10-17-07

美国国家航天航空局批准航天飞机发现号升空 (NASA Approves Space Shuttle Discovery Flight )

美国国家航天航空局官员最后批准了“发现号”航天飞机下星期按计划发射升空，尽管有人担心航天飞机机翼隔热瓦可能出现问题。

航天飞机飞行项目经理韦恩.黑尔说，飞行项目高级管理人员和工程师星期二开了一次很长时间的会议之后作出这个决定。黑尔说，会议中呈现的证据显示飞行的风险是可以接受的。

一个独立复审委员会呼吁国家航天航空局更换三块隔热瓦，检查人员在这些隔热瓦的外层发现了细微的裂缝。

国家航空航天局已经格外注意航天飞机隔热瓦遭受的任何损害。2003年，一块绝缘部件的撞击导致“哥伦比亚号”航天飞机在重返地球大气层时解体燃烧，机上7名宇航员全部丧生。

Officials with the U.S. space agency NASA have given final approval for next week's scheduled launch of the shuttle Discovery, despite concerns over a set of protective thermal tiles on the spacecraft's wings.

Shuttle program manager Wayne Hale says senior flight managers and engineers made the decision Tuesday after a long meeting. Hale says the evidence presented during the meeting shows an "acceptable risk to go fly."

An independent review board is urging NASA to replace three heat shield panels where inspectors found microscopic cracks on their external layers.

NASA has given extra attention to any damage to the shuttle's heat shield tiles. In 2003, a blow from a piece of foam led to the fiery disintegration of the space shuttle Columbia as it re-entered Earth's atmosphere, killing all seven astronauts on board.

尽管获得诺贝尔和平奖戈尔不参加2008年总统竞选(Gore Rules Out 2008 Presidential Race Despite Nobel Prize)

前美国副总统和今年诺贝尔和平奖共同获得者戈尔说，他不会角逐2008年总统大选。

戈尔在挪威国家广播公司星期三播出的一个采访中再次表示，他没有再次参选的计划。他说，他正在参与另外一场行动，也就是努力让公众相信气候变化带来的危险。

戈尔和联合国政府间气候变化问题小组上星期五共同获得诺贝尔和平奖，以表彰他们传播全球气候变暖知识的努力。

一个以互联网(www.draftgore.com) 为基础的支持者团体说，他们总共收到20万个联署签名，希望说服戈尔改变主意，角逐民主党总统候选人的提名。

Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, the co-recipient of this year's Nobel Peace Prize, says he will not enter the 2008 presidential race.

In an interview broadcast today (Wednesday) on Norwegian state broadcaster NRK, Gore repeated his previous assertions that he has no plans to be a candidate again. He says he is involved "in another campaign" to convince the public about the dangers of climate change.

Gore and the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize last Friday for their efforts to disseminate knowledge about global warming.

An Internet-based group of supporters (www.draftgore.com) says they have received 200-thousand signatures for a petition aimed at persuading Gore to change his mind about seeking the Democratic presidential nomination.