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A new study suggests that Venus likely never had water flowing on its surface.
一项新研究表明，金星表面可能从未有过流动的水。
The research was based on data related to the chemical makeup of the planet’s atmosphere.
这项研究的数据基础是与地球大气化学成分相关的数据。
Scientists have long considered whether Venus once held liquid water, even possibly large oceans.
长期以来，科学家们一直在思考金星上是否曾经有过液态水，甚至可能有过广阔的海洋。
Such research was based on the fact that Venus is like our own planet in many ways.
此类研究的基础是，金星在许多方面都与地球类似。
It is a rocky planet similar in structure and size to Earth and is also our closest planetary neighbor.
它是一颗岩石行星，结构和大小与地球相似，也是离我们最近的行星邻居。
But the latest study provides evidence that Venus has likely always been the hot, extremely dry planet it remains today.
但最新研究提供的证据表明，金星可能一直以来都是现在这个样子，是颗炎热且极度干燥的星球。
Researchers from Britain’s University of Cambridge led the study.
英国剑桥大学的研究人员主导了这项研究。
It recently appeared in the publication Nature Astronomy.
研究结果最近发表在《自然·天文学》上。
The researchers’ data examinations led them to conclude that both the surface and interior of Venus remain dry.
研究人员的数据分析使他们得出结论，金星的表面和内部都很干燥。
The team said the strongest evidence that Venus once had large amounts of water would be the discovery of some water inside the planet today.
研究团队表示，要想证明金星上曾经有大量的水，最有力的证据就是现在在金星内部发现水。
But the study provided no evidence of that.
但这项研究并没有发现相关证据。
Since water is considered an important element for supporting life, the researchers also suggest that Venus was likely never habitable, or able to support life.
鉴于水是维持生命的重要元素，研究人员还提出，金星可能从来都不适合居住，或者说无法支持生命。
The lead writer of the study was Tereza Constantinou, a doctoral student at the University of Cambridge's Institute of Astronomy.
该研究的主要作者是特雷莎·康斯坦丁努，她是剑桥大学天文学研究所的博士生。
She told Reuters news agency, "We suggest that a habitable past would be associated with Venus' present interior being water-rich, and a dry past with Venus' present interior being dry.”
她告诉路透社，“我们认为，如果金星过去曾宜居，那么现在应该在它内部找到大量的水；如果现在金星内部很干燥，那说明它以前也是干燥的。”
The researchers explained they attempted to measure the current destruction rate of molecules in water, carbon dioxide and carbonyl sulfide in Venus’ atmosphere.
研究人员解释，他们试图测量金星大气中水、二氧化碳和羰基硫化物分子的当前破坏速率。
The state of the planet’s atmosphere is linked to volcanic activity, the team said.
研究团队表示，金星上大气的状态与火山活动有关。
“Volcanism, through its supply of gases to the atmosphere, provides a window into the interior of rocky planets like Venus,” the researchers wrote in a statement.
研究人员在一份声明中写道，“通过向大气层提供气体，火山活动为我们了解金星等岩石行星的内部情况提供了一个窗口。”
As magma rises from the mantle to the surface, it releases gases from the deeper portions of the planet.
当岩浆从地幔上升到地表时，它会释放出星球深层的气体。
Volcanic explosions, or eruptions, can provide information on the amount of water contained deep below a planet’s surface, the scientists said.
科学家们表示，火山爆发，或者说火山喷发，可以提供关于行星表面之下所含水量的信息。
On Earth, for example, volcanic eruptions mostly release steam, a vapor created when water gets heated.
例如，在地球上，火山喷发主要释放的是蒸汽，这是水被加热后形成的气体。
Measurements of volcanic gases on Earth have shown they release about 60 percent water vapor.
在地球上的测量显示，火山气体释放的气体中，水蒸气约占百分之六十。
But the researchers said their examinations suggested volcanic gases released on Venus were less than 6 percent water vapor.
但研究人员表示，他们的检测表明，金星上火山爆发的气体中水蒸气的含量不到6%。
This persuaded the team to conclude that the planet’s interior – the source of the magma that releases volcanic gases – must be very dry.
这使团队得出结论，认为金星的内部——也就是释放火山气体的岩浆来源——肯定非常干燥。
The team noted that scientists have had two leading theories on the history of water on Venus.
团队指出，关于金星上水的历史，科学家们持有两种主要理论。
The first is that the planet had a moderate climate for billions of years, with liquid water flowing over areas of the surface.
第一种理论认为，这颗行星在数十亿年间都有温和的气候，液态水在其表面的部分地区流动。
Over time, widespread volcanic activity likely led to extreme heat and dry conditions that made the water disappear.
随着时间的推移，广泛的火山活动很可能引发了极端的高温和干燥条件，导致水分逐渐消失。
The second theory imagined Venus as being very hot from the beginning, preventing liquid water from ever forming on the surface.
第二种理论认为，金星从一开始就非常热，这使得液态水无法在其表面形成。
Constantinou said, “Both of those theories are based on climate models, but we wanted to take a different approach based on observations of Venus’ current atmospheric chemistry.”
康斯坦丁努说，“这两种理论的基础都是气候模型，但我们想采取一种不同的方法，以对金星当前大气化学的观测为基础。”
She added that the team did not find evidence that any chemicals being removed from the atmosphere were later being restored.
她补充道，研究团队没有发现任何从大气中去除的化学物质后来被恢复的证据。
This provides strong evidence that Venus has a very dry interior today, the scientists concluded.
科学家们得出结论，这是强有力的证据，表明现在金星内部非常干燥。
"The atmospheric chemistry suggests that volcanic eruptions on Venus release very little water, implying that the planet's interior…is equally dry,” Constantinou said.
“大气化学研究表明，金星上的火山喷发释放的水分非常少，这意味着该行星的内部同样干燥，”康斯坦丁努说。
She added that her team “would have loved to find that Venus was once a planet much closer to our own.”
她还补充道，她的团队“非常希望发现，金星曾经是一颗与地球更为相似的行星。”
However, Constantinou noted the finding suggests that researchers should center their searches “on planets that are mostly likely to be able to support life – at least life as we know it.”
然而，康斯坦丁努指出，这一发现表明，研究人员应将搜索重点放在“最有可能支持生命的行星上——至少是我们已知的生命。”
I’m Bryan Lynn.
我是布莱恩·林恩。
