[轉載]終極宇宙 中英文對照字幕

數千年來

we"ve wondered if we"re alone in the cosmos.

我們一直在思索  自己在宇宙中是否孤單

Life - is it a one time event...

生命  到底是一鎚子買賣

..Or is it something that"s

還是在宇宙長河中

occurred lots of times throughout the universe?

不斷上演著的輪迴

And, at this very moment,

此時此刻

new discoveries are bringing us closer to the answers.

新的發現使我們更加接近這個答案

We are right on the cusp of being able to say

我們距離斷言存在外星生物

life exists somewhere else.

只有一層窗戶紙的距離

All of our searching is leading to one ultimate goal...

所有研究都指向一個共同的終極目標

Finding intelligent life somewhere

那就是在茫茫宇宙中

in the vastness of the universe.

找到智能生物

If we could discover an advanced civilisation,

如果我們能發現先進文明

it would be clearly the greatest discovery of humanity,

毫無疑問  這將是人類最偉大的發現

beating out fire.

為一個焦點問題蓋棺定論

Get ready, because the known universe

做好準備  因為已知的宇宙

is about to take you on a hunt for life out there.

即將帶你探尋藏在那裡的生命

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翻譯：小樣  句號  米蘭花開 半糖  fiona  有利

時間軸：End  校對：小砂鍋 總監：丟丟  後期：飛飛

終極宇宙

還有人嗎

Over the next hour, we"ll show you

在接下來的一小時里  我們會為您呈現

how the hunt for alien life has dramatically changed

過去幾十年里

over the past few decades.

探尋外星生命進程的戲劇性變化

The lessons we"re learning at the bottom of our oceans

我們在大洋底部

and in Yellowstone"s acid pits

以及黃石公園的酸坑學到的知識

are giving us dramatic insight

打開了一扇

into how life came to be on our planet.

洞悉地球生命誕生歷程的窗口

And it"s helping us understand and imagine

而且有助於我們理解和想像

how life might emerge on an alien world.

外星世界的生命是如何出現的

We"ll take you on a journey to faraway planets,

我們會帶您來到遙遠的行星

where amazing creatures may roam the lands.

神奇的生物在那的陸地上徜徉

Creatures that make the wildest

那些最瘋狂的科幻影片中的生物

science fiction movies look like reality shows.

會像真人秀一樣呈現在你面前

And, finally, we"ll show you

最後  我們會為您呈現

how new technologies are being used to search for,

如何運用前沿科技去搜尋

and possibly communicate with, advanced alien civilisations.

甚至去聯絡先進的外星文明

So is Earth the only planet

那麼在廣袤宇宙中

where life has emerged in this vast cosmos?

地球是不是唯一一顆存在生命的行星呢

Are we alone?

我們是否孤單

Or are we part of something bigger-

抑或是一項宏偉巨制的組成部分

a web of life that stretches light years through theuniverse?

宇宙中一段縱橫數光年的生命網路

Are we alone?

我們是否孤單

And it ties into all the big questions:

菲爾·普萊特  天文學家

這個問題關聯到一系列重要問題

How did we get here? Where are we going?

我們如何而來  又要前往何處

Are we a part of a bigger picture?

我們是更大格局中的一部分嗎

But for many years the question was taboo to science.

但長久以來  這些問題都是科學禁忌

Before the mid 1990s,

it was considered somewhat

傑夫·馬利  加州大學伯克利分校天文學家

90年代中期前

即便是提出這些問題

embarrassing to even address the question,

都會令人覺得無所適從

because looking for alien life

因為尋找外星生命

seems a little frighteningly close to science fiction.

只令人不安地存在於科幻世界中

For decades, the furthest we got in

數十年來  我們尋找外星生命的最高成就

looking for aliens was imagining them on the silver screen.

只是銀屏上的區區想像

What is your name?

你叫什麼名字

After all, alien life needs a home.

畢竟  外星生命需要一個家

And we hadn"t even found a planet outside our own solarsystem.

在太陽系外  我們甚至還未發現過一顆行星

Scientists, in fact,

事實上  科學家們

never talked about planets around other stars.

從來不會談起其他恆星附近的行星

There was no way to detect them

探測它們是天方夜譚

and so it was one of those domains of science

所以這也就成了科學界

that you couldn"t answer,

無法解答的領域之一

and, therefore, you didn"t talk about it.

因此  人們也就不會予以討論

In 1995, astronomers discovered

1995年  天文學家們發現了

a planet orbiting a star 50 light years from Earth.

一顆距地球50光年的繞恆星旋轉的行星

And since then, they"ve found hundreds more.

從那時起  又有上百顆映入人們眼帘

For the first time in human history, we realised that oursun,

人類歷史上  我們首次意識到太陽

with its eight major planets that go around it,

以及環繞它的八大行星

is just one type of a planetary system, one example ofbillions.

只是一種行星系統  是滄海一粟

These discoveries are exciting,

這些發現令人振奮

but don"t expect to be contacting

但別指望在不久的將來

extraterrestrial life on these planets any time soon.

就能與天外來客取得聯絡

While it"s been a spectacular ride

近十年來對行星的發現

in the last decade to find these planets,

可謂收穫頗豐

most of them are giant planets.

它們大都是巨行星

Most of the worlds we"ve found are gas giants,

我們發現的行星大多是氣體巨星

which probably couldn"t support life.

生命可能難以賴以生存

You can"t stand on them. There"s no hard surface.

它們沒有堅硬的外殼  生命無法駐足其上

They"re large balls of hydrogen and helium gas,

如同木星和火星

like Jupiter and Saturn.

它們是由氫氦氣體組成的龐大星球

We found a few rocky planets with hard surfaces,

我們也發現了幾顆有著硬面的岩石行星

but they"re many times more massive than Earth

不過它們的質量大出地球數倍

and contain the most hostile environments you could everimagine.

上面的惡劣環境令你無法想像

One such planet, Corot 7B, orbits so close to its star

其中的一顆  柯洛7B  它的軌道距離恆星極近

that surface temperatures reach as high as 1,600 degreesCelsius.

致使表面溫度高達1600℃

Sunrise here does not bring the sound of birdsong.

在那裡  日出並沒有喚醒鳥鳴

Instead, it"s an armageddon of volcanic explosions.

相反  喚醒的卻是火山世界末日般的悲鳴

Those planets are all going to be so hot,

you can"t develop something as complex as life.

戴維·赫爾方  加拿大塊斯特大學

那些行星溫度如此之高

複雜如生命的東西根本無法進化

Scientists have gone back to the drawing board

科學家重新回到計劃階段

looking to find worlds capable of supporting life,

尋找能夠孕育生命的世界

small rocky planets like Earth.

比如像地球一樣的小型岩石行星

We don"t know that life has

我們不知道生命的進化

to evolve on the surface of small, rocky planets.

是否必須在小型岩石行星表面進行

But we know it did once, here on Earth.

但據我們所知  進化確實在地球上發生過一次

And so, it"s a reasonable place to start the search.

所以  在這裡展開調查是眾望所歸

Earth is important because we know that

地球佔有重要地位  因為我們知道

this little planet had everything needed to create life.

這裡存在孕育生命所需的一切

And if a distant world has similar conditions,

如果遙遠的世界存在相似的環境

there"s at least a possibility life could emerge there, too.

那裡也很有可能出現生命

If you were to give a biologist a piece of paper

如果你給生物學家一張紙

and say, "Write down on every line something you need forlife."

