考研英语二晨读2018-06-30

A glowing red’Blood Moon’in July will be the longest lunar eclipse in a century

　本世纪最长的月食即将发生！

July is shaping up to be an excellent month for astronomy fans.On the night of July 27 and the early morning hours of July 28,skywatchers in the Eastern Hemisphere will be treated to the longest lunar eclipse set to occur in the 21st century,EarthSky reports.Astronomers expect the total eclipse to last for a full 1 hour and 43 minutes,with the partial eclipse—which occurs before and after the total eclipse phase—lasting for 3 hours and 55 minutes.

7月份对于天文爱好者来说是个一个极好的月份。在7月27日晚上和7月28日凌晨，东半球的天文爱好者将有幸看到21世纪最长的月食，据EarthSky报道。天文学家预计全食会持续整整1小时43分钟--发生在全食相前后--持续3小时55分钟。

A lunar eclipse occurs when the Sun,Earth,and Moon are directly aligned,and the moon’s orbit brings it directly into Earth’s shadow.This particular eclipse will last so long because the moon will pass directly into the darkest region of Earth’s shadow,known as the umbra,which will also give the moon a reddish"blood moon"sheen.

当太阳，地球和月球直接对准成直线，且月球的轨道经过地球的阴影时，就会发生月食。该特殊的月食将会持续很长时间，是因为月球会直接进入地球阴影的最暗区域，也就是所谓的本影，它也会给月亮带来红色的“血月”光泽。

July’s full moon will happen at the same time as the moon’s apogee—which is when the moon hits its furthest point from Earth in its monthly orbit,according to EarthSky.It’ll be the smallest and furthest full moon of the year,which means the moon will take more time to pass through Earth’s dark shadow,making the eclipse last longer.

据EarthSky称，7月的满月将与月球的远地点同时发生-这是月球在月球轨道上离地球最远的点。这将是一年中最小和最远的满月，这意味着月球将需要花更多时间穿过地球的黑暗阴影，因而使月食时间持续更久。

The longest possible lunar eclipse is 1 hour and 47 minutes,according to EarthSky.The total eclipse will begin at 7:30 p.m.UTC,and end at 9:13 p.m.UTC.The peak of the eclipse will occur at 8:22 p.m.UTC.Just a few days after the lunar eclipse,Mars will pass by Earth at its closest point to since 2003.On July 31,the red planet will be only 35.8 million miles away from Earth,making it clearly visible to the naked eye.Stargazers in the Eastern Hemisphere will easily be able to see both Mars and the blood moon on July 27 and 28.

根据EarthSky的说法，最长的月食是1小时47分。月全食将于世界标准时间下午7:30开始，并于晚上9点13分结束。月食的高峰期将在晚上8点22分发生。就在月食后几天，火星将经过离地球最近的地点，这是自2003年以来最近的一次。7月31日，这颗红色星球距离地球只有3580万英里，用肉眼也能清晰可见。7月27日和28日，东半球的观星者将很容易看到火星和血月。

1.astronomy [ə'strɒnəmɪ]
n. 天文学

2.hemisphere ['hemɪsfɪə]
n. 半球

3.lunar eclipse
月蚀

4.align [ə'laɪn]
vt. 使结盟；使成一行；

5.orbit ['ɔːbɪt]
n. 轨道

6.umbra ['ʌmbrə]
n. [天] 本影；蚀时的地球

7.sheen [ʃiːn]
n. 光泽

8.apogee ['æpədʒiː]
n. 最高点；远地点