我们的浩瀚宇宙（2022）

crushing itself into
a glowing hot ball of gas.
即原恒星
A protostar.
像瓦奇妮一样 这种形成中的恒星 有着十分强烈的饥饿感
Like Wa Chini, this star in the making
had a ferocious hunger…
它吸入了太多的气体 以至于在它的两极那里
pulling in so much gas
that jets of hot matter
促成了热物质的喷射流
were propelled from its poles,
伸入进太空达数光年
stretching out light years into space.
这颗婴儿恒星持续成长了3000万年
The infant star continued to grow
for 30 million years…
直到最后
…until finally,
它变得足够炽热 可以完全依靠自身产生动力
it became hot enough
to generate power all on its own.
这就是我们的太阳
Our sun.
它的金色光芒如今已经璀璨而稳定地
Its golden rays
have now shone brilliantly and steadily…
闪耀了46亿年
for 4.6 billion years.
它仅仅是拥有数十亿颗恒星的 银河系中的一颗恒星
It's just one star
in a galaxy of billions.
然而 它却是最特别的一颗
And yet, it is a most special one…
因为它是为我们这颗 不可思议、充满活力的星球
because it is the one
that delivers heat and light…
提供热量和光线的一颗恒星
to this incredible, vibrant planet.
（上一次进食后的42小时）
塞伦盖蒂草原上的每一个生物 都要依靠太阳来获取自身的能量
Every living thing in the Serengeti
depends on the sun for its energy.
瓦奇妮的幼崽们 现在除了饥饿外 还显得筋疲力竭
Wa Chini's cubs are drained,
beyond hungry now.
它们今天需要进食
They need to eat today.
但这个上午瓦奇妮所能提供的 就只有珍贵的温柔呵护了
But all Wa Chini can provide this morning
is precious TLC.
在这片干枯的土地上
In this parched land,
我们的太阳既会给予也会索取
our sun both gives and takes.
它的强烈能量正是生命所需要的
Its fierce energy is what life needs.
但它也具有毁灭的力量
But it also has the power to destroy.
在离一个巨型核反应堆这么近的地方 生活从来就不是一件容易的事情
It was never going to be easy living
this close to a giant nuclear reactor.
要了解这种难以忍♥受的热量的来源
To understand the source
of this unbearable heat,
我们就必须探究一下地狱…
we must peer into the inferno…
即位于由沸腾的热等离子体 构成的外层下方
…beneath the outer layers
of bubbling hot plasma…
向下距离我们太阳的核心
650 thousand kilometers down…
65万公里的地方
to the core of our sun.
我们恒星的中心看似出奇地平静
Our star's heart
would seem surprisingly calm…
但在原子层面上 这里纯粹是混乱一团
but on an atomic level, it's pure chaos.
这里是我们的太阳系最热的部分
This is the hottest part
of our solar system.
这里的温度可以达到摄氏1500万度
Temperatures here
reach 15 million degrees Celsius…
从而会创造条件导致发生 几乎在其它地方不可能发生的事件
creating the conditions for an event
that can happen almost nowhere else.
原子会以高速撞击并融合
Atoms collide at high speed and fuse…
释放出纯粹的能量
…releasing pure energy.
这个过程叫做核聚变
This process is called nuclear fusion
是导致我们的太阳闪耀的原因
and is what makes our sun shine.
事实上 它也是我们的宇宙中 所有恒星的动力来源
In fact, it's what powers
all the stars in our universe.
恒星释放的这种能量 可以追溯到时间之初
This energy released by stars can be
traced back to the beginning of time…
那个时候没有任何物质
when there was no matter,
整个宇宙中所存在的只有能量
and all that existed
in the entire universe was energy.
如今 能量的一点一滴 都依然存在于我们的宇宙中
And every bit of it lives on
in our universe today.
当阳光照到塞伦盖蒂草原时
As sunlight hits the Serengeti,
已经流动了138亿年的能量
energy that's been flowing
for 13.8 billion years
会设法流到瓦奇妮和她的幼崽身上
finds its way to Wa Chini and her cubs
并穿越它们所处的环境 继续自己的旅程
and continues its journey
through their environment.
能量永远不会被创造出来或毁灭掉
It is never created or destroyed.
它只会无休止地转化
It is simply transformed endlessly.
