恒星七纪（2012）

恒星七纪
恒星诞生
成年期
红巨星
白矮星
超新星
中子星
黑洞
尾声 星云
每当太阳落山 夜幕降临
Each night, after the sun sets,
坐在大地 仰望天空
sit back, look up
就能目睹一部史诗剧作在眼前上演
and you can witness an epic drama playing above our heads.
这部剧作拥有数十亿的演员
One involving a cast of billions.
恒星
The stars.
每一颗都有自己的故事
Every one with its own story to tell.
垂垂老矣的红巨星
There are old Red Giants,
膨胀得太大 以至于正在逐渐裂开
so puffed up they're coming apart at the seams.
超新星
Supernovae,
宇宙中最壮观的烟火秀
the most spectacular firework displays in the universe.
神秘的黑洞
Mysterious black holes,
它们是我们刚刚有所了解的恒星墓碑
stellar tombstones that we are only beginning to understand.
而当太阳再次冉冉升起
And when the Sun rises again,
我们看到的是一颗正当壮年的恒星
we can see a star in the prime of its life.
揭示这些恒星的生命历程
Unravelling the life and times of these stars
向我们展现了宇宙的奥秘
has revealed extraordinary secrets about the universe
以及我们在其中的地位
and our own place within it.
故事结尾留下的线索
At the tale's end lie clues
能解开科学中最大的奥秘
to one of the biggest mysteries in science.
这就是恒星的故事
This is the story of the stars.
数千年来
For thousands of years,
我们讲述着太阳和恒星的故事
we've told stories about the Sun and stars,
九天之上 居住着神祇和巨人
populating the heavens with gods and giants.
古埃及人信奉太阳神拉
Ancient Egyptians worshipped the Sun, calling it Ra.
猎户座猎人踱步天际
Orion the Hunter strode the heavens.
恒星和星座
Stars and whole constellations
是随着季节变化
were characters that moved
而在我们头顶上移♥动♥的诸神
above our head with the changing seasons.
到了二十世纪
In the 20th century,
现代天文学家发现
modern astronomers discovered that,
我们的直觉似乎是正确的
in a way, our instincts were right.
每晚在夜空中闪烁的星星不尽相同
The stars in the twinkling night sky aren't all the same.
强大的望远镜
Powerful telescopes have revealed
揭示了它们千变万化亮度和颜色
the sheer variety of their brightnesses and colours.
正是在这些不同之中
And in that diversity,
科学家找到了一个新的故事
scientists have discovered a new story.
当我们仰望星空 恒星看起来各不相同
When we see the stars in the sky, they look all different,
但是一旦把它们
but once we put them together
按照颜色和亮度排序
in order of colour, in order of brightness,
我们就会发现 它们有规律可循
this is where we get, some kind of sense of order,
故事也因此变得有趣了
and this is what makes the whole story so interesting.
弗朗西斯科·迭戈博士
Dr Francisco Diego has
一生致力于恒星的研究
devoted his career to understanding the stars,
它们各自的性质
their individual natures
以及它们之间的联♥系♥
and the connections that can be found between them.
例如 这是大角星
For example, this is Arcturus,
一颗红色的 光耀夺目的恒星
a very bright, red star that goes here.
这是半人马座贝塔星
This is Beta Centauri,
一颗炽热的蓝色恒星
which is a very hot, blue star.
太阳温度处于它们中间
The Sun is at a medium temperature.
所以要放在这两个之间
It has to go more or less in-between.
根据恒星的性质将其排列
By plotting stars according to their characteristics,
天文学家发现了一个规律
astronomers uncovered a pattern...
它揭示了不同类型的恒星
One that reveals different types of star,
都有自己的特点 以及对宇宙特别的贡献
each with its own personality and contribution to the universe.
但是这个规律引出了一个更重要的问题
But the patterns are a clue to something more fundamental.
它在告诉我们 随着时间的推移
This is telling us that, as time goes on,
恒星自身会发生变化
the stars themselves start to change
会发展 会演化
and to develop, to evolve.
然后就有了这个规律
And then we have a pattern here,
一种循环 恒星的生命循环
a kind of cycle, the lifecycle of stars.
在探索恒星七纪的过程中
In discovering the seven ages of the stars,
科学家们揭示了宇宙的故事
scientists have uncovered the story of the universe,
就和我们一样
and, just like for us,
一切从诞生开始
it all begins with birth.
