原文標題：
Ice and fire
Glaciers on volcanoes could serve as early-warning systems
They could also skew measurements of climate change
冰與火
火山上的冰川可以作為預警系統
他們還可能影響氣候變化的測量數據
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MAPPING GLACIERS was once a difficult and arduous job. So was monitoring volcanoes for the grumblings and rumblings that might herald an eruption.
繪製冰川地圖曾經是一項困難而艱巨的工作。同樣，監測火山噴發前的咆哮與轟鳴也很艱巨。
In recent decades, the old methods of hiking boots and mountaineering gear have been joined by satellites and remote sensing, making things both easier and safer.
近幾十年來，徒步登山裝備與衛星遙感技術相結合，使得這些任務更容易、更安全。
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But looking from afar has its drawbacks too. If a volcano is high enough to sport glaciers on its flanks (and many are), then the thick layer of ice can make it harder, or impossible, to get accurate temperature readings from the rock beneath.
但遠觀方法也有缺點。如果火山的側面高到被冰川覆蓋（很多火山都是這樣），那麼厚厚的冰層會使監測冰下岩石溫度讀數變得更加困難，甚至不可能。
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And that is a particular problem, for glacier-topped volcanoes are some of the most dangerous of all.
這是一個特殊的問題，因為冰川覆蓋的火山極其危險。
If they do erupt, the heat can melt the glaciers, forming torrents of fast-moving mud called lahars that can flatten anything in their path.
如果火山爆發，熱量會融化冰川，形成快速流動的泥流，稱為「火山泥流」，可以毀了所到之處的一切。
In 1985 the Nevado del Ruiz volcano in western Colombia erupted. The glaciers on its summit and flanks formed several gigantic lahars, one of which buried the nearby town of Armero, killing more than 20,000 of its inhabitants. It remains the worst natural disaster in the country』s history.
1985年，哥倫比亞西部的內瓦多德爾魯伊斯火山爆發。火山頂與側面的冰川形成了幾條巨大的火山泥流，其中一條火山泥流掩埋了附近的阿爾梅羅鎮，導致2萬多居民死亡。這仍然是哥倫比亞歷史上最嚴重的自然災害。
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In a paper published last month in Geology, Matteo Spagnolo and Brice Rea, a pair of volcanologists at the University of Aberdeen, suggest a possible solution to the problem.
上個月《地質學》雜誌發表了一篇論文，作者是阿伯丁大學的兩位火山學家馬特奧.斯帕尼奧洛和布萊斯.雷亞，他們提出了一個可能的火山預警方案。
The internal heat of volcanoes, they conclude, has a notable impact on the glaciers that sit on top of them.
他們得出結論，火山的內部熱量對火山頂部的冰川有著顯著影響。
Monitoring those glaciers, rather than the volcano itself, may serve as an early-warning system for anyone living nearby.
監測火山表面的冰川，而不是火山本身，可能作為附近居民的早期預警系統。
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The researchers and their colleagues studied 600 glaciers in the Andes (including those on Nevado del Ruiz) of which 74, being less than a kilometre from the mouth of an active volcano, were classed as 「volcanic」.
研究人員及其同事們研究了安第斯山脈上 600 座山峰冰川（包括了內瓦多德爾魯伊斯火山上的冰川），其中有74 座山的冰川距離活火山口不到一公里，被歸類為 "火山冰川」。
One of the main features the scientists were looking for was the 「equilibrium line」. This is the point on a glacier that separates the 「accumulation zone」, where snow adds to the glacier』s mass, from the 「ablation zone」, where melting subtracts from it.
科學家們尋找的主要特徵之一是「平衡線」，即火山冰川上的 "積雪區 "和 "消融區 "之間的分界線。"積雪區 "的積雪增加了冰川的質量，而 "消融區 "的融雪則減少了冰川的質量。
One of the things that affects the equilibrium line is the weather. Plenty of snowfall, or a cool summer, and the line will move downhill. A dry winter or a scorching summer will move it higher.
影響平衡線的因素之一是天氣。如果降雪量大或夏季涼爽，平衡線就會向下移動。而乾燥的冬季或炎熱的夏季則會使平衡線上移。
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In theory, though, any source of heat—including volcanic heat from beneath the ground—ought to affect the height of the equilibrium line.
然而，從理論上講，任何熱源——包括地下的火山熱——都會影響平衡線的高度。
When the researchers examined the data, that is exactly what they found.
當研究人員研究數據時，他們正是發現了這一點。
Glaciers on volcanoes had equilibrium lines notably higher than those on ordinary mountains.
火山上的冰川平衡線明顯高於普通山脈上的冰川平衡線。
In some cases, as on Copahue, a volcano on the border between Chile and Argentina, which last had a major eruption in 2016, the difference could be several hundred metres.
例如，位於智利和阿根廷邊境的科帕韋火山，它的平衡線與普通山脈的平衡線高度相差數百米。該火山最近一次大規模噴發是在 2016 年。
Glaciers on quiescent volcanoes, such as Parinacota, a 6,400-metre mountain that sits between Bolivia and Chile, had equilibrium lines similar to glaciers on mountains that had never been volcanic at all.
