VOA慢速英语:NASA’s Aquarius Satellite Will Help Scientists Learn About Salt Levels in the Sea

短语讲解：

1. We report on plans to collect rock particles from a nearby asteroid.

report on报道…, 就…作报告
例句：At the end of every term a schoolmaster reports on each of his pupils.
每学期结束时, 教员都要报告每位学生的情况。

2. The aim of the project is to learn about our changing climate.

learn about获得, 学得
例句：It's no use learning facts about a subject if you don't understand it.
只了解某一学科的知识而并不理解, 那是毫无用处的。

3. Water from the sea rises up as vapor to form clouds before changing to rain or snow.

rise up耸立, 上升
例句：We are sure that there is somebody in the house because we see smoke rise straight up in the air.
我们确信房子里有人, 因为我们看到有烟冒出来。

4. Most of the planet’s evaporation and precipitation take place over oceans.

take place发生，进行
例句：Earthquakes take place far underground. 
地震则发生在地球的极深处。 

5. These, in turn, depend on the water’s temperature and saltiness.

in turn依次, 轮流地
例句：They answered the teacher's questions in turn.
他们依次回答了老师的问题。
depend on取决于
例句：It depends on the weather.
那要看天气如何而定。

6. Many climate forecasting models suggest that it will change over time as the climate warms up.

warm up使热; 变热
例句：A little wine would warm you up.
喝点儿酒会使你暖和起来。

7. The satellite is equipped with microwave radiometers.

equip with装备，配备
例句：They equipped themselves with a pair of sharp axes and set off for the forest.
他们带上两把利斧便朝森林走去。

8. NASA already has a collection of meteorites, small pieces of asteroids that broke away and fell to Earth.

break away突然离开; 突然挣脱
例句：The criminal broke away from the young policemen.
那名罪犯从年轻警察手里逃脱了。

9. But the intense heat of passing through the Earth’s atmosphere likely damaged those molecules.

pass through经过, 通过
例句：A diameter passes through the center of a circle.
直径从圆心穿过。

10. After they land, meteorites can pick up small organisms and chemicals from Earth’s environment.

pick up拾起, 捡起; 抬起
例句：I would have picked it up if I had noticed it.
我如果看见的话, 我早就把它拣起来了。

11. This small push adds up over time.

add up 加起来, 总计, 积少成多
例句：At the exits polite assistants will take the goods and add up the cost.
在出口处, 客气的服务员把你的商品接过去, 把价钱加在一起。

12. There are strategies such as putting a large Mylar sail, maybe say half a mile across, attached to the surface, that in itself is an interesting engineering challenge, and using photons from the Sun to sail it away much like a sailboat works on the ocean.

attach to (使)贴〔系, 粘〕在…上
例句：The written directions are attached to the tool.
这个工具附有使用说明书。

13. NASA scientists say the agency’s two Voyager spacecraft have provided some surprising news about the edge of the solar system.

solar system太阳系
例句：Pluto is the furthest planet in the solar system.
冥王星是太阳系中距离太阳最远的行星。

14. Earlier theories predicted that the faraway magnetic folds of the sun were curved and folded back to rejoin the sun.

fold back对叠起来
例句：He folded back the page so he could remember the place.
他将那页书折起来, 这样他可以记得自己读到什么地方了。