VOA常速英语2007年-Pentagon Tracks 'Santa's Progress'

By Kyle King
Washington
24 December 2007

President Bush is spending Christmas Eve at the Camp David presidential retreat this year and most of the U.S. government has been given the day off. But one special branch of the Defense¹ Department has been working overtime² this holiday season so children around the world can follow one of the most endearing Christmas legends of all time. As VOA's Kyle King reports from Washington, Santa Claus is being tracked on radar³.

For more than 15 centuries, the legend of Santa Claus has fascinated children the world over. And the Internet has now made it easier than ever to follow the progress of the jolly old man as he takes off from the North Pole on Christmas Eve and makes his rounds, delivering gifts to boys and girls.

The North American Aerospace⁴ Defense Command, which normally uses its sophisticated radars⁵ to track missiles, has been helping⁶ to track Santa's progress every year since 1955. Now, it has has one of the most popular seasonal⁷ Web sites on the Internet, NORADSANTA.ORG.

A simple click on any region of the map gives a quick update on what is described as "Santa's progress," complete with geographical⁸ information about the places he visits.

Millions of Internet users have been logging onto the Web site to see the special program, which is made possible through private donations and Defense Department volunteers.

Updates to the site are made every five minutes and the so-called "NORAD Tracks Santa" program has German, Spanish, French, Italian, Japanese and English links.

As the Web site points out, the legendary⁹ trip is getting longer every year because of a world population that is now grown to more than 6.5 billion people. And millions of them will be tracking Santa's progress again this year.

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 overtime   

adj.超时的，加班的；adv.加班地

参考例句：

• They are working overtime to finish the work.为了完成任务他们正在加班加点地工作。
• He was paid for the overtime he worked.他领到了加班费。

3 radar   

n.雷达，无线电探测器

参考例句：

• They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。
• Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

4 aerospace   

adj.航空的，宇宙航行的

参考例句：

• The world's entire aerospace industry is feeling the chill winds of recession.全世界的航空航天工业都感受到了经济衰退的寒意。
• Edward Murphy was an aerospace engineer for the US Army.爱德华·墨菲是一名美军的航宇工程师。

5 radars   

n.雷达( radar的名词复数 )；雷达装置

参考例句：

• Servos for large radars and launchers are either electro-hydraulic or all-electric. 大型雷达和发射装置的伺服系统，不是电动-液压式的，就是全电动式的。 来自辞典例句
• Range-velocity simultaneous pull-off is one of effective measures for countering PD radars. 距离-速度同步拖引干扰是对抗PD雷达的有效方法。 来自互联网

6 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

7 seasonal   

adj.季节的，季节性的

参考例句：

• The town relies on the seasonal tourist industry for jobs.这个城镇依靠季节性旅游业提供就业机会。
• The hors d'oeuvre is seasonal vegetables.餐前小吃是应时蔬菜。

8 geographical   

adj.地理的；地区(性)的

参考例句：

• The current survey will have a wider geographical spread.当前的调查将在更广泛的地域范围內进行。
• These birds have a wide geographical distribution.这些鸟的地理分布很广。

9 legendary   

adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学）

参考例句：

• Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
• Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。