三年前沖上岸的太陽(yáng)能幽靈船之謎終于解開(kāi)

三年前沖上岸的太陽(yáng)能幽靈船之謎終于解開(kāi)

When you live along the coast, you get accustomed to seeing some bizarre things wash ashore. Here's one thing you're not likely to forget, however: a solar-powered caravan-type houseboat, with no sign of a crew.

當(dāng)你住在海邊時(shí)，你會(huì)習(xí)慣看到一些奇怪的東西被沖上岸。然而，有一件事你可能不會(huì)忘記:一艘太陽(yáng)能大篷車(chē)式的游艇，沒(méi)有船員的跡象。

The mystery of this solar boat has finally been solved. (Photo: Ballyglass Coast Guard Unit)

Three years ago, that's exactly what happened to a local in County Mayo, western Ireland, during a nightly beach stroll, reports CNN.

據(jù)美國(guó)有線電視新聞網(wǎng)(CNN)報(bào)道，三年前，愛(ài)爾蘭西部梅奧縣的一名當(dāng)?shù)厝送砩显诤┥⒉綍r(shí)就遇到了這種情況。

"It looked a little bit like a caravan. In the water, it seemed just a strange looking object really," said Michael Hurst, officer in charge at Ballyglass Coast Guard Unit.

“它看起來(lái)有點(diǎn)像一輛大篷車(chē)。在水中，它看起來(lái)只是一個(gè)看起來(lái)很奇怪的物體。”邁克爾·赫斯特說(shuō)，他是巴里格拉斯海岸警衛(wèi)隊(duì)的負(fù)責(zé)人。

The vessel was built of wood and was kitted with impressive solar arrays. Windows were lined on both sides, but there was no sign of a crew. As ghost ships go, this one was one-of-a-kind. So you'd think that tracing its origin would be easy, but despite significant media buzz around the strange boat, no one stepped up to claim it.

這艘船是木制的，并裝備了令人印象深刻的太陽(yáng)能電池陣列。兩邊都是窗戶(hù)，但沒(méi)有船員的跡象。作為幽靈船，這是獨(dú)一無(wú)二的。所以你可能會(huì)認(rèn)為追溯它的起源很容易，但是盡管媒體對(duì)這艘奇怪的船大肆宣傳，卻沒(méi)有人站出來(lái)認(rèn)領(lǐng)它。

There was but one clue: a message scribbled on a wall inside of it. That message read: "I, Rick Small, donate this structure to a homeless youth. To give them a better life that Newfoundlanders chose not to do! No rent no mortgage no hydro."

只有一條線索:一條信息潦草地寫(xiě)在里面的墻上。上面寫(xiě)著:“我，里克·斯莫爾，把這個(gè)建筑捐給一個(gè)無(wú)家可歸的年輕人。為了給他們更好的生活，紐芬蘭人選擇不這樣做!沒(méi)有租金，沒(méi)有抵押貸款，沒(méi)有水電。”

This likely meant that the ship came from across the Atlantic Ocean, from Newfoundland in Canada. But how long had it been adrift? What accounts for its strange design? Who is Rick Small?

這可能意味著這艘船來(lái)自大西洋彼岸的加拿大紐芬蘭。但它漂流了多久?是什么導(dǎo)致了它的奇怪設(shè)計(jì)?里克是誰(shuí)?

The mystery continued for three years-- members of the coast guard unit and the local community eventually refurbished the vessel and donated it to a community sensory garden in nearby Binghamstown-- until finally, the cold case was re-opened by an inquisitive reporter. Now, at last, the mystery has a solution.

這個(gè)謎團(tuán)持續(xù)了三年——海岸警衛(wèi)隊(duì)和當(dāng)?shù)厣鐓^(qū)的成員最終翻新了這艘船，并把它捐贈(zèng)給了賓厄姆斯敦附近的一個(gè)社區(qū)感官花園——直到最后，一名好奇的記者重新打開(kāi)了這個(gè)冰冷的案件?，F(xiàn)在，這個(gè)謎終于有了答案。

Rick Small, it turns out, is a 62-year-old Canadian inventor who originally designed the oddball vessel as part of an effort to raise awareness about climate change. His plan was to sail from Newfoundland, through the Arctic Ocean and back again, to demonstrate how the sea ice is disappearing. He never quite managed to embark on the journey, and eventually decided to donate the ship to a local cause.

事實(shí)證明，62歲的加拿大發(fā)明家里克·斯莫爾最初設(shè)計(jì)這艘古怪的船是為了提高人們對(duì)氣候變化的認(rèn)識(shí)。他的計(jì)劃是從紐芬蘭島出發(fā)，穿過(guò)北冰洋，然后再回來(lái)，以展示海冰是如何消失的。他始終未能踏上征程，最終決定將這艘船捐贈(zèng)給當(dāng)?shù)氐囊豁?xiàng)事業(yè)。

How the boat ended up across the Atlantic Ocean in Ireland, however, remains a complete mystery. It's unclear when exactly the vessel went missing, but clearly no one had been looking for it. Remarkably, it was sturdy enough to cross the Atlantic without anyone on board, and who knows where else it might have traveled.

然而，這艘船是如何在愛(ài)爾蘭橫渡大西洋的，仍然是個(gè)謎。目前還不清楚這艘船失蹤的確切時(shí)間，但顯然沒(méi)有人在尋找它。值得注意的是，它足夠堅(jiān)固，可以在沒(méi)有任何人員的情況下橫渡大西洋，而且誰(shuí)知道它還可能到過(guò)其他什么地方。

"It didn't sink," Small said. "I must have done a good job, eh?"

“它沒(méi)有沉沒(méi)，”斯莫爾說(shuō)。“我一定干得很出色，嗯?”

Who knows, perhaps it even traversed the Arctic Ocean after all.

誰(shuí)知道呢，也許它終究還是穿越了北冰洋。