(单词翻译:单击)
This episode is sponsored by Squarespace.
本期节目由Squarespace赞助播出。
From websites and online stores to marketing tools and analytics, Squarespace is the all-in-one platform to build a beautiful online presence and run your business.
无论是网站、网上商城、推广工具和分析技术，Squarespace这个一体化平台都应有尽有。该平台可构建美妙的网上生态，助力您运转自己的生意。
Finding a new exoplanet used to be a really big deal all on its own. I remember these days!
以前，寻找新的系外行星这件事本身就意义重大，我还记得曾经那个时代呢！
I was alive when we found the first exoplanet!
我有生之年有幸见到人类发现的第一颗系外行星！
But now that we've found thousands of planets orbiting other stars,
但现在，由于我们在其他恒星附近已经发现了上千颗星星，
and astronomers don't just want to know that a planet exists, they want to know what it's like.
所以，天文学家不再只想知道有哪些系外行星存在，他们还想知道这些系外行星的具体情况。
New work published last week in the journal Science shows one creative way to answer that question.
上周，《科学》杂志上发表了新研究成果，该成果中展示了一种富有创意的方法，可以解答这个问题。
And the work reveals that, throughout the galaxy, planets seem to be made up of rock that's a lot like the rock you might pick up in your backyard.
该成果揭示出：在整个星系内，许多行星似乎都是由石头制成的，这种石头跟我们可能在自家后院里捡起的石头非常相似。
Understanding the composition of exoplanets is tricky business, because we can't just like, fly over and bring a piece back to the lab and do a bunch of chemistry on it.
了解系外行星的组成结构是很困难的，因为我们不能直接飞到这些行星上去带一块石头回到地球实验室上去研究化学成分。
In some cases, you can learn a lot by watching how light from a planet's star gets altered as it passes through the planet's atmosphere.
恒星穿过自己行星的大气层时，恒星发出的光会发生改变。有时候，通过观察这个，我们就能了解很多。
But that won't get you anywhere with a planet that doesn't have an atmosphere.
但这个方法用在没有大气层的行星身上是行不通的。
And sometimes scientists care more about what's under the surface than what's floating above it.
有时候，与大气层上漂浮的东西相比，科学家更关心的是地表以下有什么东西。
For decades, there's been basically no solution for these problems,
近几十年来，这些问题都没有找到解决方案。
but this new research came up with an unusual solution to the problem:
但这次的新研究提出了不同寻常的解决方案：
scope out worlds that are in the process of being destroyed.
研究正在处于被摧毁状态的星体。
The work focuses on six white dwarf stars, the burned-out cores left behind when stars like our Sun reach the end of their lives.
该研究专注于6颗白矮星——类似太阳的恒星在坍缩时留下的灼烧内核。
White dwarfs are extremely dense, and their powerful gravity can shred any asteroids or planetary fragments that wander too close.
白矮星密度极高，其强大的引力可以撕碎任何离它们过近的小行星或行星碎片。
As that material falls onto the star, it pollutes the star's outer layers with new elements.
物质掉落到恒星上，恒星的外层就受到了新元素的污染。
Astronomers can see the signatures of those elements in the star's light.
天文学家可以在恒星的光里看到这些元素的痕迹。
In this study, researchers scoured past observations of nearby white dwarfs in search of the six most common elements in Earth's crust:
在该研究中，研究人员四处搜索了附近白矮星过去的观测信息，目的是在地球的地壳中寻找最常见的元素：
iron, oxygen, silicon, magnesium, calcium, and aluminum. And they found them.
铁、氧、硅、镁、钙、铝。而他们真的找到了。
But their most important finding was that there wasn't just iron and oxygen in these rocks, there was iron oxide, better known as rust.
但他们最重要的发现是：这些石头里不只是铁和氧，还有氧化铁，也就是我们俗称的绣。
Iron oxide is common in rocks from our solar system, but it only forms under the right conditions,
氧化铁在太阳系里的石头中很常见，但只能在条件合适的时候形成，
such as in places with tectonic activity.
比如构造活动发生的地方。
Finding it in these far-flung locations means that it's probably common for rocky planets to have tectonic plates, just like Earth.
