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There have been two significant accidents at nuclear power plants in modern history. A near-meltdown at Three Mile Island in 1979 was followed seven years later by an explosion at Chernobyl in Ukraine. Both led to sharp declines in support for nuclear power.
现代史上有两起重大核电站事故。1979年,美国三里岛(Three Mile Island)核电站几乎发生核反应堆熔毁;7年后,乌克兰的切尔诺贝利(Chernobyl)核电站发生爆炸。这两起事故都导致人们对核电的支持率大幅下滑。
It is too early to say what impact the failure at Fukushima in Japan may have. The authorities are still battling to make the plant safe after earthquake damage caused the cooling system to fail in two reactors, damaging their cores. But already the world has seen chilling images of explosions at the facility, and stories are circulating about workers having been exposed to radiation. A catastrophic meltdown is a sombre possibility.
对于日本福岛(Fukushima)核电站受损会产生何种影响,现在评价还为时过早。在地震造成的损坏导致其中两个核反应堆的冷却系统失灵、损坏反应堆核心后,有关部门仍在竭尽全力确保这座核电站的安全。但是,世人已经看到该处核设施发生爆炸的令人胆寒的画面,还有传言称,工作人员已经暴露于核辐射之下。灾难性的反应堆熔毁是一个令人沮丧的可能性。 |
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