Hello. This is 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English. I'm Neil.
大家好。這裡是BBC教學英語的《六分鐘英語》節目。我是尼爾。
And I'm Georgina.
我是喬治娜。
With no end in sight to the coronavirus pandemic, many people can't wait for the year 2020 to end.
冠狀病毒大流行看不到盡頭，許多人都迫不及待地希望2020年結束。
But with the coronavirus dominating the newspaper headlines,
但是，隨著冠狀病毒佔據了報紙的頭條，
attention has moved away from an equally serious global issue,
人們的注意力已經從一個同樣嚴重的全球問題上轉移了，
which has quietly been getting worse – climate change.
這個全球問題——氣候變化——正在悄然惡化。
August 2020 saw the hottest temperature recorded anywhere in modern times
2020年8月出現了現代有記錄以來的最高氣溫
– 54.4 degrees Celsius in California's Death Valley.
——加州死亡谷溫度達到54.4攝氏度。
The same month also saw record amounts of ice melting into the oceans around Greenland and the Arctic
同月，創紀錄數量的海冰融化到格陵蘭島和北極周圍的海洋中
- huge icebergs breaking away from the edge of the ice sheet
——巨大的冰山從冰原邊緣斷裂，
– a thick layer of ice which has covered a large area for a long time.
冰原是覆蓋大面積區域很長時間的厚冰層。
Greenland's ice sheet is three times the size of Texas and almost 2 kilometres thick.
格陵蘭島的冰原面積是德克薩斯州的三倍，其厚度近2千米。
Locked inside is enough water to raise sea levels by 6 metres.
被鎖在裡面的水足以使海平面上升6米。
But global heating and melting polar ice has many scientists asking whether it's now too late to stop.
但全球變暖和極地海冰融化讓許多科學家質疑現在停手是否為時已晚。
Have we have reached the point of no return?
我們是否已經到了無法回頭的地步？
In this programme we'll looking at the effects of climate change on the Arctic,
在本期節目中，我們將關注氣候變化對北極的影響，
and asking if it's too late to change.
並詢問現在做出改變是否為時已晚。
And learning some of the related vocabulary too.
也要學習一些相關的詞彙。
Now, Georgina, you mentioned record levels of ice melt in the North Pole,
喬治娜，你剛才提到，北極海冰融化達到了創紀錄的水平，
but the scale is hard to take in.
但其規模很難讓人接受。
The amounts are so big they're measured in gigatonnes – that's a billion metric tonnes.
數量是如此之大，以至於以十億噸來衡量——即十億公噸。
Imagine a giant ice cube 1 kilometre by 1 kilometre by 1 kilometre.
想像一個巨大的冰塊，長寬高都是1千米。
So my quiz question is this:
所以我的問題是：
how many gigatonnes of ice are now melting into the ocean every year?
每年有多少海冰融入海洋？
Is it: a) 450 gigatonnes, b) 500 gigatonnes, orc) 550 gigatonnes?
是：a）4500億噸，b）5000億噸，還是c）5500億噸？
I'll take a guess at b) 500 gigatonnes.
我猜是b) 5000億噸。
OK, Georgina, we'll find out later.
好的，喬治娜，我們稍後將揭曉答案。
Now, glaciologist Michalea King has been monitoring the melting of Arctic ice by satellite.
冰河學家米凱拉·金一直在通過衛星監測北極海冰的融化情況。
Here she is answering a question from BBC World Service programme, Science in Action,
下面是她對BBC全球服務節目《科學在行動》中一個問題的回答，
on whether the destruction of the ice sheet is now unavoidable:
這個問題是：冰原的破壞現在是否是不可避免的。
If we were to say… define a tipping point as a shift from one stable dynamic state to another,
如果我們把臨界點定義為從一個穩定動態到另一個穩定動態的轉變，
this certainly meets that criteria,
那麼這個情況肯定符合那個標準，
because we're seeing now that the ice sheet was more or less in balance prior to 2000
因為我們現在看到的是，在2000年之前冰原或多或少是保持平衡狀態的，
where the amount of ice being drained from the glaciers was approximately equal to what we are gaining on the surface via snow every year.
冰川融化掉的冰量約等於每年通過下雪我們所獲得的表層冰量。
Ice is made from snow falling on Greenland's glaciers - large, slow-moving masses of ice.
落在格陵蘭島冰川上的雪形成冰，冰川是大塊的，緩慢移動的冰。
At the same time though, ice is also lost through melting.
與此同時，冰也會因融化而消失。
These two processes of making and melting ice kept the ice level in balance
冰形成和冰融化的這兩個過程使冰量保持平衡
- having different parts or elements arranged in the correct proportions.
——不同部分或不同元素按恰當的比例排列。
Essentially the melting ice was replaced by newly frozen ice.