並讓他"列出維持生命所需要的東西"

They"ll say you need an energy source,

他們或許會說需要能量源

you need oxygen, you need water,

需要氧氣  水

you need carbon, you need organic compounds,

需要碳  有機化合物

you need amino acids, you need all this stuff.

還需要氨基酸  諸如此類都必不可少

There"s a long list of factors that

地球之所以如此特殊  並能成為完美的生命家園

make our Earth special and perfectly suited for life.

要歸功於一長串因素

But the most important is

但最重要的還是

its distance from our energy source - the Sun.

她與我們的能量源太陽之間的距離

At 149 million kilometres away, the Earth

地球距離太陽1.49億公里  這個距離

is at just the right place for water to exist as a liquid.

正好使得水以液態形式存在

So why is liquid water important?

那為什麼液態水如此重要

Imagine a world so much

羅伯特·赫特  加州理工學院天文學家

hotter than the Earth that there are no oceans,

想像一個比地球

熱得多的星球  表面沒有大洋

no liquid water at all on its surface.

不存在液態水

Such a place would be like a desert.

那樣的地方就像一個沙漠

Without water,

沒有水

there"s nothing to let the grains of sand interact.

就沒有能使沙粒相互作用的介質

And in the same way, without water,

同樣地  沒有水

there"s nothing to allow the atoms-

眾多原子  比如碳

the carbon and oxygen and trace elements -

氧以及微量元素

to form the molecules that

也就無法形成分子

would give rise to the chemistry of life.

正是這些分子構成了生命的化學基礎

On the other hand, on a world much colder than the Earth,

另一方面  一個比地球冷得多的地方

water can only exist as ice, and we have another problem.

水只能以冰的形式存在  問題又來了

This frozen block of sand

在這塊冰凍的沙塊中

has all of the grains of sand locked together.

所有的沙粒凝聚在一起

They can"t move around and interact,

它們無法來回運動  無法相互作用

just the same way that on a frozen world,

這與冰天雪地的世界如出一轍

the atoms and molecules can"t move around and interact

原子和分子無法移動  無法相互作用

to form the chemistry necessary for life.

也就難以構建生命所必須的化學基礎

But if temperatures and conditions are just right,

但如果溫度和條件恰到好處

like here on Earth, you get liquid water.

就如地球上一樣  就會有液態水存在

The water allows the sand grains to flow together andintermingle

水使得沙粒浮動在一起  互相混合

and form more complex structures.

形成更複雜的結構

In the same way, water acts like a cocktail mixer,

同樣地  水充當了雞尾酒混合器的角色

allowing the atoms and molecules to come together

使得原子和分子聚集在一起

and ultimately form the building blocks of life.

最終形成了構建生命的基本單元

All that water was perfect for breeding life.

正是那些水完美地孕育了一個個生命

Lots of it.

簡直數不勝數

It"s estimated that since

據估計  從地球上出現

the emergence of Earth"s first life form,

第一批生命形態至今

100 billion species have existed on the planet.

地球上已存在過一千億種生物

Millions are alive right now,

如今仍存活著上百萬種生物

and that fact alone tells scientists

單憑這一點  科學家們就能夠

a lot as they comb the cosmos for alien life.

獲取大量關於探索宇宙外星生命的信息

If we look for life in the universe

史蒂夫·賈克柏  法拉第實驗室  研究員

如果我們想要在宇宙中尋找生命

we have to understand it will come in different shapes andsizes.

首先需要明白  它的形狀大小將截然不同

And the same thing occurs here on Earth.

這裡就有樣東西能夠說明這點

Take this handful of dirt.

比如我手裡的這抔土

It"s not just dirt, there"s a lot going on in here.

這不僅是一抔土  裡面還另有一番天地

There"s an earthworm.

這裡有條蚯蚓

Go in a little more...

再深入一點點

..and there are these tiny little mites.

這裡有少量微型的蟎蟲

Zoom in further...

再往深處放大

..and there are these little creatures called protozoa.

有些被稱作原蟲的生物

And smaller still...

再往小了去

...there"s bacteria, billions of them.

還有數以億計的細菌

So you see, there really are

你看  就這一捧土裡

a lot of living things in a handful of dirt

就存在著如此繁多的生命

and we should probably remember that

如果我們對陌生的世界多多探索

if we ever go digging around on alien worlds.

或許便能牢記這一點啟示

Life isn"t always something you can see with the naked eye.

我們的世界並非都為肉眼所能見

In these piles of dirt lie the secrets to our origins.

在這些泥土堆中就隱藏著我們起源的秘密

And scientists are keeping that in perspective

科學家們在探索宇宙中的生命時

when they search for life in the cosmos.

一直堅信這個真理

You have to be looking for that bacterium first,

首先你必須找到細菌

because that"s gonna be far more common.

因為它們更加常見

If we don"t find that,

如果我們連它們都找不著

the chance of finding these tall, elegant, grey,

那發現那些高挑肌灰的外星人的幾率

ET guys is gonna be highly diminished.

就會大大減小

so are there other Earths out there capable

那麼還存在有其他星球

of supporting extraterrestrial life,

能夠容納地外生命

or even bacteria?

甚至是細菌嗎

We"re closer than ever to finding the answers,

如今  我們離這個答案已近在咫尺

because scientists have picked up the scent in this cosmichunt.

因為科學家們已經發現了些蛛絲馬跡

In the hunt for alien life,

在搜尋外星生命的過程中

scientists are focusing their efforts

科學家們將他們的注意力集中在

on finding small, rocky planets like Earth.

搜索類似於地球這樣小型岩石行星上

But searching for another Earth

但是  想要找到另一個地球

is like trying to find a needle in a million haystacks.

就如同大海撈針

Because, from trillions of kilometres away,

因為  距離地球萬億光年

these small planets get lost

這些小星球早就

in the blinding glare of their star"s brightness.

在各自恆星的炫目光芒之中黯淡了

The sad truth of the matter is that earth-like planets

傑夫·馬爾西  天文學家  加州大學伯克利分校

令人悲哀的真相卻是 那些類地行星

are mere cosmic specks of dust,

不過是宇宙中的點點塵埃

and, therefore, detecting them is really quite hard.

因此  想探測到它們的確十分困難

Hard, but not impossible.

雖然困難  但並非不可能

Every now and again,

時不時

the planet passes directly between us and the star.

這些星球會從地球和它們的恆星之間經過

And if it does that, it"s like a little eclipse

當它們擦肩而過時  就如同小型的月食

and the starlight drops.

恆星的光芒會減弱

It gets darker because the

它變得較之前更加黯淡

planet is blocking the light from that star.

因為這顆行星球擋住了恆星的光芒

And it turns out we can see that.

菲爾·普萊特  天文學家

我們便能觀測到這一現象

With this in mind,

知道了這些

scientists built one of the world"s most sensitive telescopes

科學家搭建了世界上感光性最強的望遠鏡之一

and launched it into space.

將它發射到太空中

The mission, called Kepler,

這個任務  代號開普勒

may not help us find extra terrestrial life

也許不能幫我們找到地外生命

but it could help us find its home.

但可能幫我們找到一個地外家園

Kepler will simply do one thing unbelievably well -

開普勒能將一件事情做到極致

measure the brightnesses of

那就是反反覆覆測量

100,000 stars over and over and over,

十萬顆恆星的亮度變化

looking for a few of those 100,000 stars that dim.

從這十萬顆恆星中尋找亮度變暗的那幾顆

Seeing the tiniest dim from

人們難以想像

a small planet travelling in front of a star

如此能觀測到千萬光年之外

thousands of light years away isn"t easy to imagine,

小行星從恆星前穿過而引起的恆星亮度的變暗

but the Kepler telescope is

但這種開普勒望遠鏡

one of the most sensitive cameras ever built.

