Iceland on August 18th， 2019 honored the passing of Okjokull， as scientists warn that some 400 others on the subarctic island risk the same fate.

2019年8月18日，冰岛为奥克冰川的消逝举行了纪念仪式。科学家警告说，冰岛还有大约400座冰川面临相同的命运。

With a theme of fighting climate change， about 100 Icelanders have said farewell to what once was a glacier. Scientists said it was the first of Icelands glaciers to disappear because of climate change.

大约100名冰岛人为这座“死亡”的冰川举行了告别仪式，这场活动的主题是应对气候变化。科学家们表示，这是冰岛第一座因气候变化而消失的冰川。

About 100 years ago， the glacier covered almost 6 square miles of a mountainside in western Iceland and measured more than 160 feet thick.

大约100年前，这座冰川覆盖了冰岛西部约6平方英里（约合15.5平方千米）的山坡，厚度超过160英尺（约合48.8米）。

A plaque has been installed at the site of the former glacier， which reads： “In the next 200 years， all our glaciers are expected to follow the same path. This monument is to acknowledge that we know what is happening and what needs to be done. Only you know if we did it.”

人们在这座冰川曾经的所在地竖起了纪念碑，上面写道：“在未来的200年里，所有的冰川可能步其后尘。设立这座纪念碑是为了承认，我们知道正在发生什么，需要做什么。只有你知道我们是否做到了。”

The plaque bears the inscription “A letter to the future”， and is intended to raise awareness about the decline of glaciers and the effects of climate change.

纪念碑碑文题为“给未来的一封信”，旨在提高人们对冰川消融和气候变化影响的认识。

It is also labelled “415ppm CO2，” referring to the record level of carbon dioxide measured in the atmosphere in May， 2019.

纪念碑还刻有“415ppm CO2”，指的是2019年5月测出的创纪录的大气中二氧化碳含量。

In 1890， the glacier ice covered 16 square kilometres but by 2012， it measured just 0.7 square kilometres， according to a report from the University of Iceland from 2017.

冰岛大学在2017年发布的一份报告称，1890年，奥克冰川覆盖面积为16平方千米，但到2012年，冰川面积仅剩0.7平方千米。

“In 2014， we made the decision that this was no longer a living glacier， it was only dead ice， it was not moving，” Oddur Sigurdsson， a glaciologist with the Icelandic Meteorological Office， told AFP.

冰岛气象局的冰川学家奥杜尔·西古德松告诉法新社：“我们在2014年已确定这个冰川不复存在，已经‘死亡，它不再移动了。”

According to a study published by the International Union for Conservation of Nature （IUCN） in April， 2019， nearly half of the worlds heritage sites could lose their glaciers by 2100 if greenhouse gas emissions continue at the current rate.

根据世界自然保护联盟2019年4月发表的一项研究，如果温室气体继续以目前的速度排放，到2100年，近半数世界遗产地的冰川将会消失。

Sigurdsson said he feared “that nothing can be done to stop it”.

西古德松说，他担心“人类对此无能为力”。

Residents reminisced about drinking pure water thousands of years old from Okjokull.

当地居民回忆说，这里的人们饮用奥克冰川纯净水已有几千年。

“The symbolic death of a glacier is a warning to us， and we need action，” former Irish president Mary Robinson said.

“冰川的象征性死亡是对我们的警告，我们需要采取行动。”爱尔兰前总统玛丽·罗宾逊说。

“We see the consequences of the climate crisis，” Icelandic Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir said. “We have no time to lose.”

冰岛总理卡特琳·雅各布斯多蒂尔说：“我们看到了气候危机的后果。我们没有时间可以浪费了。”

Word Study

subarctic /s?b'ɑ?kt?k/ adj. 亞北极的

plaque /pl?k/ n.（纪念性的）匾牌，匾额

inscription /?n'skr?p?n/ n. 题词;铭刻;碑文

reminisce /'rem?'n?s/ v. 回忆;追忆

Ray and I ate our meal and reminisced about the trip.