評論
打印
As the universe continues to dance to its ancient rhythm,
隨著宇宙繼續沿著古老的節奏發展
stars will come and go in a relentless cycle
恒星將進入一個永不間斷的循環
and because there are hundreds of billions of stars,
而正因為有著上千億顆恒星
there is always one dying in the supernova somewhere.
總有一顆在超新星爆發中消亡
In our galaxy for instance,
比如在銀河系中
a star dies every 50 years or so,
大約每50年就有一顆恒星消亡
which is but the briefest of moments to the universe.
這對于宇宙來說只是短短的一瞬
It's just about conceivable that a supernova could damage the Earth,
如果你從長遠的角度看，不難想象得到
if you consider the likelihood over a long enough time scale.
超新星爆炸會對地球造成破壞
One kind of supernova discovered
一類偶然被發現的超新星爆炸
entirely by accident is thought to be particularly dangerous.
是極具危險性的
In 1967, when the cold war was at it hight,
1967年，冷戰進入白熱化階段時
US military satellites picked up
美國軍事衛星探測到
a massive burst of something called gamma radiation.
一組名為伽馬射線的大爆發
Gamma radiation is the most dangerous type of radiation known.
伽馬射線是已知輻射中最危險的
It's also the tell tale sign of an atomic weapon
這也能明顯顯示出使用核武器的跡象
whether the gamma rays detected
這組伽馬射線能不能
evidence of a new and powerful Soviet bomb,
證明蘇聯具有新型大殺傷力炸彈呢
thankfully the answer was no.
還好答案是，不能
After careful analysis of the data,
經過仔細的數據分析
they discovered that the sudden bursts of gamma rays
他們發現伽馬射線的突然爆發
were actually coming from space.
實際上來自太空
Not even the Russians had that kind of technology.
即便是當時的俄羅斯也不可能具備這種技術
Decades later, we still don't have proof of
幾十年后的今天，我們依然不知道
what causes the bursts of radiation.
是什么產生了輻射的爆發
But there is a well-respected theory
但有一個被高度重視的理論
that they are produced by a special kind of supernova,
說它們源自一種特別的超新星爆發
called a gamma ray burst.
伽馬射線暴
What's more, there might be one quite nearby.
而且有一個伽馬射線暴可能存在于地球附近
Hidden within this massive spiral plume of plasma,
隱藏在巨大的漩渦狀等離子群中
8,000 light years from Earth
距離地球八千光年的地方
is a star called WR 104.
有一顆被稱作WR 104的恒星
Deep inside the star itself is a bright sphere,
這顆恒星的內部深處是一個明亮的球體
throwing off a shell of hot gas as it nears its end.
在生命的盡頭，它向外拋射出炙熱的氣體外殼
