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A glacier slide that tore a path of destruction through western Tibet last month could have been set in motion by climate change and similar disasters could be ahead.
上个月冰川滑动在西藏西部形成了破坏通道，这可能是气候变化造成的，以后还会发生同类灾害。
The deadly avalanche on July 17 killed nine people and hundreds of sheep and yaks in Rutog County where residents rely on their livestock to survive. It started when a glacier began to slip down a narrow gully between two mountains, sliding over 5 kilometers into the nearby Aru Co Lake. The avalanche covered an area of nearly 10 square kilometers with snow up to 30 meters deep. Nature magazine called it one of the largest ice avalanches in recorded history, comparable only to a 2002 glacier slide that killed 140 people in Russia.
7月17日那场致命的雪崩使九人遇难，并且掩埋了几百只日土县居民们赖以生存的绵羊和牦牛。灾害开始时，一块冰川从两座山之间的狭沟向下滑动，滑行五千多米后进入附近的阿鲁湖。雪崩覆盖面积约10平方千米，积雪厚达30多米。自然杂志称其为历史记录中最大的冰崩，与其相似的只有2002年俄罗斯那场导致140人死亡的冰川滑动。
The immediate cause of the avalanche was clear. But what caused the glacier's slide? Tian Lide, director of a Chinese Academy of Sciences observation center near the avalanche site, says the Rutog avalanche started on flat terrain instead of an incline, making the glacier's sudden slide unusual.
导致雪崩的原因很明显。但是导致冰川滑动的原因是什么呢？田立德，雪崩地附近的中国科学院观测站站长，说日土雪崩发生在平坦地区而不是斜坡上，这一点很不寻常。
Andreas Kaab, a glaciologist and professor at Norway's University of Oslo, said in an interview with Nature magazine that an unusual movement called a "glacier surge" might have caused the avalanche. Most glaciers move very slowly, but surge-type glaciers sometimes move up to 100 times faster than normal.
冰川学家以及挪威奥斯陆大学教授安德里亚斯·卡布在自然杂志的采访中说道，一次不同寻常的移动被称为“急涌冰川”，可能正是它导致了雪崩。多数冰川移动速度都非常缓慢，但急涌型冰川的移动速度有时是普通冰川的100多倍。
But Tian says the glacier that caused the Rutog avalanche had barely moved at all over the last several decades, making the glacier surge explanation an unlikely one. So what was the culprit? Zong Jibiao, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences observation center, says global warming was more likely the cause. Temperatures in Tibet have risen by about 0.4 degrees Celsius per decade since 1960 – twice the global average. Unusually high precipitation covered the glacier with a thick layer of snow this summer. Tian said warming temperatures likely melted the glacier from the inside, creating cracks and cavities that collapsed under the snow's weight.
但是田立德认为引发日土雪崩的冰川在过去的几十年中几乎都没有移动，急涌冰川这一说法不太可能。那么罪魁祸首到底是什么呢？中国科学院观测站研究员宗继彪认为这更有可能是全球变暖造成的。自1960年以来，西藏气温每十年就上升0.4摄氏度--是全球气温上升速度的两倍。今年夏天，异常的高强度降雪在冰川表面形成了一层厚厚的积雪。田立德认为可能是温度升高从内部融化冰川，出现了裂缝和空洞，使其在积雪的重压下最终垮塌。
Tian warned that climate change is causing large-scale environmental damage. "There is an urgent need for more monitoring and research efforts, especially in populated areas in high mountains," he said.
田立德提醒气候变化正在造成大规模的环境破坏。他说“我们迫切需要加强监管和研究工作，尤其是高山地区人口密集的地方。”
Meanwhile, Xinhua reported that cracks have appeared on nearby glaciers, and local authorities worry that disaster may still be looming.
与此同时，新华社报道附近的冰川也出现了裂缝，当地政府担心灾害可能持续在逼近。
译文属可可英语原创，未经允许，不得转载。
