为什么今年夏天格外炎热(下)

许多研究人员预计，厄尔尼诺现象直到12月或明年1月才会达到顶峰，此后几个月全球气温将再次飙升。

双语精读

But other factors layered on top of human-caused warming may have helped temperatures accelerate dramatically in recent months.

但除了人为因素导致的变暖之外，其他因素可能也促使气温在最近几个月大幅上升。

For instance, a cyclical phenomenon in the Pacific Ocean known as the El Nino-Southern Oscillation causes year-to-year fluctuations by shifting heat in and out of deeper ocean layers. Global surface temperatures tend to be cooler during La Nina years and hotter during El Nino years.

例如，太平洋上一种被称为厄尔尼诺-南方涛动的周期性现象，通过将热量从深层海水中传入和传出而导致年际气温波动。全球表面温度往往在出现拉尼娜现象时较冷，在出现厄尔尼诺现象时较热。

"A big reason we're seeing so many records shattered is that we're transitioning out of an unusually long three-year La Nina, which suppressed temperatures, and into a strong El Nino," Dr. Hausfather said. That likely portends even more heat is coming.

“我们看到这么多记录被打破的一个重要原因是，我们正在从一个异常漫长的为期三年的拉尼娜现象过渡到强烈的厄尔尼诺现象，而拉尼娜现象抑制了气温。”豪斯法瑟博士说。这很可能预示着更大的热浪即将到来。

The current El Nino is just getting underway and many researchers don't expect it to peak until December or January, with global temperatures seeing another surge in the months thereafter. That means that next year could be even hotter than this year, scientists said.

目前的厄尔尼诺现象才刚刚开始，许多研究人员预计，厄尔尼诺现象直到12月或明年1月才会达到顶峰，此后几个月全球气温将再次飙升。科学家说，这意味着明年可能会比今年更热。

Other dynamics may be at work, too. The North Atlantic has seen record heat since early March, before El Nino conditions began.

其他动态因素可能也在起作用。在厄尔尼诺现象开始之前的3月初，北大西洋出现了创纪录的高温。

One factor may be a subtropical high pressure system known as the Azores High that has weakened the winds blowing over the ocean and limited the amount of dust blowing from the Sahara, which normally helps cool the ocean.

一个因素可能是，被称为亚速尔高压的一个副热带高压系统削弱了海洋上空的风，从而限制了从撒哈拉沙漠吹来的沙尘量，而这些沙尘通常有助于给海洋降温。

These weather patterns could change in the weeks ahead, said Dr. McNoldy of the University of Miami. "But even then we'd probably be going from insanely record-breaking temperatures down to just extremely record-breaking."

迈阿密大学的麦克诺尔迪博士说，这些天气模式可能会在未来几周发生变化。“但即使发生了变化，我们可能也只是从疯狂破纪录高温降到极端破纪录高温。”

The soaring heat has led some meteorologists to increase their warnings about this year's hurricane season. On Thursday, forecasters at Colorado State University said they now expect an above-average Atlantic hurricane season, with around 18 tropical cyclones, a reversal from earlier forecasts of a quieter-than-usual year.

飙升的高温让一些气象学家增加了对今年飓风季节的警告。周四，科罗拉多州立大学的预报人员表示，他们现在预计会出现高于平均水平的大西洋飓风季节，会有18个热带气旋，这与早先预测的比往年更平静的飓风季节相反。

Hurricanes in the Atlantic are often suppressed during El Nino years, but that may not be true this year because of the unusually warm ocean waters, which can fuel storms.

在厄尔尼诺年间，大西洋的飓风通常会受到抑制，但今年的情况可能并非如此，因为异常温暖的海水可能会助长风暴。

Other researchers have suggested that recent efforts to clean up sulfur pollution from ships around the world may be pushing up temperatures slightly, since sulfur dioxide tends to reflect sunlight and cool the planet somewhat. That precise impact is still being debated, however.

其他研究人员则表示，近期世界各地在清理船舶带来的硫磺污染，这一行动可能会略微抬高气温，因为二氧化硫往往会反射阳光，让地球变得凉爽一些。然而，这一行动的确切影响仍在争论中。

"There does seem to be this unusual convergence of warming factors right now," said Gabriel Vecchi, a climate scientist at Princeton. "But this is all happening in a world where we've been increasing greenhouse gases for the past 150 years, and that really loads the dice and makes it much more likely that we're going to get pushed into record-breaking territory."

