近15年来首批潜入泰坦尼克号的探险人员说，沉船残骸腐蚀程度在进一步地恶化。这个由深海探险家组成的国际团队先后五次潜入海底，对残骸进行了勘查。他们发现，虽然沉船的部分残骸状况出奇地好，但也有一些部分已经消失在大海中。

 

This is the sound of a submersible taking divers¹ to the Titanic² for the first time in nearly fifteen years. Their footage reveals the bow of the wreck³ emerging from the deep-sea gloom.

 

这是近15年来潜水器首次将潜水员带到泰坦尼克号上的声音。从他们拍摄的影像中可以看到沉船的船头从深海的黑暗中浮现出来。

Lying nearly 4,000 metres down in the Atlantic. It's rusty⁵ and covered in sea life, but still recognisable more than one hundred years after the Titanic sank. However, while some parts of the ship are in surprisingly good condition, other features have disappeared.

 

躺在近4000米深的大西洋海底，虽然它锈迹斑斑，被海洋生物覆盖，但在沉没了一百多年后，泰坦尼克号仍能被辨认出来。然而，尽管沉船的部分残骸状况出奇地好，但也有一些外部特征已消失于大海中。

Ocean currents and salt erosion are causing the damage as are microbes, which are eating away at the metal, creating stalactites of rust⁴ that dangle⁶ from the ship.

洋流和盐蚀对沉船造成了损害，微生物也在侵蚀着钢铁，形成钟乳石般的锈石，从船上垂下来。

 

Robert Blyth from the National Maritime⁷ Museum says the Titanic's decay is inevitable⁸, which means studying it now is vital. The expedition team are now analysing their footage. They want to assess how long it will be before the Titanic is finally lost to the sea.

英国国家海事博物馆的罗伯特·布莱斯说，泰坦尼克号的消逝是不可避免的，这意味着现在对它进行研究至关重要。探险队现在正在分析他们拍摄的影像。他们想评估泰坦尼克号残骸在最终消失于大海前还能留存多久。

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