俄羅斯南極考察船被困乘客全部獲救

Dozens of scientists and tourists who spent over a week aboard a vessel trapped in Antarctic ice were rescued Thursday in an international effort that followed multiple attempts thwarted by the region's harsh climate.

中困南極海域逾一週的俄羅斯科考船上的數十名科學家和遊客已於週四在多國努力下獲救。之前的數次營救行動都因南極地區惡劣的氣候條件而失敗。

The 52 were safely rescued by a transport helicopter from a Chinese icebreaker that landed on a makeshift helipad of ice near their stricken Russian research vessel. In multiple flights, it transferred about 12 at a time to an Australian vessel, where they will begin their journeys home, said authorities involved in the operation.

來自中國破冰船的一架運輸直升機降落在受困的俄羅斯科考船附近的臨時冰面停機坪上，並分批次將船上52人安全轉移。參與此次救援行動的有關方面稱，這架中國直升機每次運送12人，將受困人員轉移到一艘澳大利亞船隻上。他們將從這裏啓程回國。

'Great relief!' scientific expedition leader Chris Turney said in a Twitter TWTR +6.05% message.

科考隊隊長Chris Turney在推特上說：這是一次偉大的救援行動！

The airlift operation was confirmed by China's official Xinhua news agency, which has a reporter aboard the Chinese icebreaker, the Xue Long, or Snow Dragon. A statement from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, in charge of coordinating the operation, indicated passengers were safely transferred by early evening to the Australian icebreaker Aurora Australis.

中國官方媒體新華社證實了此次空中救援行動。中國破冰船“雪龍號”上有一名新華社記者。負責本次援救協調工作的澳大利亞海事安全局(Australian Maritime Safety Authority)發表的公告顯示，受困科考船上的乘客已在傍晚時分被安全轉移至澳大利亞“極光”號破冰船上。

Trapped in a particularly thick ice floe just before Christmas on its way toward Antarctica, the Russian research vessel Akademik Shokalskiy remains immobile. Its 22-member crew is staying aboard. While the passengers weren't in imminent danger, they expressed frustration as holidays passed but also maintained their spirits, including by stamping out the makeshift helipad with their feet on New Year's Day.

就在聖誕節之前，俄羅斯“紹卡利斯基院士”(Akademik Shokalskiy)號南極考察船被困在厚厚的浮冰中，目前仍無法前進。該船的22名船員仍留在船上。雖然乘客們不會立刻面臨危險，但他們因節日已過而感到沮喪。不過他們依然十分振作，在新年當天用自己的雙腳踩出了一個臨時停機坪。

Thursday's rescue marked only the latest attempt to get close to the blue-hulled Russian vessel since it first called for help on Christmas Day. Over the past few days, ice-breaking vessels from China, Australia and France have made separate unsuccessful bids to cut through thick layers of ice to reach it.

週四的救援行動是這艘藍色俄羅斯科考船在聖誕節發出求救信號以來的最新一次救援嘗試。過去幾天，來自中國、澳大利亞和法國的破冰船都曾試圖穿過厚厚的冰層接近受困考察船，但均無功而返。

After the rescue got under way Thursday afternoon under bright blue skies, video footage showed the twin-blade helicopter touching down gingerly on the makeshift helipad. Passengers wearing identical red life jackets walked in single file on the ice toward the helicopter.

週四下午救援行動開始，錄像片段顯示，這架雙葉直升機謹慎地降落在臨時停機坪上。身穿紅色救生衣的乘客們排成一列向直升機走去。

Just hours before Thursday's rescue, Australian maritime authorities had announced natural conditions would cause them to abandon the mission yet again. Illustrating the caution, China's State Oceanic Administration, which runs the Xue Long, posted a statement on its website quoting its captain, Wang Jianzhong, as saying he was working continuously to ensure the icebreaker itself wouldn't get trapped in the thick ice.

就在週四展開救援行動之前的數小時，澳大利亞海事安全局還宣佈，他們將因自然條件惡劣而再次取消這次救援任務。負責“雪龍”號的中國國家海洋局在其網站上發表公告，援引“雪龍”號船長王建忠的話稱，他正不斷努力，確保“雪龍”號不要陷入厚冰層之中。

In outlining the plan ahead of the flights, authorities said Chinese rescuers would fly 12 passengers at a time initially to the Xue Long, which was waiting 12 nautical miles away from the Russian craft in more open water, and then the Aurora Australis, waiting a further two nautical miles away.

