Eclipsing the Sun
日食

On the 21st day of August, 2017,
2017年8月21日，
the moon will slide between the Earth and the sun,
月亮將滑入地球與太陽之間，
painting a swath of darkness across North America.
畫出一道橫穿北美洲的黑暗。
The Great American Eclipse.
美國的全日食，
An exercise in cosmic geometry.
宇宙中的一次幾何練習，
A reminder that we live on one sphere among many,
提醒我們記住我們所生活的球面只是很多個之一，
all moving to the laws of Kepler, Newton and Einstein.
它們都遵循著開普勒、牛頓和愛因斯坦所發現的規律而移動。

The moon’s orbit around the Earth is slightly tilted,
月亮繞地球公轉的軌道略微傾斜，
so the shadow of the new moon usually passes above or below us.
所以新月的影子 通常都出現在我們之上或之下。
About twice a year, the three bodies briefly align,
每年大約有兩次，三個天體會短暫地連成一線，
and the moon's long shadow cuts across our planet.
月亮悠長的陰影會劃過我們星球的表面。
The day dies and is reborn.
白日逝去又重生。
The Sun is replaced by an inky hole,
太陽被一個墨色的空洞取代，
feathered with the pale corona,
環繞折一圈羽化蒼白的日冕，
a million degrees hotter than the sun itself.
比太陽本身溫度高出100萬度。
Staring up into the cone of blackness,
抬頭凝望著黑色椎體，
you can fell the cosmic gears grinding.
你能感受到宇宙齒輪的碾動。
Two minutes of beauty and terror.
兩分鐘的美景與恐懼。

But while most humans will be looking up,
但當大多數人類仰望天空時，
a few will be looking down.
有少數人在向下俯瞰。
For astronauts on the International Space Station,
對于國際空間站的宇航員而言，
an eclipse is a shadowy stain on the planet.
日食是星球上一片朦朧的陰影，
A dark blur among swirling clouds.
卷云中模糊的黑暗。

Even farther above the Earth,
在地球更遠處的上空，
weather satellites keep pace with our spinning world,
氣象衛星跟隨著我們的世界旋轉，
watching the moon's shadow slide from sunrise to sunset.
看著月球的陰影 從天明滑向日落。
Other satellites look outward,
其它衛星向外遙望，
Staring up at our nearest star.
凝視著離我們最近的恒星。
Their view of fire interrupted by the passing moon.
他們的視線，因月亮的穿行而中斷。

From the moon's perspective,
從月亮上看，
the Earth never rises or sets.
地球從不升起或下落。
It just wobbles back and forth in the sky.
只在天空中來回搖擺。
From its orbit around the moon,
在繞月軌道上，
the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will look back at Earth
月球勘測軌道飛行器將回望地球，
to photograph our shadowed home.
拍下我們被陰影覆蓋的家園。

A million miles away, The Dscovr spacecraft faces perpetual noon.
100萬英里之外，面對著永恒午時的Dscovr航天器,
The spacecraft can watch the moon's dark face pass behind the globe.
會看到月球的暗面在地球身后掠過，
or slip across it.
或者滑過它的身前。
A dull gray orb on a sphere of white and blue.
一個暗灰色的球體，在藍白色的球面上。
From this far out,
從比這更遠的地方看，
an eclipse is a passing shadow after months of brilliant sunlight.
日食是數月明亮的陽光后通過的一道陰影。

But the moon is not the only object moving between sun and Earth.
但在太陽和地球之間不只有月亮。
Winged Mercury has no moon of its own and no eclipses.
高速飛翔的水星沒有衛星，也沒有日食。
But seen from Earth it crosses the sun about 13 times a century.
但從地球上看，它每個世紀穿越太陽表面約13次。
A tiny dot, slightly larger than our moon,
一個小小的點，比我們的月亮略大，
backlit by fire.
背后映照著火光。

Transits of Venus are much rarer.
金星凌日要更加罕見。
These images from 1882 were the last for over a century,
這些來自1882年的照片是一個多世紀唯一的一次，
until Venus returned to double-cross the sun in 2004 and 2012.
直到金星在2004和2012年兩次掠過太陽。
Our descendents will not see another transit of Venus for a hundred years.
我們的后世子孫在一百年里都不會再次看到這種景象。
The next one is 2117.
下一次是在2117年。

Mars has too moons.
火星有兩個衛星。
Phobos, the largest, is a potato-shaped rock only 16 miles long.
最大的火衛一，是塊土豆形狀的巖石，只有16英里長。
Martian rovers have looked up to capture Phobos passing in front of the soon.
火星漫游者已經抬頭捕捉到火衛一從太陽前穿過的景象。
A partial eclipse seen from the dried-out surface of another world.
另一個世界里，干涸地標的偏日食景象。

Jupiter has so many moons,
木星有很多的衛星，
that the giant planet may have several eclipses at same time.
這顆巨大行星上可能同時出現多個日食。
Three shadows, sliding at different speeds, falling on rippled cloud.
三個陰影，以不同的速度，落在波紋卷曲的云層上。

Beyond our solar system,
在我們的太陽系以外，
astronomers have found thousands of planets by playing a game of shadows.
天文學家通過陰影游戲發現了數以千計的行星。
Looking for slight drops in starlight when a planet moves in front of its star.
尋找行星通過恒星表面時出現的微小星光變化。
Distant eclipses on alien worlds.
外星世界的遙遠日食。
But is anyone out there to cry or cheer or shudder?
但那里有人哭泣嗎，有人歡呼或發抖嗎？
Or see the shadows cast by our own lonely planet?
或是看到我們孤獨的星球映射出的陰影嗎？
Or are we alone in the long night.
或者 在這片長夜中只有我們自己嗎？
Do the shadows and the spheres dance only for us?
這段陰影與球面之舞 只為我們而上演嗎？

取自北美日食視頻字幕 http://weibo.com/tv/v/Fiae1i9IX?fid=1034:badcb8256f7fa5947ae5701158440fff