是迄今最為靈敏的望遠鏡之一

To give you an idea just how sensitive Kepler is,

為了讓你對於開普勒的靈敏度有個概念

I"m gonna demonstrate

我將用這盞二戰時期的

using this massive World War ll searchlight.

巨型探照燈來說明一下

The brightness of that searchlight

這盞探照燈發出的光亮

represents the extreme luminosity of stars

代表恆星發出的耀眼光芒

and I"m gonna use this tiny marble to represent the planet.

我用這顆微小的彈珠代替行星

When this planet passes in front of the star,

當這顆行星在恆星前經過時

it blocks out a tiny fraction of the light,

它擋住了燈光非常細微的一部分

dimming the star by a very small amount.

使恆星微微變暗

And that"s exactly what the Kepler spacecraft can detect.

而它可以被開普勒探測器偵測到

Kepler can detect a .01 per cent change

即使一顆恆星的光度發生0.01%的變化

in a star"s luminosity.

開普勒也能偵測到

But even if it spots a dimming star,

但即使它發現了一顆變暗的恆星

there"s still another problem.

還存在一個問題

When Kepler sees a star that dims,

當開普勒發現有顆恆星變暗

it could be due to a speck

它可能是由於鏡頭表面

of dust that crossed in front of the telescope.

沾上了灰塵

There"s a possibility of binary stars -

也可能是雙星作崇

two stars that orbit each other,

兩顆恆星相互環繞運行

thereby dimming the stars as one blocks the other.

因此  變暗是由另一顆的阻擋造成的

To make sure Kepler"s truly found a planet,

為了確保開普勒發現的是行星

scientists are using one of the

科學家們利用地面

largest Earth-based telescopes for confirmation.

最龐大的望遠鏡之一來做確認

This telescope will also determine

這座望遠鏡將同時測定

the planet"s mass and distance from its star.

這顆行星的質量和其距恆星的距離

Scientists are most interested in the small, rocky worlds

科學家們對位於可居住區中的

that sit in what"s called the Goldilocks Zone.

微小的岩石世界非常感興趣

Remember how important liquid water is to life?

還記得液態水對於生命有多重要嗎

If a planet is in the Goldilocks Zone,

如果有顆行星存在於可居住區中

it"s not too close and not too far from its star.

離它的恆星不遠不近

It"s just right.

恰到好處

And it"s possible for water to flow there as a liquid.

這就可能讓水以液體的形式流動

We obviously sit in the Goldilocks Zone,

我們地球就顯然就在可居住區中

but in our solar system, Mars and Venus also do,

但在太陽系中  火星和金星也同樣如此

but we"ve yet to find life on either of those two planets.

但至今  我們仍未在這兩顆星球上發現生命

Knowing if a planet is inhabitable

認定一顆星球是否適合居住

is not as straightforward as saying,

並不簡單等於

"Oh,we found a planet the size of the Earth

我們發現了一顆和地球一樣大小

and it"s 90 million miles

且距離類太陽恆星

from a sun-like star.

的行星

Venus is uninhabitable and Mars is uninhabitable.

金星不適合居住  火星也不適合

Why is Venus such a harsh, hideous environment,

為什麼水星上的環境如此惡劣

some 600 degrees Celsius or so?

擁有600攝氏度的高溫呢

And, of course, the answer for Venus, sadly,

當然  金星的悲劇在於

is that some greenhouse effect,

某種溫室效應

global warming, has overtaken Venus.

全球變暖主宰著金星

When it formed over four billion years ago,

當它在四十億年前形成時

Venus had water, and probably vast oceans on its surface.

金星上是有水的  甚至是一片汪洋

But there was also a lot of the

但在它的大氣層中

greenhouse gas water vapour in the atmosphere,

含有大量的溫室氣體的水汽

which blanketed and heated the planet.

層層包繞著水星  使星球溫度升高

And as Venus got hotter,

金星的溫度越高

more and more water from

就有越多的地表水

its surface evaporated into the atmosphere,

蒸發至大氣層中

trapping the heat even more.

進一步加快了升溫

On Earth, much of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide

在地球上  大量的二氧化碳氣體

is chemically bound to the rocks.

被岩石層吸附

And it was this way on young Venus, too.

正如當年年輕的金星一樣

But when it got to about 400 degrees Celsius,

但當溫度達到400攝氏度時

this carbon dioxide started

這些二氧化碳氣體

baking out of the rocks and into the atmosphere.

開始從岩石層中溢出  進入大氣層

With an atmosphere of water vapour and carbon dioxide,

一個由水蒸氣和二氧化碳組成的大氣層

this cycle kept going and going

形成了一個惡性循環

and the runaway greenhouse effect

這種失控的溫室效應

has left Venus dry, lifeless,

使得金星成為一個乾涸荒蕪

and a scorching 480 degrees Celsius.

擁有480攝氏度高溫的恐怖之地

Even if it weren"t that hot,

即便它的溫度沒那麼高

the atmospheric pressure at the surface

它表面的氣壓

is 90 times the Earth"s atmospheric pressure,

也是地球大氣壓的90倍

so you"d be crushed.

所以你會被壓碎

And it has sulphuric acid rain.

而且它還有硫酸雨

You know, Venus is basically, by every definition, Hell.

因此  金星無論從哪個角度來說都是個地獄

And yet, if you were to detect Venus orbiting another star,

然而  如果你要觀測金星的繞行軌道

you might suspect it would have Earth-like conditions.

你可能會猜測它的狀況和地球差不多

Mars also lies in the Goldilocks Zone,

火星也處在可居住區

but it has the opposite problem of Venus.

但它的問題和金星恰恰相反

It doesn"t have enough greenhouse gases to trap in heat

它不具備足夠的溫室氣體來存住熱量

and it"s become a cold, barren, desert world.

因此  它變成了一個冰冷  貧瘠的不毛之地

We have two examples of how planets have gone astray

我們舉了走了兩個極端的行星的例子

and we have to wonder how many other ways are there

我們必須考慮還有許多其它因素

that a planet can fail to be habitable.

會使一個行星變得不適合居住

With so many ways a habitable planet

由於一顆本適合居住的星球

can be rendered uninhabitable,

會因種種因素變得不適合居住

Kepler"s findings are crucial,

開普勒的發現就愈發關鍵

because the more potential homes it finds,

因為它能找到的潛在家園越多

the better the chance life might exist outside our littleEarth.

生命就越有可能在小小地球之外的世界存在

In five years, we will know for certain, from Kepler"sresults,

五年之後我們就能從開普勒獲取的數據中

how frequent Earth-like planets are.

確定有多少類地行星

It will do this by only looking at

它將僅僅觀測我們星系中

100,000 stars out of at least 200 billion in our galaxy.

2千多億顆恆星中的10萬顆

But how is it possible to calculate

但是不觀測所有的恆星

the number of Earth-like planets orbiting other stars

如何能夠計算出

without looking at all the stars?

繞行於其他恆星的類地行星數量呢

It"s like asking how many blades of grass

這就像是在問在這個足球場上

are there on this soccer field.

有多少根草

I could either get down on my hands and knees here

我可以趴在這裡

and spend the rest of my life counting every single one

用我後半生來數清每一根草

or I could do what Kepler"s going to do, which we callsampling.

或者我可以用開普勒的方法  即抽樣

We have a little grid - two inches by two inches on eachside.

