追逐冥王星（2015）

冥王星
Pluto,
距离地球30亿英里的冰冻矮行星
an icy dwarf planet three billion miles from Earth.
世界上最强大的望远镜
Our most powerful telescopes
只能看到一块模糊物体
see only a blur,
但现在
until now.
发射了
We have lift-off.
太空探测器“新视野号♥”上路了
A space probe called New Horizons is on its way.
这是一个史诗般的旅程
This is an epic journey.
直抵太阳系边陲
To the far reaches of our solar system.
比人类进行过的
It's going farther
所有探测，走得更远
than any exploration by human beings ever has.
捕捉一个神秘世界的影像
To capture images of a mysterious world
那里可能掩藏着太阳系肇始的秘密
that may hold the secret to the origins of our solar system.
会有令人惊讶的发现吗？
Are there going to be surprises?
当然会有
Absolutely.
但令人惊讶的不全是好事
But not all the surprises are good.
本地时间1点55分
About 1:55 p.m.local,
我们失去宇宙飞船的讯号♥
we've lost signal with the spacecraft.
是我们撞到什么了吗？
Could it be we hit something?
幸好千钧一发之际，危机解除
But a last-minute rescue saves the day...
冥王星进入焦距，展现一个人类意想不到的
as Pluto comes into focus,revealing a world stranger
奇异世界
than we ever imagined.
哇
Wow!
上面有一颗爱心！
There's a heart on it!
追逐冥王星
"Chasing Pluto," right now on NOVA.
“新星”栏目的资金主要由以下方面提供：
Major funding for NOVA is provided by the following:
我们热爱科学
We love science.
支持“新星”和促进公众对科学的理解
supporting NOVA and promoting public understanding of science.
美国公共广播公♥司♥
And the Corporation for Public Broadcasting,
以及像你这样的PBS观众
and by PBS viewers like you.
谢谢你
Thank you.
还有米利森特·贝尔
And Millicent Bell,
通过米利森特和尤金·贝尔基金会提供
through the Millicent and Eugene Bell Foundation.
罗杰和维基·桑特提供的额外资金
Additional funding from Roger and Vicki Sant.
2006年1月19日
January 19,2006.
亚特拉斯五号♥火箭，长达212英尺的超级动力舰艇
An Atlas 5 rocket,a 212-foot powerhouse,
正准备从美国卡纳维尔角发射
is prepped for launch at Cape Canaveral.
这种时候你会觉得
It was one of those days where you say to yourself:
关键时刻到了
This is it.
计划成功或失败就在今天
Project succeeds or fails today.
因为如果发射时出问题
Because when things go bad on launch,
通常会是极为重大的问题
they usually go bad in a spectacular way.
倒数五 四 三 二 一
T minus five,four,three,two,one...
国家航♥空♥航♥天♥局的“新视野”号♥
We have ignition and liftoff
宇宙飞船已经点火升空
of NASA's New Horizons spacecraft
前往探索冥王星及更遥远的太空
on a voyage to visit the planet Pluto and beyond.
这是历史上速度最快的发射
It's the fastest launch ever recorded--
时速3万6千英里
36,000 miles per hour.
“新视野”号♥需要尽一切可能聚焦速度
New Horizons needs all the speed it can muster,
藉以顺利飞越太阳系
on a journey that will take it clear across the solar system,
执行宇宙飞船飞行史上
to attempt something unique in the
独一无二的任务
history of spaceflight:
对冥王星进行近距离个人化观察
get an up-close and personal look at Pluto,
更神秘而遥远的世界
a mysterious,distant world
与我们以前探索过的任何星球都不一样
unlike anything we've explored before.
回到地球
Back on Earth,
在约翰霍普金斯应用物理学实验室
at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory,
新视野号♥任务执行小组
the mission operations team for New Horizons
还没有准备好要庆祝
is not quite ready to celebrate.
火箭发射以后
Once the rocket took off,
我们会有非常雀跃的感觉
there was a great feeling of joy
然后会屏息等待一段时间
and then you hold your breath for a while
因为只有等宇宙飞船成功传回信♥号♥♥
because you're not done until you get the signal back
才能确定一切顺利
from the spacecraft that everything's okay.