有關部門在救援飛行行動前介紹方案時說，中國救援人員將首先每次運送12名乘客到位於12海里外更開闊水域的“雪龍”號上，然後再轉運到兩海里外的 “南極光”號上。

Mr. Turney, a professor of climate change at the University of New South Wales, offered in his Twitter messages a 'huge thanks' to the Chinese and Australian authorities for ensuring all are 'safe and sound.'

Turney是新南威爾士大學(University of New South Wales)氣候變化方面的教授。他在推特消息中“萬分感謝”中方和澳方確保所有人都“平安無事”。

The incident has highlighted the dangers of Antarctic travel even during the southern-summer months. Usually at this time of year, international attention on the frozen continent is typically limited to clashes between Japan's research whaling fleet and antiwhaling activists.

此次事件凸顯出即便是在南半球夏季的幾個月中，開展南極之行也存在很大危險。每年的這個時候，國際社會對這片冰凍大陸的關注通常僅限於日本研究捕鯨船與反捕鯨活動人士之間的衝突。

'All the world is making a fuss,' some passengers sang in an impromptu New Year's message recorded at a party in a common room on board the Russian ship by a journalist from Britain's Guardian newspaper. The group cheered and clapped to count down the last moments of 2013. Both passengers and crew have spent their time tweeting messages and videos of their experience.

英國《衛報》(Guardian)的一名記者記錄下了這艘俄羅斯船上一個公共休息室內舉辦的派對上一些乘客即興唱起的新年賀詞：“全世界都在熱烈歡呼”。人們歡呼、鼓掌、倒數計時辭舊迎新。乘客和船員都在推特上發佈了有關他們經歷的消息和視頻。

Most of those on the Russian ship were part of a privately funded expedition whose aim is to retrace Australian explorer Douglas Mawson's trek to Antarctica about a century ago, and to measure any changes to the polar environment since then.

這艘俄羅斯船上的大部分人都是一個私人資助的探險隊的成員，他們的目的在於重走澳大利亞探險家道格拉斯•莫森(Douglas Mawson)大約一個世紀前走過的南極探險之路，同時考察從那之後極地環境的變化。

The ship is stranded about 1,500 nautical miles south of Hobart, the capital of Australia's Tasmania state. Australian maritime authorities have overall responsibility for the rescue operation because the ship is trapped in an area that falls within the country's Antarctic search-and-rescue zone.

這艘船被困在澳大利亞塔斯馬尼亞州首府霍巴特以南大約1,500海里的地方。澳大利亞海事部門是這次救援行動的總負責方，因爲這艘船是被困在位於該國的南極搜救區內。

In addition to research team leader Mr. Turney, other scientists come from a range of disciplines, including marine ecology, terrestrial ecology, ornithology and oceanography.

除科考隊領隊Turney外，其他科學家來自各個領域，包括海洋生態學、陸地生態學、鳥類學和海洋學。

Pack ice, solid sheets of ice up to several meters thick, is a major hazard for vessels navigating the harsh Antarctic, where temperatures can fall to below minus 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

浮冰是在條件惡劣的南極航行的船隻所面臨的一項主要危險。浮冰是質地結實的冰層，厚度可達數米。南極的氣溫最低可至零下100華氏度（約合零下73攝氏度）。

In 1985, the Nella Dan, an Australian research vessel, was trapped for 48 days in the Antarctic. A year later, the Southern Quest, carrying a British expedition, was crushed by ice and sank.

1985年，澳大利亞科考船“Nella Dan”號在南極被困48天。一年後，一支英國探險隊搭載的“Southern Quest”號被冰撞壞沉沒。

More recently, in 2010 icebreakers had to be used to free nearly 1,000 people whose ferry was among dozens of vessels trapped by ice in the Baltic Sea off the coast of Sweden.

2010年，人們不得不使用破冰船將近1,000人救出。除他們乘坐的船外，還有數十艘船在瑞典附近的波羅的海被冰所困。