我們有一個5厘米見方的小網格

All I have to do now is count the

我現在所要做的就是

number of blades of grass in that little two-inch square

數這個5厘米小網格里的草

and then multiply by the number

然後乘上要覆蓋整片草地

of squares that would cover this whole field.

需要的網格數

Let"s do it. One, two, three...

開始吧  1,2,3...

24,25,26,27...

24,25,26,27...

33,34,35...

33,34,35...

47... I wonder if I counted that one.

47...我想想這根數過沒

207 blades of grass in a two inch by two inch patch.

5厘米見方的網格里有207根草

Now, let"s get out the calculator here and see what thatmeans.

現在我們來算算這意味著什麼

207 divided by two inches by two inches

207除以5厘米除以5厘米

means 52 blades of grass per square inch.

意味著每平方厘米8根草

Now we need the number of square inches in this field.

現在我們需要知道這塊地是多少平方厘米

It"s 180 by 360.

寬180  長360

Wow, that"s almost 10 million square inches in this field.

哇  近6450萬平方厘米

so, multiply that by 52 -

那麼乘上8

half a billion blades of grass and I only had to count 207.

5億根草  而我只需數207根

If Kepler does find Earth-like planets,

如果開普勒確實能找到類地行星

this method of sampling

這種抽樣方法

will bring us one step closer to understanding

可以讓我們進一步了解

how many habitable homes are in our galaxy.

我們的星系有多少適合居住的星球

Even if one out of a thousand stars

即使銀河系每一千顆恆星中

in the Milky Way galaxy has a planet like the Earth

有一顆擁有類似地球的行星

that means there are millions and millions of Earths

那也意味著有成千上萬個地球

orbiting other stars.

在圍繞著其他恆星運行

So if you ask me: Is there life out there?

所以如果你問我  地球之外還有生命嗎

It seems awfully likely.

我的回答是  很有可能

In the grand scope of the cosmos,

站在浩瀚宇宙的範圍來看

we"ve considered ourselves

我們認為自己是

pretty lucky to be at just the right spot

無比幸運地  正好出現在這個

and to have all the right ingredients for life to emerge.

擁有孕育生命所必需的各種條件的地方

But is it really luck?

但這真的只是運氣嗎

Or does life find a way?

還是生命為自己找到了一條出路

There are new discoveries showing us

新的發現告訴了我們

there might just be another recipe for life to emerge.

生命可能有另外的存在方式

We have a general idea of what

我們大致了解何種條件

conditions are crucial for life to thrive on a planet.

能使一顆星球上的生命生息繁衍

We know liquid water plays a role,

我們知道液態水是一個方面

and we know life needs an energy source.

我們還知道生命需要能量來源

For us, that"s our sun.

對我們來說  就是太陽

And for a long time,

長久以來

scientists believed that every single life form on Earth

科學家們相信地球上的每一種生命

got their energy from our star.

都從太陽處汲取能量

That was until an underwater explorer,

這種觀念一直持續到一位海底探險家

who discovered the Titanic,

發現了泰坦尼克號

also helped discover something else deep in the ocean.

也幫助我們發現了深海中的另一些秘密

By far, the most important discovery

到目前為止  我最重要的發現

I"ve ever made was not the Titanic.

不是泰坦尼克號

It was when we discovered

而是發現了我們星球上

this whole new life system on our planet.

這一整套全新的生命系統

We thought all life needed access to sunlight,

我們過去以為生命必須要有陽光

but working with the Wood"s Hole Oceanographic Institute,

但是與伍茲霍爾海洋研究所合作中

Bob Ballard found a thriving ecosystem

鮑勃·巴拉德發現了一個無需陽光

where there was no sunlight.

也能繁榮的生態系統

There were creatures we"d never seen before.

那裡有著我們從未見過的生物

One of the dominant organisms was what we call a tube worm

最主要的生物之一叫做管蟲

and these were 6,8 feet tall,

它們有1.8到2.4米高

and they had human-like blood.

它們有類似人類的血液

And when they wanted to respirate,

鮑勃·巴拉德  海洋學家

當它們要呼吸的時候

they would stick out the tube,

它們就會伸出管子

basically their lung.

那差不多就是它們的肺

Prior to that discovery, we thought

在這個發現之前  我們認為

that all life on the Earth owed its existence to the sun.

地球上所有的生命都依賴於太陽

Without sunlight,

沒有陽光

there was something else giving this life energy.

還有別的東西來提供這種生命能量

It was coming from deep inside the Earth"s core.

它來自地核內部

Something called black smokers, or hydrothermal vents,

一種叫做黑煙囪  或是熱液噴口的東西

were bringing up minerals from deep underground.

從地下深處將礦物質運上來

And this was an amazing discovery

這是一個令人驚奇的發現

because the temperature coming out of the bottom of the ocean

因為海底的溫度

was 650 degrees Fahrenheit.

有650華氏度

Hot enough to melt lead.

足夠融化鉛

Amazingly, this life thrived in an extremely hostileenvironment,

神奇的是  生命在極惡劣的環境中欣欣向榮

which meant we needed to expand

這就意味著我們得拓寬

our narrow view of where life might be found.

我們原本關於生命存在地的狹隘觀點

We have to understand that life will evolve

under conditions which seem horribly hostile, horribly alien.

菲爾·普萊特  天文學家

我們必須清楚生命可以在

極其惡劣  截然不同的環境中發展

And yet, it not only evolves and works,

而且  它不僅平穩發展  正常運作

it thrives and has a whole ecosystem

甚至繁榮昌盛  在這種異乎尋常的環境中

that depends on these bizarre environments.

發展出一整套生態系統

And the bizarre environments

異乎尋常的環境

didn"t stop at the bottom of the ocean.

並不僅僅停留在海底

Life is found in the worst environments you could imagine.

在你能想到的最糟的環境中也有生命被發現

Like the boiling hot springs of Yellowstone national park.

比如黃石國家公園沸騰的熱泉

The hot springs at Yellowstone can be PH1,

黃石的溫泉水PH值可達1

PH值:表示溶液酸性或鹼性程度的數值

just like battery acid...

類似蓄電池酸液

..And 194 degrees.

並且有194度

If you went into this, it would dissolve you.

如果你進入水中  它可以把你溶解

Dr Mark Young is an astrobiologist

馬克·楊  天體生物學家  蒙大拿州立大學

馬克·楊教授是個天體生物學家

looking very closely at Yellowstone"s hot springs.

他正在密切觀察黃石的熱泉

He thinks these acid pits may

他認為這些酸性的水窪可能是

be one of our biggest clues to understanding

我們了解生命是如何出現在地球上的

how life emerged on Earth.

最重要的線索之一

Three billion years ago,

30億年前

planet Earth was much more like what we see in Yellowstone -

地球更像是我們現在在黃石所見到的樣子

boiling acid, very high temperatures,

翻滾的酸水  極高的溫度

where life was dependent not so much on photosynthesis,

在那裡生命並不怎麼依賴於光合作用

but on the chemicals that are found

而是依賴於已有的化學物質

and the gases that come out

以及類似於黃石沸騰的熱泉中

of the boiling hot springs like Yellowstone.

釋放的氣體

Those pits in Yellowstone are just nasty.

黃石的這些水窪很令人討厭

In fact, the acid in them can dissolve just about anything.

史蒂夫·賈克柏  法拉第實驗室首席科學家

事實上  這裡面的酸幾乎可以溶解任何東西

I have some acid here that"s a little

這裡有一些酸性液體

more concentrated than you"ll find in Yellowstone,

比黃石公園的濃度要高些

but the results will be the same.

