评论
打印
On May 18, 1980,
1980年5月，
Mount St Helen in the Pacific Northwest was ripped apart.
美国圣海伦火山崩裂
Within minutes, over 100 billion cubic feet of the mountain
几分钟之内 超过1000亿立方英尺的火山物质
slid down into the surrounding countryside.
喷洒到四周区域
Since the eruption, Mount St Helens has been fairly quiet.
自从喷发以后 圣海伦火山一直相当平静
But inside its vast crater, a giant cone of rock is growing.
但是在它巨大的火山口里一块巨大锥状岩石正在生长
Forced up by the pressure beneath,
在下方不断上顶的压力作用下
Mount St Helens is building for another eruption.
圣海伦火山正在准备再一次爆发
The irony is that subduction volcanoes are so highly explosive and destructive because they are so gassy,
讽刺的是，俯冲带火山具有强大破坏力的原因在于它充满气体
yet it's the release of the gas that's crucial to the Earth.
而它释放出的气体恰恰对地球至关重要
That is the key to recycling carbon that is locked in the rocks back into atmosphere the carbon that'is locked in the rocks below.
这是让锁在岩石中的碳重返大气层的关键
The whole elaborate system works a bit like thermostat,
整个精细体系有点像一个温控计一样进行调控
maintaining the right temperatures for life.
并将温度维持在适合生命的范围之内
Ever since our planet formed four and a half billion years ago,
自从地球45年亿年前形成以来
Earth's inner heat has been continuously struggling to escape.
地球内部热量不断奋争出逃
In ftact, you colud say that the whole history of the planet
实际上 你能看到对地球整个历史而言
has been driven by the immense heat trapped inside it.
没有什么比控制地球热量更加重要
No force on earth is more dramatic,
地球上没有其它力量比火山更为动荡
more destructive,more violent than volcanoes.
更具破坏性，更加暴力
They are the life force of our planet.
火山是我们行星的生命力量
