新概念英语第二册第61课-Trouble with the Hubble

新概念英语第二册第61课:Trouble with the Hubble

Lesson 61 Trouble with the Hubble哈勃望远镜的困境First listen and then answer the question.

听录音，然后回答以下问题。

What is the special importance of a telescope in space?

The Hubble telescope was launched into space by NASA on April 20,1990 at a cost of over a billion dollars. Right from the start there was trouble with the Hubble. The pictures it sent us were very disappointing because its main mirror was faulty! NASA is now going to put the telescope right, so it will soon be sending up four astronauts to repair it. The shuttle Endeavour will be taking the astronauts to the Hubble. A robot-arm from the Endeavour will grab the telescope and hold it while the astronauts make the necessary repairs. Of course, the Hubble is above the earth's atmosphere, so it will soon be sending us the clearest pictures of the stars and distant galaxies that we have ever seen. The Hubble will tell us a great deal about the age and size of the universe. By the time you read this, the Hubble's eagle eye will have sent us thousands and thousands of wonderful pictures.

参考译文

哈勃望远镜于1990年4月20日由国家航空航天局发射升空，耗资10多亿美元。从最开始哈勃望远镜就有问题。它传送给我们的图像很令人失望，因为它的主要镜子有误差。国家航天局准备纠正这一错误，为此将把4名宇航员送入太空修复望远镜。“奋进”号航天飞机将把宇航员送上哈勃。当宇航员进行必要的修复工作时，“奋进”号上的一只机器手将抓住望远镜并托住它。当然，哈勃位于地球的大气层之外，因此，它很快就会给我们传送我们所见到过的、有关行星和远距离星系的最清晰的照片。哈勃将告诉我们有关宇宙的年龄和大小的许多事情。等到你读到这篇文章时，敏锐的哈勃望远镜已经为我们送来了成千上万张精彩的照片。

New words and Expressions生词和短语

Hubble

n. 哈勃

telescope

n. 望远镜

launch

v. 发射

space

n. 空间

NASA

n.(National Aeronautics and Space Administration) 国家航空和航天局

billion

n. 10亿

faulty

adj. 有错误的

astronaut

n. 宇航员

shuttle

n. 航天飞机

Endeavour

n. “奋进”号

robot-arm

n. 机器手

grab

v. 抓

atmosphere

n. 大气层

distant

adj. 遥远的

galaxy

n. 星系

universe

n. 宇宙

eagle eye

鹰眼

Lesson 61 自学导读First things first 课文详注 Further notes on the text

1．at a cost of,造价为……，耗资，以……的价格/费用。

He has just built a new house for his family at a cost of ￡10,000.

他刚为他的家庭盖了一座新房子，耗资1万英镑。

2．Right from the start there was trouble with the Hubble. 从最开始哈勃望远镜就有问题。

（1）start为名词，表示“开始”、“开端”，from the start表示“从开始时”，副词right起强调作用：

He didn't want to work at the firm(right) from the start.

他从最开始就不想在这家公司上班。

（2）trouble在这里指“（机器等的）故障”、“问题”：

There is (engine) trouble with my car.

我的汽车（发动机）有问题。

（3）the Hubble代指 the Hubble telescope。由于上下文中没有其他以Hubble命名的东西，前面又提到过一次Hubble telescope,所以用 the Hubble 既简洁又不会引起误解。

3．NASA is now going to put the telescope right…国家航天局准备纠正这一错误……

put right表示“修好（故障等）”、“校正”、“纠正”等：

Have you put the watch/clock right?

你把表/钟对好了吗？

Remember to put the lights right tomorrow.

明天记得把灯修好。

4．…the Hubble is above the earth's atmosphere, so it will soon be sending us the clearest pictures of the stars and distant galaxies that we have ever seen.……哈勃位于地球的大气层之外，因此，它很快就会给我们传送我们所见到过的、有关恒星和远距离星系的最清晰的照片。

（1）关系从句that we have ever seen修饰pictures。

（2）由于哈勃望远镜位于大气层之外，它照相便不受大气的阻挡，因此照片清晰。