但實驗結果是一樣的

Now watch what happens to this penny when I drop it in theacid.

現在請觀察這枚硬幣放入酸液後的反應

I"m gonna put this bell jar over to control the environment.

現在我要放一個鐘罩來保持周圍環境

The green colour is copper coming from the penny

硬幣中的銅元素溶解後呈現綠色

and a noxious fume is being emitted.

並散發出有毒氣體

And that"s an oxide of nitrogen that is very hazardous,

這種有毒氣體是氮的氧化物

and I"m glad I have it in a bell jar.

好在我放了一個鐘罩

What amazes me is that scientists are

令我驚奇的是

finding life aplenty in environments similar to that,

科學家在類似環境下發現有生命存在

and that just goes to show that

這就說明了

life can flourish in even the harshest conditions.

在極為惡劣的條件下生命也能得以繁衍

We"re finding micro-organisms not

我們發現在這些熱泉中

only living in these hot springs but flourishing.

微生物不僅能夠生存  並能繁衍

Wherever there"s liquid water-

no matter the amount of light,

傑夫·馬爾西  加州伯克利大學  天文學家

只要有液態水存在的地方

無論陽光是否充足

the temperature, the acidity-

溫度是否適宜  酸度是否適中

life thrives.

生命都會繁衍下去

This revolutionary discovery is

這項重大發現

opening us up to the possibility that life may exist

令我們意識到

in places we never thought possible.

生命的存在地可能超出我們的想像

Even under the surfaces of planets or nearby moons.

甚至可能存在於行星表面之下或衛星周圍

What"s incredible is that it

turns out that even in our own little solar system,

琳·羅斯柴爾德  美國宇航局艾姆斯研究中心

令人難以置信的是

即便是在我們有限的太陽系裡

there are diversity places where there could be life.

也有多處生命可能存在的溫床

In 2008, a probe visited to the Martian surface,

2008年  人們發射了一枚探測器到火星表面

the Phoenix Mars Lander,

名為鳳凰號火星探測器

and it made an amazing discovery.

由此有了重大發現

Phoenix dug down into the dirt,

鳳凰號挖掘火星土層

and after only a couple of inches,

僅挖十幾厘米後

uncovered crystals of frozen water.

就發現了水的結晶體

The key question is:

關鍵在於

how far down does the water persist beneath the surface

水存在於地表下多深的範圍

and if you go far enough,

如果我們挖得夠深

is the pressure and temperature high enough

那裡的壓力和溫度能否高到

that the water would be liquid, not in the form of ice?

讓水以液態  而非固態的形式存在呢

And there"s a very good suggestion,

有一個很好的想法

I think, that there are, in fact, liquid aquifers.

那就是存在著某種蓄水層

We might be able to drill down and find the evidence,

我們可以繼續向下鑽探尋找證據

if any, of life on Mars at this moment.

看火星上是否存在生命

And scientists are also excited

科學家們對木衛二同樣感興趣

about what they believe to be an ocean

他們相信在這顆冰凍星球的表層之下

underneath the surface of Jupiter"s frozen moon, Europa.

隱藏著海洋

Sure, it"s cold and solid in the form of ice on the surface,

星球表面寒冷無比  並以冰緘封

but almost certainly, beneath the ice on Europa is a vastocean,

但木衛二的冰層之下必然有寬廣的海洋

hundreds, if not thousands, of kilometres thick.

在幾百米或幾千米的冰層之下

Europa sits well outside the Goldilocks Zone,

木衛二位於可居住區外圍

but just like at the bottom of Earth"s oceans,

但就像地球上海洋的深處

hydrothermal vents could be

熱液口可能是

the energy source needed for life to emerge.

生命形成所需的能量之源

Those ocean depths could be home to some bizarre life forms-

這些深海環境可能成為一些奇異生物的家園

huge tubeworms feeding on

如以來自木衛二地核的礦物質

the minerals coming from inside Europa"s core.

為生的巨大的管蟲

There"s no telling what kind of life may exist in Europa"socean.

很難說在木衛二的海洋深處有何種生命存在

But one of the most fascinating places

在太陽系中最為迷人的地方

in our solar system is Saturn"s largest moon, Titan.

就是土星的第二大衛星  土衛六

Titan"s atmosphere and surface features

土衛六的大氣層和地表特徵

are similar to Earth"s 3.5 billion years ago.

和三十五億年前的地球類似

Titan is one of the larger moons in the solar system

and the only one to have a substantial atmosphere.

And the atmosphere has lots of methane in it.

And it"s cold enough that the

戴維·赫爾方  加拿大凱斯特大學

土衛六是太陽系中最大的衛星之一

並且是唯一一顆有大氣層的衛星

大氣層中含有大量甲烷

methane precipitates and drops, like raindrops,

溫度極低

能使甲烷凝結並像雨滴一樣落下來

and falls out onto the surface of Titan.

落在土衛六的地表

Not liquid water, but liquid methane.

然而  這不是液態水  而是液態甲烷

On Earth, methane is a flammable gas,

在地球上  甲烷是一種可燃氣體

but the temperatures on Titan are so cold,

但土衛六上的溫度很低

minus 180 degrees Celsius,

在零下82攝氏度下

that the methane can form liquid.

甲烷形成了液體

Titan actually has lakes, rain and rivers

其實在土衛六上有湖泊  雨水和河流

made of liquid natural gas, liquid methane.

這些是由液態天然氣  也就是液態甲烷組成

That probably isn"t quite as good as water,

but at least it"s a medium.

米歇爾·泰勒  美國宇航局戈達德空間飛行中心

那也許還無法媲美水

但至少是一中介質

Things can flow around, begin to form bonds.

萬物能夠流動並且相結合

Fluid is where it"s at.

流動便是核心所在

The idea that life can emerge from a different kind of liquid

生命可以從不同的液體中形成的想法

is adding a whole new dimension to our search.

為我們的搜尋工作帶來全新的視角

It"s possible that life elsewhere in the universe

宇宙中的生命的衍生介質

can thrive with other liquids, not just water,

可能是其他液體  而非僅僅是水

and so we have to keep our eyes open.

因此我們要擴大思考的範圍

Other environments very different

與地球截然不同的環境

from that on the earth could harbour life.

也有可能孕育著生命

New discoveries constantly shift

新的發現不斷顛覆著

our perspective on where alien life might exist.

我們對於外星生物存在的觀點

And as we continue

當我們繼續研究

investigating the clues to this cosmic mystery,

宇宙謎團的線索時

we have to remember to keep an open mind.

必須謹記要放寬思路

Because life out there might be

因為這些生命

stranger than Hollywood could have ever dreamt up.

可能遠遠超出了好萊塢的想像

The hunt for life in the cosmos is intensifying.

探索宇宙生命的旅程漸入佳境

New discoveries have opened

新的發現為我們展現

us up to the possibility that life could exist

生命可能存在於未曾想像的近距離之處

closer than we ever imagined, right in our own solar system.

也許  就在我們的太陽系之中

But even if that doesn"t pan out,

即使沒有得到證實

there are billions of stars out there just like our sun

仍有數十億顆類似於太陽的恆星

with potentially billions of planets harbouring life, likeEarth.

被數十億顆如地球般孕育生命的行星所環繞著

It"s completely reasonable to think that there"s life outthere.

我們完全有理由相信有外星生命

史蒂夫·賈克柏  法拉第實驗室  首席科學家

There"s just so many possibilities

可能性太多了

billions of stars and billions of galaxies,

數十億的恆星  數十億的星系

and dah-duh, dah-duh, dah-duh.

