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At two high-altitude sites, in two countries, two very different telescope projects have come online to scan the skies.
为了观测天空，分别在两个国家的高海拔地区建立了截然不同的望远镜项目。
At Palomar Observatory in San Diego County, a new instrument on the Hale Telescope is looking for exoplanets. Called Project 1640, it’s designed to blot out the infrared light of a star, without blocking the light from anything else. That allows astronomers to directly observe exoplanets, even though the star is thousands or even millions of times brighter.
海耳望远镜坐落在圣迭戈乡村的帕洛玛天文台上，它上面最新安装的仪器正在寻找系外行星。这个项目就是“1640”计划，旨在遮挡来自恒星的红外线，同时并不阻断从其他物体发出的光线。这就使天文学家能够直接观测系外行星，尽管恒星比行星要亮一千倍甚至上百万倍。
Most known exoplanets have been discovered by indirect means, but planetary scientists believe they can learn a lot more from direct observation.
众所周知，系外行星是通过间接方式发现的，但是行星科学家们相信，通过直接观测会了解到更多。
Over in Namibia, meanwhile, a new telescope called HESS II is seeking out higher-energy photons. The 28-meter telescope is designed to identify very high energy gamma rays. And gamma rays, the most energetic kind of electromagnetic radiation, already pack a pretty good wallop.
与此同时在纳米比亚上空，一个叫做“HESS II”的新式望远镜正在寻找高能光子。这架高28米的望远镜被设计用来辨别高能的伽马射线。伽马射线是一种极其活跃的电磁辐射，它聚合的冲击力相当强。
The gamma rays HESS sees are mostly by-products of extremely violent astrophysical events such as supernovae and flaring black holes.
HESS观测到的伽马射线大多数是极端猛烈的天体物理现象的副产品，比如说超新星的爆炸，以及燃烧的黑洞。
HESS and Project 1640 differ in method and motive. But for astronomers studying exoplanets or extreme astrophysics, the new projects represent two more eyes on the sky.
HESS和“1640”计划的不同之处在于观测方法和动机。但对于正在研究系外行星和极端天文物理现象的天文学家来说，这两个项目代表着两只监视天空的眼睛。
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