It just may be the world's most costly vacuum cleaner. The price of CleanSpace One is eleven million dollars. But yet, it has a big job to do. Recently, researchers in Switzerland announced plans to build this new cleaning device. The researchers work at the Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne. 世界上最昂貴的吸塵器。清潔空間一號的價格是1100萬美元。但它仍有一項重大的工作要做。最近,瑞士的研究人員宣布了製造這種新型清潔設備的計劃。研究人員在洛桑聯邦理工學院工作。
CleanSpace One will not be for use in homes or businesses. It will be shot into space to help remove the thousands of pieces of space junk floating around up there.它可能是清潔空間一號將不會用於家庭或企業。它將被發射到太空,幫助清除漂浮在那裡的數千塊太空垃圾。
CHRISTOPHER CRUISE: Last year, we reported on the problem of space junk. Over time, many unused spacecraft have hit each other far above the Earth. Big pieces break into thousands of small pieces. Sometimes they fall back into the atmosphere and burn up. But when they do not, it creates big problems. 克里斯多福·克魯斯:去年,我們報導了太空垃圾問題。隨著時間的推移,許多未使用過的太空飛行器在離地球很遠的地方相撞。大的碎片會碎成成千上萬的小碎片。有時它們會掉回大氣中燃燒。但如果他們不這樣做,就會產生大問題。
Scientists fear that if something is not done to remove these objects, it may soon become too dangerous to send people and machines into space. There is a large chance that they might crash into some of this junk. So that is why the Swiss researchers are developing the new device.科學家們擔心,如果不採取措施清除這些物體,將人類和機器送入太空可能很快就會變得太危險。他們很有可能撞上這些垃圾。這就是為什麼瑞士的研究人員正在開發這種新設備的原因。
JIM TEDDER: CleanSpace One is not really a vacuum cleaner. It will not be used to take away space junk. But scientists plan to move it close to an old satellite that is no longer being used. Then a claw-like instrument will seize the satellite, and force it back through the atmosphere. There, the satellite will be destroyed by the heat of friction with the air.吉姆·特德:清潔空間一號其實並不是真空吸塵器。它不會被用來清除太空垃圾。但是科學家們計劃把它移到一個不再使用的舊衛星附近。然後一個像爪子一樣的儀器會抓住衛星,迫使它穿過大氣層。在那裡,衛星將被與空氣的摩擦熱摧毀。
Researchers say that all they need to do is slow down the speed of some of these unwanted objects. Once these items begin to move more slowly, they will fall back to Earth. There is little chance that they will fall through the atmosphere and harm the people or things below. Some space junk has returned to Earth, but it usually causes no harm as it falls into the ocean.研究人員說,他們所需要做的就是減慢這些不需要的物體的速度。一旦這些物體開始緩慢移動,它們就會落回地球。它們掉入大氣層並傷害下面的人或物的可能性很小。一些太空垃圾已經返回地球,但它通常不會造成傷害,因為它落入海洋。
CHRISTOPHER CRUISE: The American space agency NASA and scientific organizations in other countries know that space junk is a serious problem. They are tracking the movement of over twenty thousand unwanted items circling the Earth. Some people have suggested using lasers to push the items into a lower and slower orbit.克里斯多福·克魯斯:美國宇航局和其他國家的科學組織都知道太空垃圾是一個嚴重的問題。他們正在跟蹤兩萬多件不需要的物品在地球上的運動。一些人建議使用雷射將這些物體推進一個更低更慢的軌道。
NASA recently gave money to a South Carolina company that hopes to make a device called Eddy. That is the short name for ElectroDynamic Debris Eliminator. Eddy would work like the Swiss space cleaner. But it would use a net to catch an old satellite like a fish before sending it back through the atmosphere.美國國家航空航天局最近向南卡羅來納的一家公司捐款,該公司希望製造一種名為渦流的設備。這是電動除渣器的簡稱。艾迪會像瑞士的太空清潔工一樣工作。但是它會像魚一樣先用網捕獲一顆舊衛星,然後再把它送回大氣層。
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