諸如此類  很多

Surely there"s life out there.

必然會有生命存在的

Finding life, even primitive microbial life,

尋找生命  即使是原始的微生物

would change our place in the

也會改變我們在宇宙中的地位

universe by telling us that we"re not alone.

證明人類並不孤獨

And it would most likely be an indication

這很有可能說明

that we"re getting closer to finding an intelligentcivilisation.

我們離找到一種智能生命越來越近了

It would be really fun if we could

如果我們真的找到一種外星生命

find an alien that could, you know, send me an email

那會變得非常有趣  我們會發郵件

or twitter or whatever, all day long,

或發微博  整天都可以互相關注

but the profound question is life or nonlife.

琳·羅斯柴爾德  美國宇航局艾姆斯研究中心

但關鍵問題在於是否有這樣的生命存在

Once we have the microbial,

一旦發現微生物

we have the potential for intelligence.

我們就有可能發現高級生命

But if we don"t have a life form at all,

但如果根本沒發現生命存在的跡象

we don"t have the potential for anything.

那就無從談起了

What if we do find complex life out there?

如果發現了高級生物又能怎樣呢

What would it look like?

它們會是什麼樣子呢

Would it be anything like what we see in Hollywood movies?

它們會像好萊塢電影里那樣嗎

It is humorous that Hollywood

傑夫·馬爾西  加州伯克利大學  天文學家

有趣的是  好萊塢所描述的

depicts aliens more or less the same way.

外星生物都差不多

There"s a Klingon here and a Romulan there

and there"s slanty eyes and, you know, big old brains and soon.

抑或是斜眼  滿是褶皺的大頭人等

Any sort of alien that resembles a human is ludicrous-

米歇爾·泰勒  美國宇航局戈達德空間飛行中心

外星人若與人類相似  有兩隻眼睛

two eyes, a nose, and a mouth.

一個鼻子和一張嘴  都是不可信的

There"s no reason an alien would have to be adapted this way.

沒有證據表明外星人要遵循這一特徵

Over hundreds of millions of years,

經過數億年的變遷

all the creatures of our planet

地球上所有生物

have adapted to their environment,

均已適應了這一環境

so the chemistries are similar,

所發生的化學反應相似

which means your genetic makeup isn"t

這意味著你的基因組合

all that different from an earthworm, or even your pet.

與蚯蚓  甚至是你的寵物都沒有什麼區別

Basically, all animals are worms.

可以說  所有動物都是蟲子

We"re worms - we"ve got a head, we"ve got a tail.

我們即蟲子  我們有頭有尾

We"re long and skinny

又瘦又長

and that"s how we move forward.

我們這般前行

Dinosaurs are worms.

恐龍也是蟲子

What people don"t understand is that evolution is not a roadmap.

人們不理解的是  進化過程並非導航圖

Humans are not at the top of the evolutionary ladder.

人類並沒有站在進化階梯的頂端

We"re not the end point,

我們並不是進化的終點

the goal of evolution, or anything like that.

也不是進化的目標  或者諸如此類

We"re accidents, we"re random.

我們是偶然產物  是隨機選擇

We eat through our mouths

我們用嘴進食

but we breathe through our mouths and we can choke on food.

但同時我們也用嘴呼吸  於是就有噎著的危險

That"s a terrible design.

這真是太悲劇了

It"s an accident of evolution.

我們是進化的偶然產物

Maybe aliens evolved differently.

也許外星人會進化成不同的形態

Maybe they don"t need to breathe.

可能他們不需要呼吸

Maybe they can get oxygen in some other way.

菲爾·普萊特  天文學家

也可能他們能通過另外的方式獲得氧氣

Anything like that can go,

只要能適應環境

as long as it makes sense for the environment.

任何進化形態都是合理的

So life on another planet would adapt to its environment

因此另一個星球上的生物為了適應環境

and could be stranger

可能會以一種

than you could ever imagine.

你無法想像的奇怪形態存在

It"s fun to speculate about how life might evolve underconditions

推測那些在與地球環境大相徑庭的條件下

that are very different from those here on the earth.

生命可能會怎麼進化是非常有趣的

If you lived on a planet with twice the gravity of Earth,

如果你生活的星球  重力為地球的兩倍

there"d be a lot more pull on your body

你的身體將承受更大的引力

and you"d come crashing down

當你從高處落下

twice as hard if you fell.

將會受到兩倍的衝擊力

So perhaps creatures there would have stronger, stockierbodies

因此那裡的生物可能會更加矮胖粗壯

with more legs closer to the ground.

腿也更多  重心離地面更近

A planet with very little gravity

而在一個重力很小的星球上

would be like our moon or Mars.

就如同月亮和火星一般

I can imagine a creature on a low gravity planet

我能想像在一個低重力星球上

as being...long and spindly.

生物會長得...修長而纖細

Life on a low gravity planet

在一個低重力的星球上

might be tall and thin, with long legs.

生物可能會又高又瘦  腿也很長

If life evolved on a very dense planet

如果生物進化發生在密度極大的星球上

where the atmosphere is soupy or water-like,

這裡的大氣層濃雲密布  猶如水流一般

you could see creatures

你會看到

as big as whales or elephants actually flying,

像鯨魚和大象那樣巨大的生物居然在飛

not through the air,

它們不是在空氣中飛

but through this liquid-like atmosphere.

而是在類似液體的大氣層里飛

I think we are currently ignorant, actually,

實際上  我們目前對於外太空

about the real realistic diversity of life elsewhere.

現存的生物多樣性一無所知

Life in the universe may be incredibly diverse.

宇宙中的生物差異之大可能令人難以置信

But could it all have come from the same place?

但它們會不會同宗同源呢

Panspermia is the idea espoused

泛種論從經典影片太空堡壘卡拉狄加

猜想生命存在於全宇宙  並借著流星與小行星散播和繁衍

at the beginning of the classic Battlestar Galactica,

上映開始得到了廣泛的支持

that life here began out there.

這一假說認為地球上的生命來自外太空

The building blocks of life on our planet

地球上能夠形成生命的基礎原料

may have originated elsewhere,

可能來自其他地方

and were transported here when a meteorite collided withEarth.

隨著隕石撞擊地球來到了我們的星球上

Comets have a lot of organic materials on them.

彗星攜帶有大量的有機物

Some meteorites have amino acids in them.

某些隕石則含有氨基酸

These are the building blocks, the precursors, of life.

這些都是基礎原料  是生命的初期形式

So at least the building blocks of life

因此  至少生命所需的基礎原料

could have come from space.

可以來自宇宙

It seems unimaginable because life,

聽上去似乎難以想像  因為生命

or the building blocks of life,

或者說形成生命的基礎原料

would have had to survive an impact with our planet.

必須得經受住撞擊的衝擊

Here at NASA"s Ames Research Center

這裡是位於加州北部的

in northern California,

美國國家航空航天局艾姆斯研究中心

astronomer Peter Schultz and his team

天文學家彼得·舒爾茨和他的團隊

are testing to see if this theory of Panspermia

正在進行測試  以驗證泛種論

is even remotely possible.

是否有任何可能性

It"s good.

一切就緒

Here I"ve got the projectile that is embedded with someorganics.

我把一些有機物嵌入轟擊粒子

So the real question is:

彼得·舒爾茨  布朗大學天文學家

於是問題的實質就變成了

will this survive if we hammer it at a high speed?

其中的有機物能否熬過高速撞擊

We"re gonna be firing this

我們打算

at around three-and-a-half kilometres per second.