“现在，许多升温因素确实出现了不同寻常的汇聚，”普林斯顿大学的气候学家加布里埃尔·维奇说，“但在过去150年里，我们一直在增加温室气体，这让结局事先注定，我们更有可能进入创纪录的高温境地。”

词汇预习

extremely [高考]
美[ɪkˈstriːmli] | 英[ɪkˈstriːmli]
adv. 非常；极其
current [高考]
美[ˈkɜːrənt] | 英[ˈkʌrənt]
n. 趋势；(水、气、电)流 adj. 现在的；流通的
impact [高考]
美[ˈɪmpækt , ɪmˈpækt] | 英[ˈɪmpækt , ɪmˈpækt]
n. 影响；冲击力；撞击 vt. 挤入；压紧；撞击；对 ... 发生影响 vi. 冲击；撞击；产生影响
normally [高考]
美[ˈnɔːrməli] | 英[ˈnɔːməli]
adv. 通常；正常地
peak [高考]
美[piːk] | 英[piːk]
n. 山顶；顶峰；山峰；尖端；帽檐；极值 v. 达到高峰；达到最高值 adj. 最高的；高峰期的；最大值的【名】（Peak）（英）皮克（人名）
somewhat [高考]
美[ˈsʌmwʌt] | 英[ˈsʌmwɒt]
adv. 稍微；有些；多少；几分 pron. 某物；一些
greenhouse [高考]
美[ˈɡriːnhaʊs] | 英[ˈɡriːnhaʊs]
n. 温室；暖房
thereafter [高考]
美[ˌðerˈæftər] | 英[ˌðeərˈɑːftə(r)]
adv. 其后；从那时以后
dramatically [高考]
美[drə'mætɪkli] | 英[drəˈmætɪk(ə)li]
adv. 戏剧地；引人注目地
phenomenon [高考]
美[fəˈnɑːmɪnən] | 英[fəˈnɒmɪnən]
n. 现象；奇人；奇事
hurricane [高考]
美[ˈhɜːrəkeɪn] | 英[ˈhʌrɪkən]
n. 飓风；暴风
accelerate [高考]
美[əkˈseləreɪt] | 英[əkˈseləreɪt]
v. 加速；提前；跳级
precise [高考]
美[prɪˈsaɪs] | 英[prɪˈsaɪs]
adj. 精确的；恰好的；准确的；严格的
means [高考]
美[miːnz] | 英[miːnz]
n. 方法；手段；收入；财产 v. 意思是，意味（动词mean的第三人称单数）
limited [高考]
美[ˈlɪmɪtɪd] | 英[ˈlɪmɪtɪd]
adj. 有限的；被限制的
territory [高考]
美[ˈterətɔːri] | 英[ˈterətri]
n. 领土；领域；版图；范围
tropical [高考]
美[ˈtrɑːpɪkl] | 英[ˈtrɒpɪkl]
adj. 热带的；炎热的；热带植物的
underway [高考]
美[ˌʌndərˈweɪ] | 英[ˌʌndəˈweɪ]
adj. 正在进行中的
where [高考]
美[wer] | 英[weə(r)]
adv. 在哪里；在那个地方 conj. 在 ... 地方
unusually [四级]
美[ʌnˈjuʒʊəlɪ] | 英[ʌnˈju:ʒuəli]
adv. 异乎寻常地；显著地；非常
surge [四级]
美[sɜːrdʒ] | 英[sɜːdʒ]
n. 汹涌；波涛；猛增 v. 汹涌；涌起；激增；[海]缆绳滑脱
reversal [四级]
美[rɪˈvɜːrsl] | 英[rɪˈvɜːsl]
n. 翻转；倒转；反转
cooler [四级]
美[ˈkulɚ] | 英[ˈku:lə(r)]
n. 冷却器；（通常含冰和酒的）清凉饮料；监狱 adj. 更凉爽的；更冷静的；更冷漠的（cool的比较级）
even then [四级]
美[ˈivən ðɛn] | 英[ˈi:vən ðen]
即使那样；连 ... 都
in and out [四级]
美[ɪn ənd aʊt] | 英[in ænd aut]
adv. 进进出出
on top of [四级]
美[ɑːn tɑːp əv] | 英[ɒn tɒp ɒv]
在 ... 之上；停留在…之上；加之；控制住；对…了如指掌
out of [六级]
美[aʊt ʌv] | 英[aut ɔv]
prep. 离…一段距离；从…里；离开 ...；出于
cyclical [专四]
美[ˈsɪklɪkəl] | 英[ˈsɪklɪkəl]
adj. 循环的；周期的
sulfur [专八]
美['sʌlfər] | 英['sʌlfə(r)]
n. 【U】硫(磺) v. 用硫磺处理
subtropical [托福]
美[ˌsʌbˈtrɑːpɪkl] | 英[ˌsʌbˈtrɒpɪkl]
adj. 亚热带的
convergence [托福]
美[kənˈvɚdʒəns] | 英[kən'vɜ:dʒəns]
n. 收敛；汇聚；汇合点
don [托福]
美[dɑn] | 英[dɒn]
n. 先生（西班牙用语）；(牛津、剑桥大学的)指导教师 v. 穿上

重点讲解

But other factors layered on top of human-caused warming may have helped temperatures accelerate dramatically in recent months.

