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2017考研英语拓展阅读：中国月球车“玉兔”停止工作

　　China’s troubled but beloved Jade Rabbit lunar rover has whirred its last, state media said Wednesday, after it bid humanity farewell on social media.

　　历经坎坷但是深受喜爱的中国月球车“玉兔”在社交媒体上向人类告别，之后官方媒体在周三宣布，该月球车已经停止工作。

　　The device, designed for a lifespan of a mere three months, surveyed the moon’s surface for 31 months, the official Xinhua new service said, overcoming numerous technical problems and design flaws to become a national icon.

　　新华新闻社称，该设备的设计寿命只有三个月，但是却在月球表面考察了31个月，克服了无数的技术问题和设计缺陷，已经成为国家的象征。

　　But the machine has stopped operations, Xinhua cited the State Administration for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense as saying Wednesday.

　　新华社周三援引国家国防科技工业局的说法，这台机器已经停止运转。

　　The rover was part of the Chang’e-3 lunar mission. Millions of Internet users took part in an online contest to select its name, which comes from the pet of a moon goddess in Chinese mythology.

　　月球车是“嫦娥三号”登月计划的一部分。数百万网民参与选择了它的名字“玉兔”，这是中国古代神话传说里月神的小宠物。

　　It began its adventure on December 2013, sending back photographs of the lunar surface and gaining huge popularity with Internet users along the way.

　　“玉兔”于2013年12月开始冒险之旅，传回月球表面的照片，并迅速成为了网民们的心头好。

　　Not long after landing its legend grew after a "mechanical control abnormality" forced it offline, prompting anxiety from its many supporters.

　　登陆月球后不久，月球车就出了“机械控制故障”导致离线，让它的粉丝们非常担忧。

　　The rover later turned dormant and stopped sending signals during the lunar night, which lasts for two weeks and sees temperatures plummet.

　　不久之后月球车进入了休眠状态，在月球黑夜期间不发送信号。月球的黑夜持续两周，温度也会骤降。

　　But it made a dramatic recovery, to the delight of its admirers.

　　但是它奇迹般地醒过来了，让粉丝们大喜过望。

　　It was not clear on which day the device finally "retired".

　　那时还不清楚，月球车会在哪一天“退休”。

　　An official media account carried a post written as a first-person message from the plucky rover to its fans on Sunday saying: “This time it really is goodnight.”

　　在社交媒体上，有一个“玉兔”的官方账号，该账号周日以这台勇敢的月球车的身份向它的粉丝们发了一条微博：“这次真的晚安咯。”

　　"There are still many questions I would like answers too, but I’m the rabbit that has seen the most stars!" it added. "The moon says it has prepared a long, long dream for me."

　　“还有好多问题想知道答案……但我已经是看过最多星星的一只兔子了!”它补充说，“月球说为我准备了一个长长的梦。”

　　The post also contained a link to "Universal Traveler", a song by French electronica band Air.

　　这条微博还包含了《Universal Traveler》这首歌的链接，这是法国电音乐队Air的歌。

　　It has received nearly 100,000 shares, likes and comments, with one poster promising it "countless carrot pies" according to Xinhua.

　　据新华社报道，这条微博的转发、点赞和评论达到近10万次，其中有一条希望它能有“数不清的胡萝卜派”。

　　Another said: "I don’t know why I am so heartbroken. It’s just a machine after all."

　　还有一条评论说;“我不知道我为什么这么难过。它只是一台机器而已。”

　　The Chang’e-3 probe’s landing was the third such soft-landing in history, and the first of its kind since a Soviet mission nearly four decades ago. It has been a source of national pride.

　　“嫦娥三号”探测器是历史上第三台软着陆的机器，也是40年前前苏联登月之后的第一次探月任务。这是国家自豪感的来源之一。

　　China sees the space programme as a symbol of its rising global stature and technological advancement, as well as of the Communist Party’s success in reversing the fortunes of the once-impoverished nation.

　　中国一直把空间工程视为大国崛起和技术进步的标志之一，也是中国共产党复兴中华民族的举措之一。

　　By 2018 the country aims to land its Chang’e-4 probe -- named for the moon goddess in Chinese mythology -- on the dark side of the moon.

　　该国计划在2018年前让“嫦娥四号”探测器登陆月球的暗面——“嫦娥”是中国古代神话中月神的名字。

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