但瓦奇妮和她的幼崽们 只能通过一种形式来获取这种能量
But Wa Chini and her Cubs
can only access this energy in one form…
即肉类
meat.
这里还存在着敌对的掠食者
And there are rival predators out here…
它们不仅会抢夺她的食物 还会夺走她的幼崽
who could snatch not just her food
but her cubs as well.
如果它们不赶快进食
If they don't feed soon,
它们无论如何都会死去
they will die regardless.
这顿快餐虽然微不足道 但在两天没有进食后
It's a meager snack,
but after two days without food,
它简直就是救命的稻草
it's a lifesaver.
但超过10%的猎豹捕获物会被盗走
But more than 10%
of cheetah kills are stolen.
瓦奇妮必须捍卫她捕获的每一点能量
Wa Chini must defend every scrap
of energy she captures…
因为当能量稀缺时
…because when energy is scarce,
竞争就会激烈
competition is fierce.
瓦奇妮为了生存 和维持她的家庭而进行的斗争
Wa Chini's struggle to survive
and sustain her family is repeated
日复一日
day after day…
月复一月地重复着
…month after month.
每一顿饭都是一场战斗
Every meal is a fight.
在使用和获取能量之间的交战中
In the battle between using
and acquiring energy…
瓦奇妮只是刚刚打了个平手
Wa Chini is only just breaking even.
持续的饥饿定义了 塞伦盖蒂草原旱季的特点
Dry season on the Serengeti
is defined by constant hunger.
但变化即将到来
But change is in the air.
太阳的热量已经将所剩无几的水分 高高地吸入到了天空之中
The sun's heat has pulled
what moisture there is high into the sky.
只要有上升的
And what goes up
最终就必定有降落的
must eventually come down.
大雨席卷了草原
Rains sweep across the plains
并结束了旱季
and bring dry season to an end.
随着乌云散去
As the clouds clear,
一丝希望的曙光出现了
a glimmer of hope appears.
单独的一棵草无法养活瓦奇妮一家
A single blade of grass
cannot feed Wa Chini's family…
但在它的细胞内部 却深藏着解决它们饥饿的答案
but deep within its cells
lies the answer to their hunger.
这里有一个隐藏的世界
Here, there's a hidden world.
名为叶绿体基粒的微观堆叠状结构 沐浴在太阳的温暖光线中
Microscopic stacks called grana bask
in the warm rays from the sun.
它们的表面覆盖了 一片微小的捕光蛋白质的森林
Their surface is covered with a forest
of tiny, light-harvesting proteins
这类蛋白质可以捕捉 我们最近的恒星发出的能量
that capture energy from our nearest star.
它们富含可以吸收光线的
They're packed with
the green pigment chlorophyll,
绿色素叶绿素
which absorbs rays of light.
通过光合作用的魔力
Through the magic of photosynthesis…
水会与二氧化碳结合
water combines with carbon dioxide…
阳光会旋转成糖分
and sunbeams are spun into sugar.
在数天之内 一度干枯的草原会被漆成绿色
In a matter of days,
the once parched plains are painted green.
数十亿片的绿草叶 现在可以吸收无限的阳光
Billions of blades of grass
now soak up the boundless sunlight.
而宇宙的能量也开始嵌入到景观中
And the universe's energy
becomes embedded in the landscape.
只是有一个问题
There's only one problem.
猎豹是不能吃草的
Cheetahs can't eat grass.
但在遥远的北方林地
But far away in the northern woodlands,
是有野兽会吃草的
there are beasts…
that do.
它们的数量达几十万头之多
Hundreds of thousands of them.
角马
Wildebeest.
它们拥有宽大的嘴巴 灵活的嘴唇和四个胃
They have wide mouths,
flexible lips, and four stomachs
恰好适应吃草
that are perfectly adapted
to eating grass.
规模庞大的角马群 为了寻找新鲜的草场
The massive herds
are constantly on the move
会持续不断地移♥动♥
in search of fresh grazing.
为了找到牧草 它们会跟随雨水的踪迹
To find the grass, they follow the rain.
像我们大家一样
Driven, like all of us…
被饥饿所驱使
by hunger.
但假如塞伦盖蒂草原有某种规则的话
But if there is one rule in the Serengeti,
那就是食物从来就得之不易
it's that food never comes easy.
马拉河
The Mara River…
地球上一些体型最大的鳄鱼的家园