但除了人为因素导致的变暖之外，其他因素可能也促使气温在最近几个月大幅上升。

layer n. & v.

1. 作名词：层；层次

【例】three layers of clothes/layers of management 三层衣服/管理层

2. 作动词：分层堆放

【例】Layer the beef and tomato on the bread to make a burger.

把牛肉和西红柿叠放在面包上，做成一个汉堡。

【近义词】stack v. 堆成一摞

on top of

1. 在……上面

【例】The tree collapsed on top of the cabin.

树倒下来，砸在了小木屋上。

2. 除……之外

【例】On top of everything else, my car was stolen.

所有东西都被盗了，除此之外我的车也被偷了。

For instance, a cyclical phenomenon in the Pacific Ocean known as the El Nino-Southern Oscillation causes year-to-year fluctuations by shifting heat in and out of deeper ocean layers. Global surface temperatures tend to be cooler during La Nina years and hotter during El Nino years.

例如，太平洋上一种被称为厄尔尼诺-南方涛动的周期性现象，通过将热量从深层海水中传入和传出而导致年际气温波动。全球表面温度往往在出现拉尼娜现象时较冷，在出现厄尔尼诺现象时较热。

fluctuation n. （数量）波动，起伏

【例】fluctuations in interest rates 利率的波动

【拓展】fluctuate v. 波动；起伏

“A big reason we’re seeing so many records shattered is that we’re transitioning out of an unusually long three-year La Nina, which suppressed temperatures, and into a strong El Nino,” Dr. Hausfather said. That likely portends even more heat is coming.

“我们看到这么多记录被打破的一个重要原因是，我们正在从一个异常漫长的为期三年的拉尼娜现象过渡到强烈的厄尔尼诺现象，而拉尼娜现象抑制了气温。”豪斯法瑟博士说。这很可能预示着更大的热浪即将到来。

suppress v. 镇压；禁止（发表）；压抑（情感）

【例】suppress religious activity/information/anger/laughter

禁止宗教活动/封锁消息/压抑怒火/忍住不笑

【辨析】repress/oppress v. 压抑（情感）；镇压/压迫；压抑（使心情沉重）

portend v. 预示（坏事即将发生）

【例】If you're superstitious, a black cat portends trouble.

你要是迷信的话，黑猫预示着厄运。

【近义词】foreshadow v. 预示（好事或坏事即将发生）

【辨析】predict/forecast v. （某人）预测，预言

The current El Nino is just getting underway and many researchers don’t expect it to peak until December or January, with global temperatures seeing another surge in the months thereafter. That means that next year could be even hotter than this year, scientists said.

目前的厄尔尼诺现象才刚刚开始，许多研究人员预计，厄尔尼诺现象直到12月或明年1月才会达到顶峰，此后几个月全球气温将再次飙升。科学家说，这意味着明年可能会比今年更热。

underway adj. 已经开始的；在进行中的

【例】The meeting is well underway.

会议正在顺利进行。

【近义词】ongoing adj. 进行中的；持续进行的

【辨析】undergo v. 经历，经受（变化或不愉快的事）

Other dynamics may be at work, too. The North Atlantic has seen record heat since early March, before El Nino conditions began.

其他动态因素可能也在起作用。在厄尔尼诺现象开始之前的3月初，北大西洋出现了创纪录的高温。

dynamic adj. & n.

1. 作形容词：充满活力的；动态的

【例】a dynamic leader/the dynamic process of innovation

精力充沛的领导/创新的动态过程

2. 作名词：（人或事物）相互作用的方式，动态

【例】group dynamics 团队成员间的互动

一个因素可能是，被称为亚速尔高压的一个副热带高压系统削弱了海洋上空的风，从而限制了从撒哈拉沙漠吹来的沙尘量，而这些沙尘通常有助于给海洋降温。

dynamic adj. & n.

1. 作形容词：充满活力的；动态的

【例】a dynamic leader/the dynamic process of innovation

精力充沛的领导/创新的动态过程

2. 作名词：（人或事物）相互作用的方式，动态

【例】group dynamics 团队成员间的互动

These weather patterns could change in the weeks ahead, said Dr. McNoldy of the University of Miami. “But even then we’d probably be going from insanely record-breaking temperatures down to just extremely record-breaking.”

