VOA慢速英语2021--瑞士为冰川盖白色毯子防止融化

One of Switzerland's most popular ski areas has been covering mountain areas with cloth material in an effort to reduce ice melt over the summer.

Workers have placed large blankets of material around Mount Titlis, a ski area near the Swiss mountain town of Engelberg.

The area contains a glacier¹ that has been losing large amounts of ice over the past 20 years. The protective cloth, made of polyester material, is designed to block the sun.

Putting the blankets over the glacier provides "a natural protective shield," Gian Darms explained to Reuters. He oversees² snow conditions and mountain security in the area.

Decreasing snow cover resulting from higher temperatures presents a serious threat to ski areas across Europe. Having a glacier can provide some protection from climate change. It can help keep large snow supplies on the mountain year-round. This snow can later be moved to fill in areas where it is needed.

But the Swiss government has predicted that 90 percent of the country's remaining 1,500 glaciers³ will disappear by the end of the century if nothing is done to cut man-made pollution emissions⁵.

Darms said he has had to continually increase the size of the blankets over the glacier in recent years to save what is left.

A small group of employees works over five-to-six weeks to cover parts of the glacier. At the end of the summer, the workers spend weeks removing the covers.

Currently, the reflective material covers about 100,000 square meters, which is about the size of 14 football fields. The blankets help radiate the sun's energy back into the atmosphere.

Collected snow is used to fill openings in the glacier that could open up along the area's ski runs. The snow also helps support lift structures that are fixed⁶ into the ice.

Words in This Story

ski – v. to move over snow wearing skis (a pair of long, think pieces of wood of plastic worn on the bottom of boots

blanket – n. a thick layer of cloth material

glacier – n. a large mass of ice that moves very slowly, usually down a hill of valley

shield – n. a person or thing used as protection

emission⁴ – n. the act of producing or sending out something (such as energy or gas) from a source; something that is sent out or produced by something

reflect – v. to send back or bounce off

1 glacier   

n.冰川，冰河

参考例句：

• The glacier calved a large iceberg.冰河崩解而形成一个大冰山。
• The upper surface of glacier is riven by crevasses.冰川的上表面已裂成冰隙。

2 oversees   

v.监督，监视( oversee的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• She oversees both the research and the manufacturing departments. 她既监督研究部门又监督生产部门。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Department of Education oversees the federal programs dealing with education. 教育部监管处理教育的联邦程序。 来自互联网

3 glaciers   

冰河，冰川( glacier的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Glaciers gouged out valleys from the hills. 冰川把丘陵地带冲出一条条山谷。
• It has ice and snow glaciers, rainforests and beautiful mountains. 既有冰川，又有雨林和秀丽的山峰。 来自英语晨读30分（高一）

4 emission   

n.发出物，散发物；发出，散发

参考例句：

• Rigorous measures will be taken to reduce the total pollutant emission.采取严格有力措施，降低污染物排放总量。
• Finally,the way to effectively control particulate emission is pointed out.最后，指出有效降低颗粒排放的方向。

5 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

6 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。