一组科学家被派往南大西洋考察巨型冰山 “ A68a ”。这座面积为 3900 平方公里的庞然大物目前正在漂离英国海外领地南乔治亚的近海地区，冰山有可能在这里搁浅。

 

Icebergs¹ like A68a break away from Antarctica only every few decades. And wherever they drift, they can have a major influence on their immediate² environment, changing the temperature of the sea and introducing billions of tonnes of fresh water.

每隔几十年，就会有像 “A68a” 这样的冰山从南极洲脱落。不论冰山漂到哪里，都会对周围环境产生巨大的影响，改变海水温度，并引入数十亿吨淡水。

 

A team led by the British Antarctic Survey is going to dispatch robot vehicles under and around A68a to see how it's altering conditions in the marine³ food chain at South Georgia – from the plankton⁴ at the bottom, to the penguins⁵, seals and whales at the top.

由英国南极调查局（British Antarctic Survey）带领的一支考察队将向 “A68a” 冰山的底部及其周围派出机器人车辆，观测它如何改变南乔治亚海洋食物链的状况——从食物链底端的浮游生物到顶端的企鹅、海豹和鲸鱼，都属于研究对象。

 

The worry is the berg could get stuck in shallows, unsettling the ecosystem⁶ for years. But scientists have also noticed that the berg is crumbling⁷. There's every possibility it could break apart in spectacular style very soon.

令人担忧的是，这座冰山可能会陷入浅水处，一连数年扰乱生态系统。但科学家们也已经注意到，这座冰山正在冰消瓦解。它很有可能在不久后解体，景象将颇为壮观。

点击收听单词发音