VOA慢速英語:極寒天氣入侵美國大部分地區(qū)

極寒天氣入侵美國大部分地區(qū)

From VOA Learning English, this is In the News.

這里是美國之音慢速英語新聞報(bào)道。

A weather system known as a polar vortex brought dangerously cold weather to large parts of the United States this week. A polar vortex is a cold, thick low pressure system. The air turns counter-clockwise when on the move.

本周，一種被稱為極渦的天氣系統(tǒng)給美國大部分地區(qū)帶來了危險(xiǎn)的嚴(yán)寒天氣。極渦是一種寒冷的深厚低壓系統(tǒng)，氣流上升時(shí)呈逆時(shí)針旋轉(zhuǎn)。

The polar vortex started up in Canada. After crossing the border, it moved deep into the southeastern United States. The polar vortex brought the coldest temperatures in more than 20 years to many areas. Anise Jenkins lives in Washington, DC.

這次極渦始于加拿大，它在越過邊境后進(jìn)入美國東南部。這次極渦給美國很多地區(qū)帶來了20多年以來最冷的氣溫。安麗思·詹金斯(Anise Jenkins)住在華盛頓特區(qū)。

2014年1月7日，紐約人民全副武裝對抗嚴(yán)寒

"I have a coat on. I have three sweaters. I have two blouses. I have a thermal on and I don't feel like I have anything on."

她說，“我穿了一件大衣，三件毛衣，兩件襯衣，一件保暖內(nèi)衣，但我感覺就跟沒穿一樣。”

Another woman, named Amanda, lives nearby in Maryland.

另一位名為阿曼達(dá)(Amanda)的婦女住在附近的馬里蘭州。

"It's DC. It's not supposed to be this cold."

她說，“這里是華盛頓特區(qū)，這里不該這么冷啊。”

The weather was also a shock to visitors from overseas. Deepak from India was visiting his sister in New York.

這種天氣對海外游客來說也是一大震撼。來自印度的迪帕克(Deepak)來拜訪紐約的姐姐。

"Tears just come out from my eyes and my head inside like a freezer. Oh, my God. Oh, my God."

他說，“哦，天啊。凍得我眼淚直流，我腦子里面就像個(gè)冰箱。”

The extreme weather started with a low-pressure system near the North Pole. The Arctic air was pushed as far south as Alabama on wind currents known as the jet stream. The bitter cold covered much of the central United States, forcing schools, government offices and businesses to close.

這種極端天氣源于北極附近的一種低壓系統(tǒng)。這種北極的空氣被一種稱為高空急流的強(qiáng)風(fēng)吹到了遠(yuǎn)至阿拉巴馬州以南的地方。嚴(yán)寒覆蓋了美國中部大部分地區(qū)，迫使學(xué)校、政府辦公室和企業(yè)關(guān)門。

Camden Walker is a reporter for the Washington Post. He is part of the newspaper's Capital Weather Gang, which limits its reporting to the weather.

卡姆登·沃克(Camden Walker)是一位來自華盛頓郵報(bào)的記者。他隸屬于該報(bào)社的氣象部門，該部門僅限于天氣報(bào)道。

"When the jet stream came south, the floodgates opened from the north and we had a direct flow from the Arctic."

他說，“當(dāng)這股高空急流竄至南方，從北至南的閘門大開，來自北極的氣流直撲這里。”

But the polar vortex did not have the same effect everywhere.

但這次極渦在各地的效果并不相同。

"Interestingly enough, it is warmer in Alaska and also somewhat warmer over Greenland because when you deplete the North Pole and the Arctic region of its cold air, when it's forced southward, it can't all stay there. Basically it's a bubble that is draining toward us. It is rushing towards us in the United States."

他說，“有趣的是，阿拉斯加更暖和，格陵蘭島也更暖和點(diǎn)。因?yàn)楸睒O和北極區(qū)域的冷空氣被耗盡，它都被吹到了南方?；旧纤且还杀灰蛭覀兊臍饬?，它直接撲向美國的我們。”

Camden Walker says the weather system moved away quickly from places like Washington. But the cold air and high winds were staying longer in the middle of the country.

沃克表示，該天氣系統(tǒng)很快就離開了華盛頓等地，但冷空氣和大風(fēng)將在美國中部停留更長時(shí)間。

At least 20 deaths were blamed on the cold weather nationwide. Health experts said people should go outside buildings for only 10 to 20 minutes at a time. They warned that being outside in such cold can cause frostbite. This condition may cause exposed parts of the body to freeze.

至少有20人死亡是因?yàn)檫@次全國范圍的嚴(yán)寒天氣。健康專家表示，人們每次在室外只能呆10到20分鐘。他們警告說，這種嚴(yán)寒呆在外面可能導(dǎo)致凍傷。這種情況可能會導(dǎo)致身體外露部分凍壞。

Temperatures of minus 10 degrees Celsius or lower were reported in Washington, New York, Boston and Philadelphia. In fact, temperatures in all or parts of the 50 states were below freezing at some point on Tuesday. Even in Hawaii, it was minus six degrees at the top of the state's highest mountain.

華盛頓、紐約、波士頓和費(fèi)城分別報(bào)告了零下10攝氏度或更低的氣溫。實(shí)際上，周二某個(gè)時(shí)間點(diǎn)，美國50個(gè)州全部或部分的溫度低于零度。即使是在夏威夷，該州最高山峰的頂部也到了零下六度。

The effect of the polar vortex was extensive. Airline companies cancelled more than 11,000 flights over a four day period. The cold weather also interfered with train service. In the south, the Tennessee Valley Authority said it set a single day record for electricity as homeowners struggled to stay warm. The TVA provides power to seven states.

這次極渦的影響非常廣泛。航空公司四天內(nèi)取消了超過1.1萬架次航班。這次嚴(yán)寒天氣還影響到了列車服務(wù)。在美國南部，田納西河流管理局表示，由于房主在盡力取暖，該局創(chuàng)造了單日電力記錄。田納西河流管理局為美國七個(gè)州提供電力。

And it was not just North America that experienced extreme cold. Over in the Pacific Ocean, a Russian research ship was stuck in ice for over a week. The Shokalskiy left New Zealand on November 28. The ship was carrying 52 passengers when it became stuck. They were rescued January 2, when a helicopter flew them to an Australian icebreaker.

不只是北美經(jīng)歷極端嚴(yán)寒。越過太平洋(的南極地區(qū))，俄羅斯一艘科考船困在冰里數(shù)周時(shí)間。這艘紹卡利斯基院士號科考船于11月28日離開新西蘭，當(dāng)它被困住時(shí)船上搭載了52名乘客。他們在1月2日獲救，(中國雪龍?zhí)柹系?一架直升機(jī)將他們轉(zhuǎn)移到了一艘澳大利亞破冰船上。