮确有很大不同,
[10:01.21]which the American astronauts have found1 to be without life or,vegetation,
[10:04.15]美国宇航员发现月球上没有生命和植物生长.
[10:07.09]whereas our earth is very much alive in every respect.
[10:09.57]而我们的地球在各方面都生气勃勃.
[10:12.05]The moon,by the way,is called a satellite
[10:14.43]顺便说一下,月亮被称为卫星,
[10:16.80]because it goes round our earth as well as round the sun.
[10:19.28]是因为它围绕着我们的地球运转同时绕太阳运转.
[10:21.77]In other words,it goes round the sun with our earth.
[10:24.34]换句话说,它随着地球围绕太阳运行.
[10:26.91]The surface of our earth is covered by masses of land and larger areas of water.
[10:30.30]我们的地球表面覆盖着一块块的陆地和更大面积的水域.
[10:33.68]Let us consider the water areas frist.
[10:35.81]让我们首先考虑一下水域,
[10:37.94]The total water area is about three times as large as the land area.
[10:40.90]其总面积大概是陆地面积的3倍.
[10:43.87]The very large separate areas of water are called "oceans"
[10:46.65]很大的隔开的水域称为"洋",
[10:49.43]and the lesser areas are called "seas."
[10:51.65]小一些的水域称为"海".
[10:53.87]In most of:the oceans and seas
[10:55.70]在大部分海洋里,
[10:57.53]some of the wateris found to be flowing in a particular direction that is to say,
[11:00.95]人们发现一些水域是沿着特有的方向流动的
[11:04.37]from one Fart towards another part of the ocean or sea concerned.
[11:07.05]---这就是说,从流经的海洋的一个区域流向别一区域.
[11:09.73]The water which is flowing in this manner is said to be moving as a"current"
[11:12.81]以这种方式流动的水叫"海流".
[11:15.89]There are many thousands of currents in the waters of the oceans and seas
[11:18.67]流动在海洋的水域里有成千上万条海流,
[11:21.46]but only certain of the stronger and better marked currents
[11:24.03]但只有若干条较强和较显著的海流被专门命名,
[11:26.60]are specially named and of great importance.
[11:28.88]而且其具有很大重要性.
[11:31.15]These currents are important