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進入《中英對照讀新聞》US flags still on the moon, except one：NASA NASA︰美國國旗仍屹立在月球上，除了一面
◎ 魏國金
A series of American flags that were planted on the moon during visits by Apollo astronauts some four decades ago are still standing, except for one, a NASA scientist has said.
約40年前，由「阿波羅」號太空人在登月時插在月球上的一連串美國國旗，除了一面之外，其他仍然屹立不倒，美國航空暨太空總署（NASA）的一名科學家說。
The missing flag was the one planted by the pioneering astronauts on the Apollo 11 mission in 1969 when the first humans -- Americans Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong -- stepped foot on the moon.
遺失的是1969年阿波羅11號任務中，由先驅太空人所插的那面旗幟，當時第一批人類─美國的巴茲．艾德林與尼爾．阿姆斯壯─踏上月球。
The details are contained in an online article by principal investigator Mark Robinson who analyzed data from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera（LROC）.
相關細節包含在首要研究員馬克．羅賓森的一篇網路文章，他分析NASA「月球勘測衛星攝影機」（LROC）的資料。
"From the LROC images it is now certain that the American flags are still standing and casting shadows at all of the sites, except Apollo 11," he wrote.
「從LROC攝得的影像，現在可以確定美國星條旗仍在所有的據點上屹立並投下陰影，除了阿波羅11號任務的那面國旗，」他寫道。
"Astronaut Buzz Aldrin reported that the flag was blown over by the exhaust from the ascent engine during liftoff of Apollo 11, and it looks like he was correct!"
「太空人巴茲．艾德林報告那面旗在阿波羅11號升空時，被升空引擎排出的氣體吹倒，看起來這是正確的！」
Apollo missions ran from 1969 to 1972, shuttling American astronauts to the surface of the moon. Six flags were planted during this timespan.
阿波羅任務從1969年起至1972年結束，該任務搭載美國太空人至月球表面，期間有6面星條旗被插在月球上。
"Personally I was a bit surprised that the flags survived the harsh ultraviolet light and temperatures of the lunar surface, but they did," Robinson wrote. "What they look like is another question （badly faded?）."（AFP）
「個人而言，我對這些旗幟在月球表面嚴峻的紫外線與溫度下仍存留感到有點驚訝，但它們真的存留下來，」羅賓森寫道。「不過它們看來如何則是另一個問題（嚴重褪色？）。」（法新社）
新聞辭典
plant︰動詞，設置、使勁插入，也有灌輸之意。例句︰The teacher pledged to plant a love for learning in children.（這位老師矢志培養兒童對學習的愛好。）
liftoff︰名詞，（火箭、直升機等）起飛、發射。例句︰Liftoff is set for 9：00.（發射時刻訂於9時。）
ultraviolet︰形容詞，紫外線的、產生紫外線的。ultra有「極端」、「超」之意，例如︰an ultramodern automobile（超新型汽車）。
