32 海湾暖流(4)
Lea一ving Old Bahama Channel, which is fourteen leagues wide by 350 meters deep, the Gulf Stream moves at the rate of eight kilometers per hour. Its speed steadily decreases as it advances northward, and we must pray that this steadiness continues, because, as experts agree, if its speed and direction were to change, the climates of Europe would undergo disturbances whose consequences are incalculable.
从巴哈马运河出来时，海湾暖流在14里宽、350米深的范围一内一以每小时8公里的速度流动。随着它向北推进，这个速度就有规律地减慢，但愿这种规律一性一永远保持下去，因为正如有人指出，如果它的方向和速度稍有改变，欧洲的气候就会受到很大的影响，由此导致的后果是不堪设想的。
Near noon I was on the platform with Conseil. I shared with him the relevant details on the Gulf Stream. When my explanation was over, I invited him to dip his hands into its current.
中午时分，我和康塞尔在平台上。我向他讲述了一些有关海湾暖流的特征。当我讲述完后，我请他把双手放进水流中。
Conseil did so, and he was quite astonished to experience no sensation of either hot or cold.
康塞尔照着我的话做了，但他很奇怪感觉不到有任何冷热的差别。
That comes, I told him, "from the water temperature of the Gulf Stream, which, as it lea一ves the Gulf of Mexico, is barely different from your blood temperature. This Gulf Stream is a huge heat generator that enables the coasts of Europe to be decked in eternal greenery. And if Commander Maury is correct, were one to harness the full warmth of this current, it would supply enough heat to keep molten a river of iron solder as big as the Amazon or the Missouri."
“这是因为海湾暖流刚从墨西哥湾出来，现在的水温和人血的温度没什么差别。”我对他说，“这股海湾暖流可是一个保证欧洲海岸四季常绿的大暖炉。而且，如果莫利说得对的话，这股水流的热量如果能完全地被利用，那它就能提一供足够的卡路里，使亚马逊河或密苏里河这样的大河保持熔铁熔点的温度。”
Just then the Gulf Stream's speed was 2.25 meters per second. So distinct is its current from the surrounding sea, its confined waters stand out against the ocean and operate on a different level from the colder waters.
这时，海湾暖流的速度是每秒2.25米。它的水流与周围海水非常之有差别，它的水流因受周围海水的挤一压而在洋面上突起，和海洋的冷水之间形成不同的层次。