VOA慢速英语2016 海洋“斑点”引发赤潮

AS IT IS 2016-10-09 Ocean 'Blob' Caused Dangerous Algae 1 Bloom 海洋“斑点”引发赤潮

Tiny water plants called phytoplankton serve as food for many sea creatures, including whales, shrimp 2, jellyfish and snails 3.

微型浮游植物是许多海洋生物的食物，包括鲸鱼、虾、海蜇和蜗牛。

Phytoplankton do well in cold water. But if water temperatures rise by only two degrees Celsius 4, the phytoplankton struggle. That is what happened in the last three or four years in the northern part of the Pacific Ocean.

浮游植物适合在寒冷的水中生存。但是，只要水温上升两摄氏度，浮游植物的生存就很困难。这是过去三四年里在太平洋的北部出现的情况。

Researchers say an unusual area of warm water spread throughout the Northern Pacific. Scientists called the warm water “the blob,” as if it were a character in an old science fiction movie.

研究人员说，一股不寻常的温水在整个北太平洋扩散。科学家称之为“斑点”，就好像它是古老的科幻电影中的一个角色。

At its largest, the blob stretched 1,600 square kilometers and reached depths of 91 meters.

在“斑点”最大的地方，它延伸了1600平方公里，到达91米的深度。

This large mass of warm water had a damaging effect on the ocean food chain. Many fish that depend on phytoplankton swam away from the area. As a result, sea birds and sea lions that eat those fish starved.

这股体积庞大的温水对海洋食物链产生破坏。许多以浮游植物为食的鱼类离开该区域。这样一来，以这些鱼为生的海鸟和海狮就饿死了。

Scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 5 Administration and the University of Washington have found that the warm ocean “blob” caused a harmful algae bloom. That fast growth in algae hurt fishing grounds along the U.S. West Coast and Canada's British Columbia.

国家海洋与大气管理局和华盛顿大学的科学家们发现，暖流“斑点”引起了有害的赤潮。赤潮的迅速扩散对美国西海和加拿大的不列颠哥伦比亚省沿岸的渔场造成损害。

The researchers recently published their study in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

研究人员最近在《地球物理研究快报》上发表了他们的研究结果。

They looked at the algae, called P. australis. The researchers found that the algae can grow much faster than normal if it is exposed to warm water.

他们将这次赤潮称为芦苇。研究人员发现，比起常温海水，在温水中赤潮蔓延得要快得多。

The higher levels of algae also produced more of a poisonous chemical that can cause problems for everything from shellfish to dolphins to sea lions. It also causes problems for humans if too much of the chemical builds up in their blood.

更高层次的赤潮也产生更多的有毒化学物质，可能会对从贝类、海豚到海狮等一切生物造成影响。如果过多的化学物质在人体的血液中积聚，它也可引起人类疾病。

Researchers say algae blooms like this one will continue as ocean waters warm. The algae will hurt sea animals, birds, and fish. It may damage food resources for humans all over the world, the scientists say.

研究人员说，像这样的赤潮在温暖的海水中会继续扩散。赤潮会伤害海洋动物、鸟类和鱼类。它可能会破坏世界各地人类的食物资源，科学家们说。

Words in This Story

algae – n. simple plants that have no leaves or stems 6 and that grow in or near water

food chain - n. a series of types of living things in which each one uses the next lower member of the series as a source of food — usually used with the

expose - v. to come in contact with something

bloom – v. to change, grow, or develop fully