The volcanic eruption is like a heavy snowfall

重慶 李 燕

主題語境：自然災害 篇幅：329詞 建議用時：7分鐘

1One of Russia's most active volcanoes erupted,launching a massive gray cloud into the air and coating nearby villages in a thick layer of ash.

2The eruption of Shiveluch,a volcano on Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula,was not immediately reported to cause any deaths.But scientists said the fallout covered 108,000 square kilometers and prompted a code red warning for flights.“The ash reached 20 kilometers high,” said Danila Chebrov,director of the Kamchatka branch of the Geophysical Service of Russian Academy of Sciences.“The ash cloud moved westwards,and there was a very strong fall of ash on nearby villages.”

3The Kamchatka Peninsula,a 270,000-square-kilometer area with a population of about 300,000 in Russia's far east,has more than 300 volcanoes—including 29 volcanoes that are active.The Volcanoes of Kamchatka are considered one of the most outstanding volcanic regions in the world and were listed as a World Heritage site,according to United Nations Educational,Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

4With at least 60 eruptions during the past 11,700 years,Shiveluch is one of Kamchatka's largest and most active volcanoes.Michigan Technological University's volcanologist Simon Carn said that the latest eruption was likely Shiveluch's largest since the dawn of satellites.

5Shiveluch began erupting just after midnight on April 11,2023,dumping about eight centimeters of ash on Klyuchi,the closest village,located about 50 kilometers away.“The roads are completely terrible,” said local resident Vera Mayorova.“It's very difficult to take the kids to the kindergarten.Pupils at schools are studying at home.It's impossible to walk outside because of the ash-fall (降灰).”

6Residents also reported their tap water had turned ash gray in color,prompting authorities to deliver bottled water.The eruption was likely powerful enough to shoot volcanic material into the stratosphere (平流層),which could have a temporary cooling effect.

7The governor of Kamchatka,Vladimir Solodov,said mass evacuation (疏散) was not necessary but explained that schools would switch to remote classes for the duration of the aftermath (后續影響) of the disaster.“As much as possible,stay at home,” he said.

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Detail 1.What can we know about Shiveluch from the text?

A.The eruption of it causes many deaths.

B.It is Kamchatka's largest active volcano.

C.It is one of Kamchatka's most active volcanoes.

D.The eruption of it prevents everyone going outside.

Detail 2.How high did the ash cloud from the eruption reach?

A.20 kilometers.

B.50 kilometers.

C.108,000 kilometers.

D.270,000 kilometers.

Gist 3.What is paragraph 3 mainly about?

A.The explanation of an outstanding volcano.

B.The Kamchatka Peninsula's large populaion.

C.The Kamchatka Peninsula's many volcanoes.

D.The introduction to the Volcanoes of Kamchatka.

Detail 4.What is difficult for the residents of Klyuchi?

A.Going to school.

B.Always staying at home.

C.Mass evacuation.

D.Much high temperature.

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Difficult sentences in the text

1.Michigan Technological University's volcanologist Simon Carn said that the latest eruption was likely Shiveluch's largest since the dawn of satellites.密歇根理工大學的火山學家西蒙·卡恩說，最近的這次噴發可能是自衛星出現以來舍維留奇火山最大的一次噴發。

【點石成金】句中的that 引導的是賓語從句；since 在句中意為“自從”，since...satellites作狀語。

2.The eruption was likely powerful enough to shoot volcanic material into the stratosphere,which could have a temporary cooling effect.這次噴發的威力可能足以將火山物質噴射到平流層，這可能會產生暫時的冷卻效果。

【點石成金】句中的which引導的是定語從句，并在從句中作主語；be likely to意為“很有可能”。