以大約每秒三千五百公里的速度轟擊它

This would be about the speed of something

這和物體殘骸衝進大氣層的

surviving entry into the atmosphere.

瞬時速度差不多

Schultz will create a high-speed impact

舒爾茨將藉助美國國家航空航天局的

using NASA"s vertical gun,

垂直射線槍製造一次高速撞擊

which will fire the projectile at 16,000 kilometres per hour,

將轟擊粒子以一萬六千公里的時速射出

that"s ten times faster than a bullet.

這比子彈射出的速度要快十倍

This is a pretty special gun.

這支槍非常特別

It uses a lot of gunpowder but then compresses hydrogen gas,

它用到了許多火藥  又將氫氣進行壓縮

and then it"s released, and then the hydrogen gas expands.

然後瞬間釋放  於是氫氣迅速膨脹

When it expands, the projectile

由於它的膨脹  轟擊粒子

continues on down into the impact chamber

源源不斷地被射進衝擊室

and that"s when things happen.

就在那一刻  奇蹟發生了

This is where it all happens. This is the impact chamber.

這裡就是整個現場  這是衝擊室

The projectile"s gonna come through this hole,

轟擊粒子穿過這個洞

slam into this target,

砰地一聲撞到靶上

which is about two feet across - this is just ordinary sand -

靶有將近60分米寬  只是普通的沙子

and we"ll see if it survives.

我們來看看有機物能否挺住

With the vertical gun loaded

垂直射線槍上膛

and the impact chamber set,

衝擊室裝配完畢

it"s time to test

開始測試

and see if the organic material laced onto the projectile

看看轟擊粒子上攜帶的有機物

can survive a high-speed impact.

能否熬過高速撞擊

This drives me nuts.

真讓我心急

Oh! OK.

好了

This was...gorgeous.

真是...太美妙了

I...I hope there"s stuff left.

我...希望還有倖存物

The key now is to go back in there,

現在的關鍵是回到那裡面

dig out these pieces

找出那些碎片

and see if we can find any survivors,

看看我們能否找到倖存物

literally survivors.

既是承載著生命的倖存者

We gotta go see what we did.

來看看我們都幹了些什麼

Oh, what a mess. Oh, this is dynamite.

真是一團糟  這是炸藥

Schultz scours the impact chamber,

舒爾茨四處翻找衝擊室

hunting for remnants of the projectile.

搜尋轟擊粒子的殘骸

This is like looking for your lost contact on a beach.

這就好像在沙灘上尋找你掉落的隱形眼鏡

Let"s see what we have.

來看看我們找到了什麼

Oh, that is so sweet.

真可愛

We did the experiment, we collected some pieces.

我們做了實驗  搜集碎片

We showed that we actually got

證明我們確實得到了

solid pieces that survived impact,

在撞擊中倖存下來的固體碎片

and embedded within that solid piece are amino acids.

而且  氨基酸就在那些固體碎片中

You can see it here in this image.

你可以從這張圖像里看到

You can see the fracturing,

你會發現有裂紋

but even though it"s fractured, it"s not melted.

即便如此  也只是斷裂  沒有熔化

Panspermia is not that far-fetched after all.

歸根結底  泛種論並非天方夜譚

It says you can transport the seeds of life,

它的大意是  生命的種子

if not life itself,

即便不是生命本身

from one planet to another.

也能從一個星球轉移到另一個星球

However life began on our planet,

無論生命是否起源於我們的星球

it eventually evolved to develop intelligence.

它最後都會進化發展成智能生物

And ultimately, our goal is to see

而最終  我們的目標則是

if that"s happened somewhere else in the universe.

探究這一過程是否也發生在宇宙的其他地方

What we"re really looking for is,

我們真正要尋找的是

you know, Spock.

你知道  是史巴克船長

星際迷航中的人物  父親是瓦肯星球駐地球大使 母親是地球人

We"re looking for another civilisation

我們在尋找另一種文明

that"s either like us or not like us,

無論他們和我們長得是否一樣

but is clearly intelligent.

都肯定具備了智能

That"s the Holy Grail of

那將是尋找

傳說耶穌在最後晚餐中使用的聖杯  若能喝下其中盛過的水就將返老還童並得永生

the search for extraterrestrial intelligence.

外太空智能生物的聖杯

With so many stars and so many planets out there,

外太空中有如此繁多的恆星和行星

it would truly be a surprise if intelligent life

如果宇宙中不存在其他的智能生物

did not exist somewhere in the universe,

倒會令人咋舌

perhaps even nearby

他們甚至有可能就在附近

in our own galaxy.

和我們居住在同一個星系

With the closest stars light years away,

我們是否有可能去距離我們

is it possible to actually travel there?

僅數光年的恆星旅行呢

Or will first contact

或者能否另想辦法

be made some other way?

進行第一次親密接觸呢

Right now, in our own Milky Way galaxy alone,

目前  僅僅在我們的銀河系裡

there may be numerous intelligent alien civilisations.

也許就存在著為數眾多的外星智能文明

But why haven"t we contacted

但是為什麼我們還沒有

or been contacted by any of them?

與其中任何一支聯絡上呢

First of all, there"s a lot of empty space out there.

首先  外太空存在大量的真空地帶

The very nearest star to us is four light years away.

距離我們最近的恆星在四光年外

They could send us a signal,

他們可以給我們發送信號

in four years" time it would get here,

四年後信號會傳到地球

and then we could reply eight years later to them.

他們就能在八年後得到我們的回復

That"s the closest star.

米歇爾·泰勒  美國國家航空航天局戈達爾空間飛行中心

那還是最近的恆星

What about communicating with people across the galaxy

如果想要跨越整個星系

where there are tens of thousands

與距離上萬

or a hundred thousand light years in between?

甚至上十萬光年的星球上的人通信呢

If we wanted to pop over and borrow a cup of sugar,

傑夫·馬西  天文學家  加州大學伯克利分校

如果我們想去借一勺糖

it would take some 700,000 years for us to bring the sugarhome.

需要花上七十萬年  才能把糖拿回家

so that"s a very big problem.

這可是個大麻煩

With the nearest star 400 trillion kilometres away,

最近的星系離我們有四百萬億公里

our current technology

以我們目前的科技

could get us there in, say, 100,000 years,

需要十萬年才能將我們送達

so travelling to see an

因此通過旅行造訪

alien civilisation clearly isn"t going to work.

外星文明顯然不可行

But how about we just call them up?

那給他們發信號會怎樣呢

After all, radio signals travel at the speed of light.

畢竟無線信號是以光速傳播的

If we are going to communicate with aliens,

that"s gonna be the most boring conversation we"ve ever had,

菲爾·普萊特  天文學家

如果我們要和外星人交流

那會是有史以來最無聊的對話

because if they"re beaming radio waves at us

因為如果他們在一百光年外

and they"re 100 light years away,

對我們發出信號

and they say, ""Hey, how"s the weather down there on Earth?""

說道  地球上天氣如何

It takes a hundred years to get here and we say,

信號需要花一百年時間才到這裡  我們回答

""Hey, it"s fine. How are things there on Globnarp?""

天氣不錯  你們那裡怎麼樣

Another hundred years back and forth. It"s a century traveltime.

又過去了一百年  這趟旅途要花上一個世紀

That"s a boring conversation.

真是場無聊的對話

The chances that two intelligent

兩種智能文明

civilisations have the ability to communicate,

是否有交流的能力

the desire to communicate,

交流的意願

and are around long enough to communicate

以及足夠長的交流時間

makes this cosmic chat even tougher.