在这些遥远的地方发现氧化铁就意味着很有可能氧化铁在多石又经常有构造活动发生的行星上很常见，比如地球。
And the fact that this iron oxide exists also suggests that these planets could have magnetic fields and atmospheres just like us.
氧化铁存在的事实也表明：这些行星有磁场和大气层，就像地球一样。
Basically, the study implies that these far-off worlds are pretty similar to Earth and its rocky neighbors, which could make it a whole lot easier to understand the nature of exoplanets.
基本上，该研究表明：这些遥远的星体跟地球十分相似，它们离我们很近，又有很多石头。可以让我们更容易了解系外行星的本质。
Also, watching a planet get destroyed is a pretty fun way to do science.
此外，观察行星被摧毁的过程是一种有趣的科学方式。
I hope there wasn't anybody, like, living their best life there. They certainly aren't anymore.
我希望那上面没有人存在。不过，就算以前有，现在也肯定没有了。
Last week, we also got some good news about NASA's ability to explore closer to home.
上周，我们还获得了一些好消息——美国宇航局（NASA）有能力探索离地球相对近一些的地方了。
As part of its Artemis project to return astronauts to the Moon, the agency revealed a new spacesuit designed to better meet astronauts' needs wherever they're working.
这就是NASA的阿耳忒弥斯项目。该项目的部分内容是送宇航员回到乐器。NASA公布了一种新的太空服。设计该太空服的初衷是更好地满足宇航员的需要，不管宇航员是在哪里工作。
The most important change is in sizing. NASA's current suit can trace its origins to the ones worn by Apollo astronauts on the Moon.
最重要的变化在太空服的大小上。NASA目前的太空服起源于阿波罗号宇航员在月球上穿的太空服。
Astronauts who, of course, were all men. As you might expect, this has created problems, like in early 2019, when NASA was forced to cancel the first planned all-woman spacewalk
阿波罗号的宇航员当然都是男性。大家可能也能想到，这个事实产生了很多的问题，比如在2019年初的时候，NASA被迫要取消第一次计划好了的全女性太空行走。
because they couldn't come up with two working suits that fit them.
原因是NASA没能想出一套适合男性与女性的2套工作服。
That historic walk finally happened last week, but the whole affair highlighted the ongoing inequity faced by female astronauts.
这次具有历史意义的太空行走最终发生在上周，但这一整件事都突出了女性宇航员所面临的不平等问题。
NASA's new design solves that problem, at least, when it comes to spacesuits.
NASA的新设计解决了这个问题，至少太空服的问题是解决了。
With this new program, each astronaut will have their entire body 3D-scanned.
有了这个新项目之后，每位宇航员都整个身体都要进行3D扫描。
And with that data in hand, engineers can match the astronaut with the most comfortable suit.
有了3D数据在手之后，工程师就能为宇航员匹配最舒服的太空服。
The spacesuits are designed to fit nearly all body types, women, and men.
这样设计出来的太空服就能符合所有身形的人，无论男性还是女性。
They're also easier to put on and more flexible, which should make it easier for future Moonwalkers to carry out their tasks on the surface.
穿起来更便捷，而且更灵活，从而让未来的月球行走变得更简单（未来宇航员会在月球表面行走来完成任务）。
There's still lots of work left to do, though, and NASA expects it will be about two years before an astronaut on the International Space Station takes one for the first test-drive.
不过，依然有很多工作尚未完成，但NASA预计，再需要大概2年的时间，国际空间站的宇航员就能小试牛刀了。
But when it's ready, this new suit could support astronauts for decades of future exploration.
不过，等万事俱备的时候，这套新的太空服可支持宇航员进行长达数十年的未来探索。
So good thing it also looks pretty cool. Finally, we wanted to share some happy news about NASA's Mars InSight mission, which has been working to understand the interior of Mars since last year.
好事儿是：这套太空服看起来超酷。最终，我们想分享一些有关NASA 火星洞察号任务的好消息：自去年以来，洞察号已经开始着手了解火星内部的情况了。
One of Insight's key instruments is the Heat Flow and Physical Properties Package or HP^3, which was provided by the German Aerospace Center.
