近15年來首批潛入泰坦尼克號的探險人員說，沉船殘骸腐蝕程度在進一步地惡化。這個由深海探險家組成的國際團隊先后五次潛入海底，對殘骸進行了勘查。他們發(fā)現(xiàn)，雖然沉船的部分殘骸狀況出奇地好，但也有一些部分已經(jīng)消失在大海中。

文字稿

This is the sound of a submersible taking divers to the Titanic for the first time in nearly fifteen years. Their footage reveals the bow of the wreck emerging from the deep-sea gloom.

這是近15年來潛水器首次將潛水員帶到泰坦尼克號上的聲音。從他們拍攝的影像中可以看到沉船的船頭從深海的黑暗中浮現(xiàn)出來。

Lying nearly 4,000 metres down in the Atlantic. It's rusty and covered in sea life, but still recognisable more than one hundred years after the Titanic sank. However, while some parts of the ship are in surprisingly good condition, other features have disappeared.

躺在近4000米深的大西洋海底，雖然它銹跡斑斑，被海洋生物覆蓋，但在沉沒了一百多年后，泰坦尼克號仍能被辨認出來。然而，盡管沉船的部分殘骸狀況出奇地好，但也有一些外部特征已消失于大海中。

Ocean currents and salt erosion are causing the damage as are microbes, which are eating away at the metal, creating stalactites of rust that dangle from the ship.
洋流和鹽蝕對沉船造成了損害，微生物也在侵蝕著鋼鐵，形成鐘乳石般的銹石，從船上垂下來。

Robert Blyth from the National Maritime Museum says the Titanic’s decay is inevitable, which means studying it now is vital. The expedition team are now analysing their footage. They want to assess how long it will be before the Titanic is finally lost to the sea.

英國國家海事博物館的羅伯特·布萊斯說，泰坦尼克號的消逝是不可避免的，這意味著現(xiàn)在對它進行研究至關(guān)重要。探險隊現(xiàn)在正在分析他們拍攝的影像。他們想評估泰坦尼克號殘骸在最終消失于大海前還能留存多久。

詞匯

submersible 潛水器
divers 潛水員
bow 船頭
wreck 殘骸
emerging 浮現(xiàn)出
deep-sea 深海的
gloom 黑暗
rusty 生銹的
sea life 海洋生物
sank 沉入水中
good condition 狀況良好
ocean currents 洋流
salt erosion 鹽蝕
microbes 微生物
stalactites of rust 鐘乳石般的銹石
decay 腐蝕，消逝

閱讀理解：請在讀完上文后，回答下列問題 。

1. True or false? Some parts of the Titanic are lost to the sea.

2. When did a submersible last take divers to the Titanic?

3. What do the expedition team want to assess by analysing their footage of the deep-sea wreck?

4. Which word in the text is used as a synonym for ‘unavoidable’?

答案

1. True or false? Some parts of the Titanic are lost to the sea.
True. While some parts of the ship are in surprisingly good condition, other features have disappeared.

2. When did a submersible last take divers to the Titanic?
A submersible last took divers to the Titanic nearly fifteen years ago.

3. What do the expedition team want to assess by analysing their footage of the deep-sea wreck?
The expedition team want to assess how long it will be before the Titanic is finally lost to the sea.

4. Which word in the text is used as a synonym for ‘unavoidable’?
Inevitable.