新奇事件簿 小行星岩层揭露恐龙灭绝细节

Scientists say they have unearthed¹ details of how the dinosaurs² were wiped out 65 million years ago. A team of geophysicists is analyzing³ rock formations in a crater⁴ under the seabed off Mexico. The rocks contain the remnants of the cataclysmic aftermath of a gigantic asteroid⁵ impacting with Earth. The scientists say the layers of rock they have extracted reveal a step-by-step account of the destruction that happened after the impact as rock and sediment⁶ settled on top of each other in revealing layers. Geophysicist Jay Melosh from Purdue University said: "It tells us what went on inside the crater on that day of doom⁷ that killed the dinosaurs. All of this mayhem is directly recorded in the core."

科学家们称他们发现了6500万年前恐龙灭绝的细节。一组地球物理学家正在分析墨西哥海底一个陨石坑的岩层。这些岩石中含有灾难性余波的残留物，这是一个巨大的小行星撞击地球后所产生的余波。科学家们表示他们所提取的岩石外层进一步揭示了撞击后的破坏过程，当时岩石和沉积物在裸露的岩石层上相互堆积。来自普渡大学的地球物理学家Jay Melosh说到：“它告诉了我们在恐龙灭绝的那一天陨石坑里发生了什么。这场混乱中的一切都直接记录在了核心内。”

Scientists say the asteroid was around three to four kilometers wide. It smashed into the ocean and created a hole 160kms wide and 20kms deep. This triggered a chain reaction of earthquakes, tsunami⁸, icecap melting, landslides⁹ and fires that forever changed the geology and life forms on Earth, killing¹⁰ off the dinosaurs. The asteroid's impact hurled¹¹ out rock and minerals and created a massive crater. Molten rock fell back into the crater, which was then filled with ocean water from tidal waves. This water was full of soil, vegetation, animal life and other debris¹², all of which settled in layers ready for scientists to analyze¹³ millions of years later. The scientists say this layer-forming process took just a few hours.

科学家们称这颗小行星约有3到4公里宽。它撞向海洋，造成一个宽160公里、深20公里的洞。这引发了地震、海啸、冰盖融化、山体滑坡以及火灾等连锁反应，对地球上的地质和生命形式造成永久改变，导致了恐龙灭绝。小行星的撞击抛出了岩石和矿物质并形成了一个巨大的陨石坑。熔岩落回火山口，火山口中满是来自潮汐波的海水。这些水中满是土壤、植被、动物生命和其他残骸，所有这些东西都一层层地沉淀下来，供科学家在数百万年后进行分析。科学家们称这一外层形成的过程仅需几小时。

 

1 unearthed   

出土的（考古）

参考例句：

• Many unearthed cultural relics are set forth in the exhibition hall. 展览馆里陈列着许多出土文物。
• Some utensils were in a state of decay when they were unearthed. 有些器皿在出土时已经残破。

2 dinosaurs   

n.恐龙( dinosaur的名词复数 )；守旧落伍的人，过时落后的东西

参考例句：

• The brontosaurus was one of the largest of all dinosaurs. 雷龙是所有恐龙中最大的一种。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Dinosaurs have been extinct for millions of years. 恐龙绝种已有几百万年了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 analyzing   

v.分析；分析( analyze的现在分词 )；分解；解释；对…进行心理分析n.分析

参考例句：

• Analyzing the date of some socialist countries presents even greater problem s. 分析某些社会主义国家的统计数据，暴露出的问题甚至更大。 来自辞典例句
• He undoubtedly was not far off the mark in analyzing its predictions. 当然，他对其预测所作的分析倒也八九不离十。 来自辞典例句

4 crater   

n.火山口，弹坑

参考例句：

• With a telescope you can see the huge crater of Ve-suvius.用望远镜你能看到巨大的维苏威火山口。
• They came to the lip of a dead crater.他们来到了一个死火山口。

5 asteroid   

n.小行星；海盘车(动物)

参考例句：

• Astronomers have yet to witness an asteroid impact with another planet.天文学家还没有目击过小行星撞击其它行星。
• It's very unlikely that an asteroid will crash into Earth but the danger exists.小行星撞地球的可能性很小，但这样的危险还是存在的。

6 sediment   

n.沉淀，沉渣，沉积(物)

参考例句：

• The sediment settled and the water was clear.杂质沉淀后，水变清了。
• Sediment begins to choke the channel's opening.沉积物开始淤塞河道口。

7 doom   

n.厄运，劫数；v.注定，命定

参考例句：

• The report on our economic situation is full of doom and gloom.这份关于我们经济状况的报告充满了令人绝望和沮丧的调子。
• The dictator met his doom after ten years of rule.独裁者统治了十年终于完蛋了。

8 tsunami   

n.海啸

参考例句：

• Powerful quake sparks tsunami warning in Japan.大地震触发了日本的海啸预警。
• Coastlines all around the Indian Ocean inundated by a huge tsunami.大海啸把印度洋沿岸地区都淹没了。

9 landslides   

山崩( landslide的名词复数 )； （山坡、悬崖等的）崩塌； 滑坡； （竞选中）一方选票占压倒性多数

参考例句：

• Landslides have cut off many villages in remote areas. 滑坡使边远地区的许多村庄与外界隔绝。
• The storm caused landslides and flooding in Savona. 风暴致使萨沃纳发生塌方和洪灾。

10 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

11 hurled   

v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂

参考例句：

• He hurled a brick through the window. 他往窗户里扔了块砖。
• The strong wind hurled down bits of the roof. 大风把屋顶的瓦片刮了下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

13 analyze   

vt.分析，解析 (=analyse)

参考例句：

• We should analyze the cause and effect of this event.我们应该分析这场事变的因果。
• The teacher tried to analyze the cause of our failure.老师设法分析我们失败的原因。