洞察号的主要工具之一是：热流动和物理特性包HP^3。这套工具是德国航空太空中心提供的。
HP^3 is designed to burrow several meters underground and make temperature measurements that will help scientists calculate how quickly Mars is losing heat.
HP^3设计的初衷是在地下挖几米的洞、进行温度测量，此举将帮助科学家计算火星失去热量的速度。
Its centerpiece is what's called the mole, which is sometimes described as a self-hammering nail.
其中心是可以带着自己往下挖的钉子。
It just kind of slams itself deeper and deeper into the ground,
该物体会带着自己越刨越深。
dragging a wire behind it to relay data back to InSight.
其后拖拽的电线可以传输数据回洞察号。
But back in March, the mole suddenly stopped making progress after traveling only about 35 centimeters below the surface.
不过，今年3月的时候，该物体突然不再有任何进展。在此之前，该物体仅在地下行进了35厘米左右。
Now, seven months later, engineers finally got it moving again! The problem turned out to be a lack of friction.
如今，也就是7个月后，工程师终于让它再次动起来了！问题是因为缺少摩擦。
The mole relies on friction with the surrounding material to drag itself further down, but the upper layer of the Martian surface is crustier than scientists expected, so the mole had trouble grabbing hold.
该物体需要依赖周围物质的摩擦力来拖动自己向下行进。但火星较上面的表层，其地壳厚度比科学家预想的要大。所以该固体就卡在原地不动了。
NASA's solution was pretty clever, they used InSight's robotic arm to press the mole against the side of the borehole, giving it the friction it needed to move forward.
NASA的解决方案相当机智——他们用洞察号的机器人手臂来让该物体压住钻孔的边，让其前行所需的摩擦力。
So far, it's only gone a couple of extra centimeters, but that is a lot more than the nothing they were getting before.
目前为止，该物体已经又行进了几厘米了，比之前要远多了。
So score one for engineering a solution from a hundred million kilometers away.
万里长征已经实现第一步了。
From stealing a peek at dying worlds to 3D-scanning astronauts and lending a hand to a self-hammering nail, this was totally a week for out-of-the-box thinking.
本期节目，我们了解了即将被摧毁的星体以及采用了3D扫描技术的太空服，也了解了自动下挖的装置。这就是本周的思考与分享啦。
Making it up as you go is part of what makes exploration so cool.
不断了解新知识是探索过程很妙的一个原因啦。
Engineering creative solutions in space is one thing.
为太空思考富有创意的工程解决方案是一回事，
But that kind of creativity can also go a long way here on Earth.
但放在地球上，也依然需要很长的路要走。
And say you had a great idea, like if you wanted to start a campaign to plant trees and let the world know about it.
比如，你有一个很棒的点子，比如，你想发起一项种树的活动，让全世界都知道。
You might want to create a website. Squarespace is one place to start.
你可能想创建一个网站。Squarespace就是让目标实现的起点。
It's got powerful blogging tools, so you can easily share stories, photos, videos, and updates.
这里有强大的博客工具，你可以轻松分享故事、照片、视频和动态。
You can even schedule your posts to make your content go out when you're ready.
你甚至可以为自己的博文排期，等自己准备好了，再发出内容。
The blogging platform also supports a sharing button that your visitors can use to share content on Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, and more.
该博客平台还支持分享按钮，浏览你博客的人可以用这个按钮来分享脸书、推特、Reddit等平台上的内容。
You can also reach people in their inboxes by setting up a Squarespace email campaigns.
你还可以通过组建Squarespace的邮箱活动来给其他人发信。
It's easy to use the Squarespace platform to unify your brand voice, from your homepage to your emails.
Squarespace平台简单易用，可以整合你的品牌声音，从主页到邮件，不一而足。
And you can get a free trial. When you're ready to get started, head over to squarespace.com/SPACE and use the code space to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain.
大家还可以免费试用。等大家准备好之后，直接登录squarespace.com/SPACE，使用优惠码space，首单创建网站或者域名就可以有10%的减免。
