The vast patch of garbage floating in the Pacific Ocean is far worse than previously¹ thought, with an aerial survey finding a much larger mass of fishing nets, plastic containers and other discarded items than imagined.

一项航空勘察发现，太平洋表面漂浮的巨大垃圾带远比之前想象的糟糕。大量的渔网，塑料瓶和其他废弃物品，多的超乎想象！

A reconnaissance flight taken in a modified C-130 Hercules aircraft found a vast clump² of mainly plastic waste at the northern edge of what is known as the "great Pacific garbage patch", located between Hawaii and California.

在太平洋北部边缘侦测过程中，一辆改良过的C-130大力神飞机，发现了一片主要由塑料废弃物构成的垃圾带--也就是众所周知的、位于夏威夷和加州之间"大太平洋垃圾带"。

The density³ of rubbish was several times higher than the Ocean Cleanup, a foundation part-funded by the Dutch government to rid the oceans of plastics, expected to find even at the heart of the patch, where most of the waste is concentrated.

这里的垃圾密度是海洋清理计划的好几倍。海洋清理计划是由荷兰政府部分出资建立的一个基金会，旨在清除海洋里甚至是垃圾带中心区域的塑料废物，而大部分废物都聚集在中心区。

"Normally when you do an aerial survey of dolphins or whales, you make a sighting and record it," said Boyan Slat, the founder⁴ of the Ocean Cleanup.

海洋清理计划创始人博扬·斯拉特表示："通常情况下，当你对海豚或者鲸鱼做航空勘察时，你会观测并且进行记录。"

"That was the plan for this survey. But then we opened the door and we saw the debris⁵ everywhere. Every half second you see something. So we had to take snapshots – it was impossible to record everything. It was bizarre to see that much garbage in what should be pristine⁶ ocean."

"那就是这项调查的计划。当着手调查时，我们发现到处都是垃圾。每0.5秒你都会看到一些东西。所以我们不得不拍摄快照。当然，记录下所有东西是不可能的。看到本应纯洁无暇的海洋里有这么多垃圾，感觉非常不可思议。"

The heart of the garbage patch is thought to be around 1m sq km (386,000 sq miles), with the periphery⁷ spanning a further 3.5m sq km (1,351,000 sq miles). The dimensions of this morass⁸ of waste are continually morphing, caught in one of the ocean's huge rotating currents.

垃圾带中心范围大约有1平方千米，周长超过3.5千米。受海洋较大的旋转水流之一影响，这团废物在不断改变形状。

The north Pacific gyre has accumulated a soup of plastic waste, including large items and smaller broken-down micro plastics that can be eaten by fish and enter the food chain.

北太平洋涡流已经聚集了一大片废物，其中包括大件物品和较小的被毁坏的小塑料片，鱼类可以食用后者，使得小塑料片进入海洋食物链。

Last year, the Ocean Cleanup sent 30 vessels⁹ to cross the patch to scoop¹⁰ up micro plastics in fine nets to estimate the extent of the problem.

去年，海洋清理计划派出30艘船横穿垃圾带，打捞密网里的微小塑料片，来估测问题的严重程度。

However, the new reconnaissance flights from California have found that large items of more than half a meter in size have been "heavily underestimated".

然而，来自加州的最近航空勘察发现，半米多长的大件垃圾被"远远低估"了。

Slat said: "Most of the debris was large stuff. It's a ticking time bomb because the big stuff will crumble¹¹ down to micro plastics over the next few decades if we don't act."

斯拉特说："大部分垃圾都是大块头。这是一个定时炸弹。如果我们不采取行动，这些大家伙就会在未来几十年分解成塑料碎片。"

A report by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation earlier this year predicted there would be more plastic than fish in the oceans by 2050 unless urgent action was taken.

在今年早些时候由艾伦·麦克阿瑟基金会发布的报告预测称，如果我们不采取行动，那么到2050年，海洋中的垃圾就会比鱼还多！