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It's an ambiguous boundary billions of miles from Earth, so abstract that even noted astronomers can't always agree on its exact location. |
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那是距離地球幾十億英里遠、不太明確的邊界，相當抽象，甚至連著名的天文學家也從未對它的確切位置達成共識。 |
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Now scientists say they have strong evidence that NASA's Voyager 1 probe has crossed this important border, making history as the first human-made object to leave the heliosphere, the magnetic boundary separating the solar system's sun, planets and solar wind from the rest of the galaxy. |
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如今，科學家表示他們有強烈證據證明美國太空總署的航海家一號探測船已經跨過這個重要疆界，成為歷史上第一個離開太陽風層的人造物體。太陽風層是個具磁力的邊界，把太陽系的恆星、行星和太陽風與銀河的其他部份區隔開來。 |
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"In leaving the heliosphere and setting sail on the cosmic seas between the stars, Voyager has joined other historic journeys of exploration: The first circumnavigation of the Earth, the first steps on the Moon," said Ed Stone, chief scientist on the Voyager mission. |
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"That's the kind of event this is, as we leave behind our solar bubble." |
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「離開太陽風層，在宇宙海洋星體間航行，航海家也加入了其他歷史性探險之旅的行列：首趟地球環航、月亮上的第一步，」航海家任務的首席科學家艾德．史東表示：「這就是那種大事件，我們超越太陽泡沫了。」 |
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The new study in the journalScience suggests that the probe entered the interstellar medium around August 25, 2012. |
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You may have heard other reports that Voyager 1 has made the historic crossing before, but Thursday was the first time NASA announced it. |
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《科學》期刊的一個新研究顯示，該探測船大約在二０一二年八月二十五日進入星際介質。你以前可能聽過其他報告說航海家一號已經完成歷史性的跨越，但週四是美國太空總署首次宣佈此事。 |
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The twin spacecraft Voyager 1 and 2 were launched in 1977, 16 days apart. |
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As of Thursday, according to NASA's real-time odometer, Voyager 1 is 18.8 billion kilometers from Earth. |
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Its sibling, Voyager 2, is 15.3 billion kilometers from our planet. |
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航海家一號和二號這對雙胞胎太空飛行器於一九七七年發射升空，相隔十六天。截至週四，根據美國太空總署的即時里程表，航海家一號距離地球一百八十八億公里。它的手足航海家二號距離地球則有一百五十三億公里。 |
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Voyager 1 is being hailed as the first probe to leave the solar system. |
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But under a stricter definition of "solar system," which includes the distant comets that orbit the sun, we'd have to wait another 30,000 years for it to get that far, Stone said. |
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航海家一號被譽為第一具離開太陽系的探測船。史東表示，但是以「太陽系」較嚴格的定義來看則包含了環繞太陽的遠距彗星，據此我們要再等三萬年，探測器才能走到那麼遠。 |
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Another milestone for long after we're gone: The probe will fly near a star in about 40,000 years, Stone said. |
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史東表示，另一個我們離世後的長遠里程碑是，該探測器會在大約四萬年後飛到一顆星體附近。 |
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