| New measurements reveal Neptune's south pole is warmer than the rest of the planet, as expected. But it's still frigid. |
新一轮的探测显示，正如所预料的那样，海王星的南极比该行星的其余地方温度更高，但仍然是寒冷的。 |
| The polar region's relative warmth could provide a route for methane gas to escape from the deep atmosphere, explaining mysterious hot spots that have been reported there, according to the study scientists. |
据参与研究的科学家们称，温度相对较高的南极区域为甲烷气体从大气深处逃逸提供了通道，这为所报道的神秘“热区”提供了解释。 |
| The first temperature maps of the blue planet's lower atmosphere, detailed in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics, suggest temperatures at the south pole are elevated by about 18 degrees Fahrenheit (10 degrees Celsius) compared with the rest of the planet, for which the average temperature is an icy -328 degrees F (-200 degrees C). |
有关这颗蓝色行星上首批低空大气气温分布图的情况，详细地记录在《天文学与天体物理学》杂志上。这些分布图表明，海王星南极的温度比该行星的其他区域约高出18华氏度（10摄氏度），其他区域的平均温度是-328华氏度（-200摄氏度）。 |
| "The temperatures are so high that methane gas, which should be frozen out in the upper part of Neptune's atmosphere (the stratosphere), can leak out through this region," said lead author Glenn Orton of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. "This solves a long-standing problem of identifying the source of Neptune's high stratospheric methane abundances." |
该研究的首要发起人、加利福尼亚州空气动力实验室的格伦·奥顿指出：“甲烷气体本应该冻结于海王星大气的上层，可是那里温度较高，甲烷气体可以通过上层而泄露出去。这样就解决了一个长期存在的问题：找到了海王星大气最上层中富含甲烷的原因。” |
| Orton and his colleagues used ESO's Very Large Telescope to map the temperature variations. |
奥顿及其同事们利用欧洲南方天文台的超大望远镜绘制出海王星的温度变化分布图。 |
| Located about 30 times farther away from the sun than Earth is, Neptune receives about a tenth of a percent of the sunlight reaching our planet. Over time, however, the tiny bit of sunlight significantly affects Neptune's atmosphere. |
海王星比地球距太阳远30倍，接受的太阳光线约是地球的0.1%。然而随着时间的推移，这一点点阳光竟然对海王星的大气造成了重大的影响。 |
| The warmer climes detailed in the new report are consistent with the fact that Neptune's Southern Hemisphere, because of the planet's tilt and orbit, has been bathed for about 40 years in the sparse sunrays that can reach the farthest planet in our solar system. |
在这份新的研究报告中，详细记录下来的相对高温的气候跟海王星南半球的实际情况是一致的。由于海王星的倾斜及其轨道的缘故，该行星的南半球已经在稀少的阳光中沐浴了约40年。阳光稀少是因为海王星是我们太阳系中距太阳最远的行星。 |
| A year on Neptune lasts about 165 Earth years, making summers last for 40 years rather than months. Now that the Southern Hemisphere's summer on Neptune is coming to a close, Orton and his colleagues predict that as the north pole turns sunward, an abundance of methane will leak out of that pole once it becomes warmer in about 80 years. |
海王星上的一年约相当于地球上的165年，使得那里的夏季持续40年，而不是数月。现在海王星南半球的夏季就要结束了，奥顿及其同事们预计，随着其北极开始朝向太阳，在约80年后，一旦那里变得较为温暖，大量的甲烷也将从北极泄露出去。 |
| "Neptune's south pole is currently tilted toward the sun, just like the Earth's south pole is tilted toward the sun during summer in the Southern Hemisphere," Orton said. "But on Neptune the Antarctic summer lasts 40 years instead of a few months, and a lot of solar energy input during that time can make big temperature differences between the regions in continual sunlight and those with day-night variations." |
奥顿说：“目前，海王星的南极朝着太阳倾斜，正象地球南半球在夏季期间南极向太阳倾斜一样。但是在海王星上，南极夏季持续40年，而不是几个月。在这期间，大量的太阳能吸收可以造成温度上的巨大变化，使连续接受太阳照射的区域跟具有日夜变化的区域大不相同。” |
| While not a major constituent of Neptune's atmosphere, methane is responsible for the planet's blue hue. When methane gas in the upper atmosphere absorbs red light from the sun, it reflects blue light back into space. |
尽管甲烷不是海王星大气的主要组成成分，但该行星的蓝色色彩是由甲烷造成的。当甲烷气体在大气上层吸收太阳红色光线的同时，却把太阳的蓝色光线反射到太空中。 |
