Antarctica’s volcanic ice caves 探秘南极洲火山冰穴
Antarctica’s volcanic ice caves
探秘南极洲火山冰穴
Photographed by: Carsten Peter/National Geographic Stock Translated by: Rice1919
From：http://club.topsage.com/thread-3175970-1-1.html
A topsy-turvy world 浑天沌地
Mount Erebus is the most southerly active volcano on the planet. It began to form about 1.3 million years ago and today stands 3,794m above sea level. Its slopes are covered with snow and ice, glaciers, crevasses and the occasional lava flow, but steam usually rises from its summit, betraying the intense heat within. If Erebus were a dessert, it would be a reverse Baked Alaska – frozen on the outside and hot in the middle.
埃里布斯火山是地球最南端的活火山。它形成于130万年前，如今海拔3,794米。火山锥周身冰雪覆盖，冰川蜿蜒，裂缝中时而有熔岩流出。但那从火山口腾出的热气，却透漏出它灼热的内心。若将埃里布斯比作一款甜点，它就像一支装反了的火焰冰激凌——冰雪其表、灼烈其里。
Below the surface 地表之下
The volcano, including the frequency of its eruptions, the types of gases it gives off, and the age of its rocks, is well studied. But the thousands of microscopic organisms that live in the hot soils inside the caves near Erebus’ summit make up one of the planet’s least known ecosystems. It could also be one of the largest – some estimates suggest that one-third of all bacteria on the planet might live there – and weirdest. These microbes do not survive by drawing energy from the sun. Instead, they get energy from other sources, such as iron or hydrogen.
人们对火山喷发的频率，喷散气体的类型以及火山岩的岩龄等都有了详尽的研究。但是在埃里布斯火山口周围洞穴里，温暖的土壤中孕育的种类繁多的微生物却构成了地球上最鲜为人知的生态体系。这里或许拥有世界上最怪异、种类最繁杂的微生物群体——有人估测地球上三分之一的细菌都在这里。这里的微生物存活并不是依靠太阳提供的能量，而是从铁或氢等其它来源摄取能量。
Drilling deep 深入探索
Until recently the study of the microbes was problematic: if you could not grow it in the laboratory, how could you describe it, let alone study it? In the past decade or so, though, genetic techniques have been developed that allow whole communities of microbes to be characterised by their DNA alone, giving scientists a far more complete picture. A team of eight researchers explored the caves in 2012 using a drill to extract a sample of snow and ice accumulated over many years. The hope is that such samples will contain microbes from inside the volcano, giving a window into microbial life.
在此之前，人们对微生物的研究存有诸多疑惑：如果无法在实验室里培育微生物，何以对它们进行纪录，更不用说去如何研究了。过去的十多年里，基因技术有了长足的发展，现在人们只需通过DNA就可以识别所有的微生物。2012年，一支由八人组成的研究小组进入洞穴勘探，对冰穴中的成年冰雪打钻取样，期望冰雪样本中会含有来自火山内部的微生物，为了解微生物世界开启一扇窗户。
True blue domes蓝色苍穹
Here, microbiologist Craig Cary peers underneath the blue dome of an ice cave, where he will take a soil sample to check for microbes. Although the volcanic soils themselves are hot – they can reach temperatures of 65C – the air just above is not. Move a couple of metres away from the hot spot, and the soil temperature drops sharply. These caves lie close to the surface, with only thin ice separating them from the outside world. Anyone walking outside the cave must take care or risk falling through.
微生物学家克雷格·卡里在将要取样的冰穴仰望蓝色的冰封洞顶。虽然火山土壤很热，土壤自身温度可达65C，但是地表的空气却很寒冷。离开地面数米，温度就骤然下降。这些冰穴紧挨着地表，只有一层薄冰将它们与外界隔开，走在冰层之上还会有掉下来的危险。
Clusters of crystals 冰霜簇拥
Inside the ice caves, frost crystals form from the volcano’s warm, wet air. Each crystal grows in a different shape depending on how the air currents flow. Here, a team member investigates the passages of Hut Cave, working to find the origin of the microbes that inhabit the caves.