死火山上的冰川（例如位於玻利維亞和智利之間的一座 6,400 米高的帕里納科塔山），它們的平衡線與普通山脈上的冰川平衡線高度相似。
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With so many glaciers in their sample, the researchers were able to rule out other explanations, such as differences in the local microclimate.
由於樣本中的冰川數量非常之多，研究人員能夠排除其他解釋，如當地微氣候的差異。
And on the 13 volcanoes for which the best data were available, they were able to map the correlation in detail.
根據13 座火山的最佳數據，他們成功繪製出了相關性圖表。
Those data showed a strong link between changes in the amount of volcanic heat seeping to the surface and the movements of the equilibrium line.
這些數據表明，滲入地表的火山熱量變化與平衡線移動之間存在密切相關性。
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This means, say the researchers, that, although volcanic glaciers obscure what is going on underneath, they could themselves serve as telltales.
研究人員說，這意味著儘管火山冰川掩蓋了地表下的情況，但它們本身可以作為線索。
Sudden changes in the equilibrium line, particularly if they are out of kilter with those of other glaciers nearby, could be evidence that something is brewing beneath the surface, and that further attention is warranted.
平衡線的驟然變化，特別是如果它們與附近其他冰川的變化不一致時，可能表明地表下的岩漿正在醞釀，需要進一步關注。
Although they are getting better, volcanologists still cannot predict exactly when eruptions will occur. But a rise in heat suggests more magma is accumulating below, and makes a valuable early-warning sign.
儘管火山學日益完善，但火山學家仍然無法預測火山爆發的準確時間。但熱量的上升表明有更多的岩漿正在地表下積聚，這是一種有價值的提前預警信號。
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The findings have implications beyond volcanology and warning nearby inhabitants of a looming disaster.
這項研究的意義除了給附近居民提供火山預警信號，意義還超越了火山學的範圍。
Measurements of glaciers around the world provide one way for climate researchers to track the long-term effects of climate change.
世界各地冰川的測量為氣候研究人員提供了一種追蹤氣候變化長期影響的方法。
A warmer planet should mean that glaciers are receding everywhere, and by and large they are.
地球變暖意味著各地的冰川都在消退，而且大體上確實如此。
But Dr Spagnolo and Dr Rea』s results suggest that not all glaciers make equally reliable thermometers.
但斯帕尼奧洛博士和雷亞博士的研究結果表明，並非所有冰川都能提供同樣可靠的溫度數據。
Those on the sides of volcanoes can advance and recede for reasons entirely unrelated to global warming.
火山側面的冰川可能會增加和消退，但可能與全球變暖完全無關。
Climate scientists, they argue, should consider excluding such glaciers from their databases.
他們認為，氣候科學家應該考慮刪除研究資料庫中的火山冰川的溫度數據。
（恭喜讀完，本篇英語辭彙量764左右）
原文出自：2023年9月30日《The Economist》Science & technology版塊
精讀筆記來源於：自由英語之路
本文翻譯整理: Irene
本文編輯校對: Irene
僅供個人英語學習交流使用。
【補充資料】（來自於網路）
1985年，哥倫比亞西部的內瓦多德魯伊茲火山爆發，這是哥倫比亞近現代歷史上最嚴重的自然災害之一。據哥倫比亞有關部門估計，這次火山爆發使2萬3千餘人喪生，5幹人受傷，5萬餘人無家可歸，受災人數達13萬之多，經濟損失高達數10億美元。由於輸水管道、輸電線路、橋樑、公路、學校、醫院以及其他公共設施被毀壞，火山附近的托利馬省和卡爾達斯省十五座城鎮的受災面積達3萬平方公里，約32萬人受到不同程度的影響。
Equilibrium line是指冰川的平衡線，即冰川上部的積雪量與下部的融雪或冰川退縮所流出的水量相等的高度線。它的位置隨氣溫、降雪量和冰川的厚度等因素而變化。
Accumulation zone是指冰川上部積雪區域，通常位於平衡線以上，積雪厚度逐漸增加，冰雪堆積，形成冰川。在積雪區，降雪大於融雪，積累大量的雪和冰，使冰川不斷向下移動。
Ablation zone是指冰川下部融雪區域，通常位於平衡線以下，冰川融化，水流出，冰川退縮。在融雪區，融雪量大於降雪量，導致冰川失去冰雪，不斷向後退縮。這一過程是由氣溫升高和降雪量減少等變化所引起的。
【重點句子】（3個）
Monitoring those glaciers, rather than the volcano itself, may serve as an early-warning system for anyone living nearby.
監測火山表面的冰川，而不是火山本身，可能作為附近居民的早期預警系統。
Glaciers on volcanoes had equilibrium lines notably higher than those on ordinary mountains.
火山上的冰川平衡線明顯高於普通山脈上的冰川平衡線。
The findings have implications beyond volcanology and warning nearby inhabitants of a looming disaster.
這項研究的意義除了給附近居民提供火山預警信號，意義還超越了火山學的範圍。
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