迈阿密大学的麦克诺尔迪博士说，这些天气模式可能会在未来几周发生变化。“但即使发生了变化，我们可能也只是从疯狂破纪录高温降到极端破纪录高温。”

ahead adv. （时间或空间）在前面的

【例】the road ahead/the weeks ahead/plan ahead

前面的路/未来的几周/提前做计划

reversal n. 情况彻底转变；反转

【例】a reversal of policy 政策的逆转

【拓展】reverse v./adj./n. 使完全相反/相反的/相反的情况

The soaring heat has led some meteorologists to increase their warnings about this year’s hurricane season. On Thursday, forecasters at Colorado State University said they now expect an above-average Atlantic hurricane season, with around 18 tropical cyclones, a reversal from earlier forecasts of a quieter-than-usual year.

飙升的高温让一些气象学家增加了对今年飓风季节的警告。周四，科罗拉多州立大学的预报人员表示，他们现在预计会出现高于平均水平的大西洋飓风季节，会有18个热带气旋，这与早先预测的比往年更平静的飓风季节相反。

ahead adv. （时间或空间）在前面的

【例】the road ahead/the weeks ahead/plan ahead

前面的路/未来的几周/提前做计划

reversal n. 情况彻底转变；反转

【例】a reversal of policy 政策的逆转

【拓展】reverse v./adj./n. 使完全相反/相反的/相反的情况

Hurricanes in the Atlantic are often suppressed during El Nino years, but that may not be true this year because of the unusually warm ocean waters, which can fuel storms.

在厄尔尼诺年间，大西洋的飓风通常会受到抑制，但今年的情况可能并非如此，因为异常温暖的海水可能会助长风暴。

ahead adv. （时间或空间）在前面的

【例】the road ahead/the weeks ahead/plan ahead

前面的路/未来的几周/提前做计划

reversal n. 情况彻底转变；反转

【例】a reversal of policy 政策的逆转

【拓展】reverse v./adj./n. 使完全相反/相反的/相反的情况

Other researchers have suggested that recent efforts to clean up sulfur pollution from ships around the world may be pushing up temperatures slightly, since sulfur dioxide tends to reflect sunlight and cool the planet somewhat. That precise impact is still being debated, however.

其他研究人员则表示，近期世界各地在清理船舶带来的硫磺污染，这一行动可能会略微抬高气温，因为二氧化硫往往会反射阳光，让地球变得凉爽一些。然而，这一行动的确切影响仍在争论中。

effort n.

1. （单数）气力；费力的事

【例】You should put more effort into your work.

你应该更加努力地工作。

2. （可数）（对困难事情的）尝试，努力

【例】The project was a joint effort.

这项工程是共同努力的结果。

“There does seem to be this unusual convergence of warming factors right now,” said Gabriel Vecchi, a climate scientist at Princeton. “But this is all happening in a world where we’ve been increasing greenhouse gases for the past 150 years, and that really loads the dice and makes it much more likely that we’re going to get pushed into record-breaking territory.”

“现在，许多升温因素确实出现了不同寻常的汇聚，”普林斯顿大学的气候学家加布里埃尔·维奇说，“但在过去150年里，我们一直在增加温室气体，这让结局事先注定，我们更有可能进入创纪录的高温境地。”

convergence n. 汇集；交汇

【例】the convergence of the three rivers 三条河流的交汇

【拓展】converge v. 汇集；相交

【反义词】divergence n. 偏离；分叉

load the dice 把铅灌进骰子；事先决定结局

【例】The dice were loaded against them from the beginning.

从一开始他们就被人做了手脚，必败无疑。

课后练习

How does the El Nino influence the weather?
A. It causes strong ocean tides.
B. It makes the weather more unpredictable.
C. It increases the global temperature.
D. It brings cool weather around oceans.
What did Dr. Hausfather say about the global climate?
A. The earth will enter a long La Nina year.
B. The strong El Nino will end very soon.
C. The earth will cool down in December or January.
D. The earth will be hotter in the next few months.
Which of the following is true about the Azores High?
A. It increases the temperature of the North Atlantic.
B. It expands the size of the Sahara desert.
C. It helps cool the ocean by producing wind.
D. It will continue for a whole year.
What did Gabriel Vecchi say about this year’s heat?
A. It was mainly caused by warmer ocean waters.
B. It was unusual and might not repeat again.
C. It was likely to cool down in the future.
D. It was determined by greenhouse gas emissions.