要等宇宙飞船跟我们达成连系
We don't have a mission
才表示任务圆♥满♥展开
until we know that spacecraft is communicating with us.
因此，他们等待
And so they wait.
所有细节都要注意
Everything is a concern.
我们想出很多问题，并加以解决
Things we've thought about we know we've solved.
设法预先设想各种可能性
To try and anticipate so many eventualities,
是太空飞行的挑战
it's the challenge of spaceflight.
几乎过了一个小时
Almost an hour passes.
然后
And then,
任务小组收到新视野号♥的
Mission Ops receives the first signal
第一个讯号♥
from New Horizons.
在场科学家互相凝视
Scientists turn to each other and go,
然后说“我爱你，老兄”
"I love you,man!"
那真是个令人赞叹的快乐时刻
It was an astonishingly happy time.
这种感觉实在太棒了
And that's the greatest feeling,
因为现在我们知道
because now we know
冥王星任务正式展开了
we have a mission to Pluto.
这只是成功的开始
This is just the first
在接下来将近十年中
of many challenges to come
探索的旅途还将面临更多挑战
on a journey that will take almost a decade.
发射之后短短九个小时
Just nine hours after leaving the launch pad,
宇宙飞船已经在通过月球的轨道
it was already crossing the orbit of the moon.
当年阿波罗号♥的航♥天♥员
A trip that took Apollo
飞三天才飞到这里
astronauts three days.
但即使时速高达数万英里
But even traveling tens of thousands of miles an hour,
新视野号♥依然需要航行九年
it will take over nine years for New Horizons
才能抵达目的地
to reach its destination,
探索太阳系的遥远边陲
to explore the far reaches of our solar system,
距离地球超过30亿英里
more than three billion miles from Earth.
远远超过我们已知的行星
Beyond the planets we've come to know...
火星
Mars
充满岩石的红色表面
with its rocky red surface,
气态巨人木星
the gas giant Jupiter
以及那里的凶猛风暴
with its raging storm,
土星
and Saturn
令人惊奇的圆环
with its stunning rings.
天王星
Uranus,
那里的恐怖狂风
where turbulent winds
时速高达5百英里以上
blow over 500 miles an hour,
以及海王星
and Neptune,
距离太阳极为遥远
a planet so far from the Sun,
需要165年才能公转一圈
it takes 165 years to complete just one orbit.
最后，新视野号♥将抵达冥王星
Finally New Horizons will arrive at Pluto,
一个只能透过艺术作品
a world we can only picture
描绘出来的世界
with the help of artwork like this,
至少暂时是如此
at least for now.
谁能再告诉我们一些关于行星的事?
Who can tell us more about the planets?
回到1950年代
Back in the 1950s,
老师告诉所有小学生
every grade schooler
太阳系有九个行星
was taught there were nine planets,
冥王星是最后一个
Pluto being the last
它也最寂寞
and loneliest.
大家都喜欢冥王星
Everybody loved Pluto
因为它位于非常遥远的边缘
because it was this funny oddball
看起来很好玩，很奇特
sitting out there at the very edge.
无论对天王星 水星或其他行星
You don't find that kind of name recognition
一般人都不会这么感兴趣
and emotional connection and interest level for Uranus,
清楚知道名字
or Mercury,or going down the list,
甚至有情感上的牵连
but somehow Pluto just
冥王星很自然就吸引了大家的注意
naturally attracts people's attention.
是什么让冥王星这么受欢迎？
What makes Pluto so popular?
有可能跟“布鲁托(冥王星)狗”这只顽皮猎犬有关
It may have something to do with a playful bloodhound named Pluto the pup.
这个迪斯尼卡♥通♥角色
It turns out the Disney character made its debut
大约就出现在冥王星被发现的时候
around the same time the planet was discovered.
多年以来我们早已熟知这只可爱的小狗
Over the years we've gotten to know this beloved little pup.
但冥王星的神秘世界依然成谜
The same can't be said for this mysterious little world.