探索發現:科學家在月球上發現鈦礦

A new map of the Moon has revealed an abundance of titanium ore that is up to 10 times richer than on Earth, a finding that could one day lead to a lunar mining colony, astronomers said on Friday.

天文學家在週五稱，一張新的月球地圖展示出了在月球上發現了高於地球10倍儲備量的鈦礦，這個發現有可能會引發一場未來月球採礦業的殖民行爲。

The discovery was made thanks to a camera aboard the US Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, which swept the surface of the Moon, scrutinising it in seven different light wavelengths.

這個發現要歸功於美國月球軌道勘測器上的一個攝像頭。 該探測器利用七種不同光的波長對月球表面進行勘察。

Mark Robinson of Arizona State University, sifted through the data for telltale jumps in the ratio of ultra-violet to visible light.

亞利桑那州立大學的馬克-羅賓遜，篩選了由紫外線和可見光的比率所得到的數據而得出這一結論（月球上存有鈦礦）。

They established this signature thanks to rock samples brought back to Earth by Apollo 17 astronauts in 1972 and images of the area around the mission's landing site by the Hubble space telescope.

而他們能確定鈦礦的位置標記卻要歸功於在1972年阿波羅17號宇航員帶回地球的岩石樣本和通過哈伯望遠鏡觀測到的圍繞任務着陸點的地區圖像。

"Looking up at the Moon, its surface appears painted with shades of grey, at least to the human eye," explained Robinson.

“擡頭仰望月球時，人類的肉眼至少會看到月球表面呈深淺不一的灰色，”羅賓遜解釋道。

"But with the right instruments, the Moon can appear colourful.”

“但如果使用合適的觀測工具去看的話，月球的表面則是異彩紛呈的。”

"The maria [lunar plains] appears reddish in some places and blue in others.”

“瑪利亞平原某些地方（月球上的平原）呈淡紅色，而其他地方卻呈藍色。”

"Although subtle, these colour variations tell us important things about the chemistry and evolution of the lunar surface. They indicate the titanium and iron abundance, as well as the maturity of a lunar soil."

“雖然很微妙，但這些顏色的變化告訴我們，月球表面發生的化學變化和演變史。他們能顯示出月球鈦和鐵儲量的豐富儲量和其土壤的成熟度。

Titanium is as strong as steel but nearly half as light, which makes it a highly desired -- and also very expensive -- metal.

鈦和鐵一樣堅硬卻只有鐵一半的重量，這使得它成爲了一種急需而價格昂貴的金屬。

On Earth, titanium is found, at the very most, in around one percent of similar types of ore. But the new map found abundances in the lunar maria that range from about one percent to 10 percent, the conference organisers said in a press release. In the lunar highlands, abundance was around one percent.

地球上能發現的鈦儲藏量最多隻有同類鐵礦石儲量的百分之一， 但研討會的組織者在發佈會上說，新的月球地圖顯示出在瑪利亞平原上有豐富的鈦礦儲量，大約從百分之一到百分之十不等。在月球表面的高地上，鈦儲量（比率）也約有百分之一。

"Lunar titanium is mostly found in the mineral ilmenite, a compound containing iron, titanium and oxygen," they said.

他們說：“月球的鈦礦主要存在於鈦鐵礦中，鈦鐵礦是一種包含了鈦和氧氣的化合物。”

“ Future miners living and working on the Moon could break down ilmenite to liberate these elements. ”.

　　“未來在月球上生活和工作的礦工們可能會分解鈦鐵礦從而釋放出其所含的這些元素。”