赫斯特蒙天文台
苏塞克斯 英国
有史以来最引人注目的一片星空
One of the most gazed at patches of sky throughout history
是昴星团的所在之处
is the one containing a cluster called the Pleiades.
昴星团
金牛座
但是古代的天文学家不知道
But the ancient astronomers didn't know that
昴星团藏着一个秘密
the Pleiades hold a secret...
一个被现代天文学家发现的秘密
One that modern astronomers have revealed.
这个星团 昴星团
This cluster, the Pleiades,
在荷马的《奥德赛》以及《圣经》
mentioned by Homer in the Odyssey, they appear in the Bible
弗朗西斯科·迭戈博士
天文学家 伦敦大学学院
还有阿兹特克人和玛雅人的圣书中被提及
and in some of the codices by the Aztecs and the Maya.
有趣的是 昴星团非常年轻
But the interesting thing is that the Pleiades are so young
早期的恐龙都没有见过它们
that early dinosaurs never saw them,
因为在那时 昴星团还没有形成
because at that time, the Pleiades hadn't been formed yet.
年仅一亿岁 它们是恒星中的小娃娃
At 100 million years old, they are like baby stars,
极其年轻的恒星
very, very young stars.
天空中所能见到的最年轻的恒星
Some of the youngest stars that we can see in the sky.
每天都有恒星在某处诞生
A star is being born somewhere every day.
每一颗的诞生都是宇宙中最奇妙的事件
Each time, it's one of the most magical events in the cosmos.
一个需要创世之力的过程
One that requires mighty forces of nature.
而触发这一过程 不过是一个偶然
And to set the process going, just an element of chance.
故事从宇宙深处 昏暗且寒冷的
The tale starts in the cold, dark clouds
尘埃与气体云讲起
of dust and gas that lurk in deep space...
这些云团是塞雷娜·维蒂博士
and that have filled the mind and imagination of Professor Serena Viti
研究恒星形成的关键所在
throughout her career studying the birth of stars.
这些云非常巨大
These clouds are really vast.
可以延伸到300光年
They can be up to 300 light years across.
许多恒星在那里诞生
And many stars form there,
塞雷娜·维蒂博士
天文学家 伦敦大学学院
因此我们称其为恒星的摇篮
which is why we call sometimes these clouds stellar nurseries.
云中许多地方 数百万年不曾改变
Many regions within these clouds can stay like that for ever,
直到什么发生 比如一个触动
for millions of years, until something happens, a trigger,
然后恒星开始形成
and then a star forms.
触发这个重大事件并不难
The trigger for such a monumental event doesn't have to be much.
两块云团的碰撞
Two clouds can bump as they pass,
或是遥远的宇宙活动引发的激波
or a distant cosmic event can send a shockwave,
仅需挤压一下云团
just something to give the cloud a squeeze.
只要一点压力
All you need is a little bit of pressure
让气体密度足够大
to allow the gas to be dense enough
然后引力发挥作用 云团开始坍塌
for gravity to take over and collapse to start.
静静漂浮在宇宙中的
The particles of dust and gas
尘埃和气体
that had been quietly floating in space
开始聚在一起
now start being pulled together.
引力让它们互相吸引
Gravitational attraction draws them towards each other,
而且越来越快
faster and faster.
随着坍塌的继续
As the collapse continues to happen,
气体和尘埃会落向中心
the gas and the dust will fall into the centre
密度越来越大
and they will become denser and denser,
云团的中心 温度越来越高
and the centre of the cloud will become hotter and hotter.
自然规律决定
The laws of nature mean
物体被压缩时 温度会升高
that when matter gets compressed, it heats up.
数百万年间 原恒星不断成长
Over millions of years, the protostar grows,
内核的压力增大 温度升高
increasing the pressure and heat in its core,
直到最终到达临界温度
until, finally, it reaches a critical temperature.
大约1500万度
About 15 million degrees,
一个重要的反应
and a fundamental process
会在刚形成的恒星内核开始
will start in the core of the embryonic star.
一瞬间 恒星的内核
Almost in a flash, the core of the star,
就像我们的太阳 开始发出耀眼的光芒
like our own Sun's once did, dazzlingly lights up.
一颗恒星就此诞生
A star is born.
如果仰望夜空 注视闪烁的星星