Known as the 'Pole of Cold', the coldest ever temperature recorded in Oymyakon was -71.2C. |
If you thought it was cold where you are at the moment then a visit to the Russian village of Oymyakon might just change your mind. With the average temperature for January standing at -50C, it is no wonder the village is the coldest permanently inhabited settlement in the world. Known as the 'Pole of Cold', the coldest ever temperature recorded in Oymyakon was -71.2C. This is the lowest recorded temperature for any permanently inhabited location on Earth and the lowest temperature recorded in the Northern Hemisphere. Ironically, Oymyakon actually means 'non-freezing water' due to a nearby hot spring. Most homes in Oymyakon still burn coal and wood for heat and enjoy few modern conveniences. Nothing grows there so people eat reindeer meat and horsemeat. A single shop provides the town's bare necessities and the locals work as reindeer-breeders, hunters and ice-fisherman. Doctors say the reason the locals don't suffer from malnutrition is that their animals' milk contains a lot of micronutrients. Unsurprisingly, locals are hardened to the weather and unlike in other countries - where a flurry of snow brings things grinding to a halt, Oymyakon's solitary school only shuts if temperatures fall below -52C. There are few modern conveniences in the village - with many buildings still having outdoor toilets - and most people still burn coal and wood for heat. When coal deliveries are irregular the power station starts burning wood. If the power ceases, the town shuts down in about five hours, and the pipes freeze and crack. Daily problems that come with living in Oymyakon include pen ink freezing, glasses freezing to people's faces and batteries losing power. Locals are said to leave their cars running all day for fear of not being able to restart them. Even if there was coverage for mobile phone reception the phones themselves would not work in such cold conditions. Another problem caused by the frozen temperatures is burying dead bodies, which can take anything up to three days. The earth must first have thawed sufficiently in order to dig it, so a bonfire is lit for a couple of hours. Hot coals are then pushed to the side and a hole couple of inches deep is dug. The process is repeated for several days until the hole is deep enough to bury the coffin. Travel companies offer tourists the opportunity to visit the village and sample life in the freezing conditions. (Read by Brian Salter. Brian Salter is a journalist at the China Daily Website.) (Agencies) |
如果你覺得你現(xiàn)在所處的地方十分寒冷,那么到俄羅斯的奧伊米亞康村莊走一走,你或許會(huì)改變看法。 該村莊一月份的平均氣溫達(dá)到零下50度,難怪會(huì)成為全球最寒冷的永久居住點(diǎn)。奧伊米亞康歷史最低氣溫達(dá)到零下71.2度,被稱為“寒極”。 對(duì)于地球上任何一個(gè)永久居住點(diǎn)來說,這都是有記錄以來的最低氣溫,也是北半球有記錄以來的最低氣溫。 具有反諷意味的是,由于附近有處溫泉,奧伊米亞康這一名字的實(shí)際意思是“不凍泉”。奧伊米亞康的大多數(shù)村民仍然靠燒煤和木炭取暖,幾乎不使用現(xiàn)代化設(shè)施。 這里不長莊稼,所以村民們以馴鹿肉和馬肉為食。村子里只有一家商店,出售種類屈指可數(shù)的生活必需品。當(dāng)?shù)厝丝筐B(yǎng)鹿、狩獵和捕魚為生。 醫(yī)生表示,當(dāng)?shù)厝酥詻]有營養(yǎng)不良,是因?yàn)樗麄兒认碌膭?dòng)物奶含有大量微量元素。 當(dāng)?shù)厝四芙?jīng)受住酷寒天氣,這一點(diǎn)不足為奇。和其他國家遇到大雪各種活動(dòng)暫停不同,奧伊米亞康唯一的一所學(xué)校只有在氣溫低于零下52度時(shí)才停課。 村子里沒有現(xiàn)代化設(shè)施——很多家庭仍使用室外廁所——大多數(shù)人都靠燒煤和木炭取暖。一旦煤炭供應(yīng)不上,發(fā)電站就靠燒木炭供能。如果斷電,整個(gè)村子就會(huì)在五小時(shí)內(nèi)陷入癱瘓,導(dǎo)致水管凍裂。 奧伊米亞康居民因低溫遭遇諸多困擾,比如墨水結(jié)冰、玻璃鏡片凍裂、電池耗電等等。汽車發(fā)動(dòng)機(jī)必須保持全天候工作,因?yàn)槿藗儞?dān)心熄火后可能無法重啟。 雖然這里可以接收手機(jī)信號(hào),但由于天氣極端寒冷,手機(jī)根本使用不了。 冰凍天氣給村民們造成的另一困擾是埋葬死者,這可能要花費(fèi)多達(dá)3天的時(shí)間。首先必須將土壤充分解凍便于挖坑,所以要用篝火持續(xù)烘烤數(shù)小時(shí)。然后把滾燙的煤推至一旁,挖下幾英寸。這一過程要反復(fù)持續(xù)數(shù)日,直到這個(gè)墓穴可以裝得下一口棺材。 一些旅行社給游客提供參觀該村莊的機(jī)會(huì),讓人們體驗(yàn)極寒天氣下的“寒極”生活。 相關(guān)閱讀 (中國日報(bào)網(wǎng)英語點(diǎn)津 Julie 編輯:陳丹妮) |
Vocabulary: lose power: 消耗功率,失去動(dòng)力 |