本質上就是，新凍結的海冰抵消了融化掉的海冰。
But now, the glaciers are shrinking faster than new ice is being accumulated,
但現在，冰川消融的速度比新形成的海冰的堆積速度還要快，
and the situation may have reached a tipping point
而且這種情況可能已經達到了一個臨界點
- the time at which a change or an effect cannot be stopped.
——變化或影響無法停止的時刻。
So, does this mean that global heating and ice melting are now running automatically,
那麼，這是否意味著全球變暖和海冰融化現在是自動進行的，
separate from the amount of greenhouse gases humans are pumping into the atmosphere?
與人類排放到大氣中的溫室氣體量是分離開來的？
And does that mean should just give up on the planet?
那是否意味著我們應該放棄這個星球？
In fact the situation is far from simple,
事實上，情況遠不簡單，
as Michalea King explains here to BBC World Service programme, Science in Action:
正如米凱拉·金在BBC全球服務節目《科學在行動》中解釋的那樣：
We can definitely control the rate of mass loss,
我們絕對是可以控制住海冰大量流失的速度，
so it's definitely not a 'throw your hands up' and just not do anything about it
所以絕對不是「兩手一攤」，什麼都不做，
– give up on the ice sheet kind of situation
對冰原的狀況持放棄態度，
– that's certainly not the message I want to send
——那當然不是我想要傳遞的消息，
– but it does seem likely that we will continue to lose mass…
但似乎可能海冰會繼續大量流失……
but of course, a slow rate of mass loss is highly preferred to large annual losses every year.
但當然，海冰大量流失速度減緩比每年海冰大量流失更可取。
Michalea thinks that changes in human activity can still slow the rate – or speed at which something happens,
米凱拉認為，人類活動的改變仍可以減緩某些事情發生的速度，
in this case the speed of Greenland's ice sheet melting.
在這裡是指格陵蘭島冰原融化的速度。
She's convinced it's not too late for collective action to save the planet,
她相信，現在採取集體行動拯救地球還為時不晚，
so it's not yet time to throw your hands up
所以還沒到你「兩手一攤」的時候，
– an idiom meaning to show frustration and despair when a situation becomes so bad that you give up or submit.
這個習語是指當情況變得如此糟糕以至於你放棄或屈服時所表現出的沮喪和絕望。
It's a positive message but one which calls for everyone to do what they can before it really is too late.
這是一個積極的信息，但它需要每個人在真的為時過晚之前盡己所能。
Because the rate of ice melt is still increasing, right, Neil?
因為海冰融化的速度仍在增加，對吧，尼爾？
Yes, that's right.
是的，沒錯。
In fact, that was my quiz question, Georgina – do you remember?
事實上那就是我的測試問題，喬治娜，你還記得嗎？
Yes, you asked me how many gigatonnes of Greenland's ice sheet are now melting every year.
是的，你問我格陵蘭島現在每年融化多少冰原。
I said b) 500 gigatonnes.
我說是b) 5000億噸。
And you were…correct!
回答正確！
In fact some of these giant ice cubes are like small towns, almost a kilometre tall!
事實上，這些巨大的冰塊就像小鎮那麼大，幾乎有1千米高！
So there's still work to be done.
所以這方面仍有工作要做。
In this programme we've been looking at the rate – or speed – of ice melt in Greenland's ice sheet
在本期節目中，我們一直在關注格陵蘭島冰原海冰的融化速度。
- the thick layer of ice covering a large area of the Arctic.
冰原是覆蓋北極大部分地區厚冰層。
Previously, the melting ice was replaced by newly formed ice on glaciers – large masses of slow-moving ice.
以前，冰川上新形成的海冰——大量緩慢移動的冰——抵消了融化的海冰。
This kept the Arctic in balance – having different elements arranged in proportion.
這使北極保持了平衡——不同元素按比例排列。
But the effects of global heating have brought us close to a point of no return, called a tipping point
但是全球變暖的影響已經使我們接近了一個不可逆轉的點，它被稱為臨界點
- the time at which a change or an effect cannot be stopped.
——變化或影響無法停止的時刻。
The situation is serious but there's still time to take action and not simply throw your hands up
雖然情況很嚴重，但還有時間採取行動，而不是光「兩手一攤」
– show frustration and despair when you want to give up.
——當你想放棄時所表現出的沮喪和絕望。
That's all for this programme,
以上就是本期節目的全部內容，
but if you want to find out more about climate change and Greenland's ice sheets,
但如果你想了解更多關於氣候變化以及格陵蘭島冰原的信息，
search BBC's Science in Action website.
請搜索BBC的《科學在行動》網站。
And for more trending topics and useful vocabulary,
想了解更多流行話題和有用詞彙，
remember to join us again soon at 6 Minute English.
記得再次加入我們的《六分鐘英語》啊。
Bye for now!
再見了！
Goodbye!
再見！
英文來源：BBC Learning English