冰穴之中，火山造就的温暖潮湿的空气，让洞穴里凝霜挂雪。冰霜的外形因空气流动的方向而异。此处，一名队员在探索“冰屋”的通道，以期找到洞穴中微生物寄生的源头。
探秘南极洲火山冰穴
Photographed by: Carsten Peter/National Geographic Stock Translated by: Rice1919
From：http://club.topsage.com/thread-3175970-1-1.html
A topsy-turvy world 浑天沌地
 |
Mount Erebus is the most southerly active volcano on the planet. It began to form about 1.3 million years ago and today stands 3,794m above sea level. Its slopes are covered with snow and ice, glaciers, crevasses and the occasional lava flow, but steam usually rises from its summit, betraying the intense heat within. If Erebus were a dessert, it would be a reverse Baked Alaska – frozen on the outside and hot in the middle.
埃里布斯火山是地球最南端的活火山。它形成于130万年前，如今海拔3,794米。火山锥周身冰雪覆盖，冰川蜿蜒，裂缝中时而有熔岩流出。但那从火山口腾出的热气，却透漏出它灼热的内心。若将埃里布斯比作一款甜点，它就像一支装反了的火焰冰激凌——冰雪其表、灼烈其里。
Below the surface 地表之下
 |
The volcano, including the frequency of its eruptions, the types of gases it gives off, and the age of its rocks, is well studied. But the thousands of microscopic organisms that live in the hot soils inside the caves near Erebus’ summit make up one of the planet’s least known ecosystems. It could also be one of the largest – some estimates suggest that one-third of all bacteria on the planet might live there – and weirdest. These microbes do not survive by drawing energy from the sun. Instead, they get energy from other sources, such as iron or hydrogen.
人们对火山喷发的频率，喷散气体的类型以及火山岩的岩龄等都有了详尽的研究。但是在埃里布斯火山口周围洞穴里，温暖的土壤中孕育的种类繁多的微生物却构成了地球上最鲜为人知的生态体系。这里或许拥有世界上最怪异、种类最繁杂的微生物群体——有人估测地球上三分之一的细菌都在这里。这里的微生物存活并不是依靠太阳提供的能量，而是从铁或氢等其它来源摄取能量。
Drilling deep 深入探索
 |
Until recently the study of the microbes was problematic: if you could not grow it in the laboratory, how could you describe it, let alone study it? In the past decade or so, though, genetic techniques have been developed that allow whole communities of microbes to be characterised by their DNA alone, giving scientists a far more complete picture. A team of eight researchers explored the caves in 2012 using a drill to extract a sample of snow and ice accumulated over many years. The hope is that such samples will contain microbes from inside the volcano, giving a window into microbial life.
在此之前，人们对微生物的研究存有诸多疑惑：如果无法在实验室里培育微生物，何以对它们进行纪录，更不用说去如何研究了。过去的十多年里，基因技术有了长足的发展，现在人们只需通过DNA就可以识别所有的微生物。2012年，一支由八人组成的研究小组进入洞穴勘探，对冰穴中的成年冰雪打钻取样，期望冰雪样本中会含有来自火山内部的微生物，为了解微生物世界开启一扇窗户。
True blue domes蓝色苍穹
 |
Here, microbiologist Craig Cary peers underneath the blue dome of an ice cave, where he will take a soil sample to check for microbes. Although the volcanic soils themselves are hot – they can reach temperatures of 65C – the air just above is not. Move a couple of metres away from the hot spot, and the soil temperature drops sharply. These caves lie close to the surface, with only thin ice separating them from the outside world. Anyone walking outside the cave must take care or risk falling through.
微生物学家克雷格·卡里在将要取样的冰穴仰望蓝色的冰封洞顶。虽然火山土壤很热，土壤自身温度可达65C，但是地表的空气却很寒冷。离开地面数米，温度就骤然下降。这些冰穴紧挨着地表，只有一层薄冰将它们与外界隔开，走在冰层之上还会有掉下来的危险。
Clusters of crystals 冰霜簇拥
 |
Inside the ice caves, frost crystals form from the volcano’s warm, wet air. Each crystal grows in a different shape depending on how the air currents flow. Here, a team member investigates the passages of Hut Cave, working to find the origin of the microbes that inhabit the caves.
冰穴之中，火山造就的温暖潮湿的空气，让洞穴里凝霜挂雪。冰霜的外形因空气流动的方向而异。此处，一名队员在探索“冰屋”的通道，以期找到洞穴中微生物寄生的源头。
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