都使得這場宇宙交談變得更為艱難

So we"ve been intelligent in the sense

we"ve had the same brain size for about 100,000 years.

大衛·赫爾方  魁斯特大學

就我們的智能而言

十萬年來  我們的大腦容量一直未變

Yet we"ve only been able to communicate for the past 50 years-

然而直到五十年前  我們才開始宇宙交流

a tiny fraction, meaning if another

這只是很小一段跨度  它意味著

civilisation communicated with us 200 years ago,

如果兩百年前有另一種文明聯繫了我們

we would have missed the signal altogether.

我們就完全錯過了信息

There can be a lot of

在進行宇宙交流時

miscommunications when trying a cosmic chat.

可能會有許多誤傳的情況

We could think of communicating with

羅伯特·赫特 加州理工學院

我們可以把與外星文明的交流

an alien civilisation as like a game of cosmic catch.

比作一場宇宙接球賽

The stadium... is the galaxy.

體育場就是銀河系

And the ball is our message.

這顆球就是我們的信息

So if we send the ball out into the stadium,

如果我們在體育場內投球

odds are nobody"s there to receive it.

可能無人接球

Of course, we could luck out and

當然  我們可能有幸

actually send our message towards an alien civilisation.

將信息傳達到外星文明

But what if that civilisation was

但如果該文明

technologically 500 years or more behind where we are?

在科技上落後我們五百年甚至更久呢

Well, that would be like throwing a baseball to a baby.

那麼這就像對著嬰兒投球一樣

Of course, if everything is just right

當然  如果一切順利

and there is another technological

存在另一種科技文明

civilisation out there capable of receiving our message...

能夠接收到我們的信息

Here you go.

拿著

Well, that would be our first

這可能就是我們

contact with an extraterrestrial civilisation.

與外星文明的第一次接觸

Since it would be a long time

既然進行面對面的交流

before we could have a face-to-face conversation,

需要花去漫長的時間

the best thing we can do for now is just to listen.

我們現在還是洗耳恭聽為妙

At the search for extraterrestrial intelligence,

艾倫望遠鏡陣列

賽斯·肖斯塔克從事的就是

Seth Shostack is doing just that.

尋找外星文明的工作

These are the individual antennas of the Allen telescopearray.

這是艾倫望遠鏡陣列的獨立天線

It"s one of the most powerful observatories in the world

這是世上最先進的天文台之一

and, in fact, the kind of thing

事實上  這種設備

that could check out millions of star systems.

可以探查數百萬個星系

If you can check out a few million star systems,

如果你能探查幾百萬個星系

you have a really good chance of finding a signal from ET.

就很有可能找到外星人的信號

Radio waves or TV signals have recognisable patterns,

電波和電視信號都是可識別的

so Shostack and other scientists are

因此蕭斯塔克和其他科學家

listening for deliberate signals from an alien planet.

致力於傾聽來自外星球的微弱信號

These telescopes listen to hundreds

這些望遠鏡能同時

of thousands to millions of stars at the same time

監聽數百萬顆恆星

and they do it 24 hours a day.

它們日以繼夜地工作

These distances between stars are enormously vast.

這些恆星之間的距離遙不可及

Most interstellar visiting is

多數星際旅行

gonna be via signalling, not by actual visiting.

都是通過信號  而非真實的旅行實現的

And what are we broadcasting out into the cosmos?

我們又向茫茫宇宙發出了什麼信息呢

Television transmissions have been travelling away from theearth

電視信號已經在地外

for about 50 years.

穿行了約五十年

I Love Lucy and Gilligan"s

"我愛露西"和"夢幻島"

Island have been broadcast to the galaxy,

正以光速行走其間

travelling at the speed of light,

在銀河系的大屏幕上不斷上演

and they are our emissaries,

他們是我們的特使

they are our diplomats to the galaxy.

是我們派往銀河系的外交官

Our ultra-high frequency and microwave radio signals

我們的超高頻微波信號

have been expanding into space at the speed of light.

以光速在宇宙空間中擴散

These radio, radar, and television signals

這些電波  雷達  電視信號

fill a sphere nearly 100 light years in diameter,

覆蓋了一個直徑將近一百光年的球形空間

so any civilisation within 100 light years of Earth

因此離地球一百光年內的任何文明

might be hearing our voices or watching our television shows.

都可能聽到我們的聲音  看到我們的影像

We"re sending transmissions out into the cosmos,

我們正向宇宙發出信號

but suppose we detect a signal from an alien civilisation.

但假設我們收到了來自外星文明的信號

How would we respond?

該如何回應呢

It"s something we"ve thought about a lot.

人們已經仔細考慮過這種情況

The United Nations has even

聯合國甚至

drawn up a manifesto about what we would do.

已經起草一份行動聲明

When the day comes that we

如果有一天

pick up a transmission from an alien civilisation,

我們接收到來自外星文明的信號

we as a species, frankly,

我認為  坦白說  作為一個族群

will face our greatest challenge ever, I think.

我們將面臨前所未有的挑戰

It raises the question, who represents Earth?

問題也隨之而生  誰來代表地球

Who represents the Homo sapiens?

誰來代表人類群體

And I think the only way to decide

我認為要確定人選只有一種方法

this will be with some very seriously thought-out process.

就是深思熟慮

But if we do pick up a signal from an alien race,

如果我們果真收到外星種群的信號

not everyone thinks it"s such a good idea to answer back.

並非所有人都認為回信是件好事

There will be those who, I think, understandably,

可以理解的是  會有些人認為

will argue that we humans should remain hidden

我們人類應該繼續藏身於

in the great galactic tall grasses,

巨大的銀河森林裡

because, of course, maybe they"re hungry, for example,

因為那些外星人可能飢餓難耐

and would like some hors d"oeuves.

想來點開胃小菜

Would aliens really want to do us harm?

外星人真的想傷害我們嗎

Probably not.

未必

Aliens we contact will at least

我們聯絡的外星人

have learned to live with themselves peacefully.

應該至少已經達到了和平自處的境界

For them to exist in any numbers in the galaxy,

不管有多少外星人存在與這個星系

they would have to have long lifetimes

他們一定都是有著悠久的歷史

as intelligent, technological,

高度的智慧  發達的科技

communicating civilisations.

以及完善的溝通的文明

We are closer than ever to finding

我們就快找到

answers to one of mankind"s greatest questions..

人類最偉大的問題之一的答案

Are we alone?

我們在宇宙中孤獨一人嗎

There is something in us that wants to find our place.

我們總有尋找自己的歸屬的衝動

What is our purpose?

我們的目的是什麼

Maybe that purpose is just to be nice to each other

也許只是為了與人和睦相處

and just to seek and explore and to discover.

只是為了享受尋找  探索  發現的過程

We are exploring and every discovery

我們的探索從未間斷  我們的每一個發現

we make will help us understand our very existence.

都將有助於我們理解自身的存在

We want to be a part of something bigger than ourselves.

我們並不滿足於人類這個小小的歸屬

We know deep down that our lives are flickering moments ofglory.

在內心深處  我們明白  生命只是曇花一現

We would like to know that there"s a higher purpose,

我們竭力想為生命尋找一個更崇高的終點

that we"re a part of something bigger.

我們不僅僅是渺小的人類一員

Are we simply one small piece in the cosmic jigsaw puzzle

人類到底是銀河七巧板中的一塊

or are we truly the only special beings in this vastuniverse?

抑或是廣袤宇宙中的獨苗呢

Finding the answer could be mankind"s greatest challenge.

要找到這個問題的答案  可能就是人類最大的挑戰

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