三大飓风在历史上首次同时袭击太平洋
三大飓风在历史上首次同时袭击太平洋

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Three major hurricanes are simultaneously making their way across the Pacific Ocean for the first time in history.

Hurricanes Ignacio, Kilo and Jimena were pictured together by NASA and astronauts from the International Space Station this weekend. It is the first time that three storms classed as Category 3 or higher, meaning they have the potential to cause major damage, have been pictured together at the same time. Meteorologists said the presence of all the storms at the same time was likely down to this year’s El Nino event, which is expected to be much stronger than usual. 

Ignacio is now expected to weaken further and could become a tropical storm by tomorrow as it moves to the north of Hawaii. At its peak, the storm threatened winds of 134mph, though forecasters always said it was unlikely Ignacio would make landfall.

Jimena, located in the midst of the east Pacific, is the most powerful of all the storms. It keeps up winds in excess of 140mph and is expected to remain at that strength until the middle of the week.

Kilo, located to the southwest of Hawaii, also has maintained top winds of 140mph but is sitting far out into the ocean and is not expected to come anywhere near land.

Forecaster Dennis Feltgen told USA Today: “An El Niño year usually means above-average activity in the Pacific, and this year is no exception.” According to the Australian Forecasting Service, another reason for multiple storms appearing could be that ocean temperatures across the Pacific are up to 2℃ higher than usual in places.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic, Hurricane Fred swept over the Cape Verde islands yesterday, downing trees and causing flooding. The storm, which caused the first hurricane warning to be issued in Cape Verde since 1892, hit with 85mph winds and poured 10 inches of rain.

The National Hurricane Center said it was rare for a storm to form so close to the coast of Africa. It is expected to gradually weaken later today.


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1.What was the similarity of the three hurricanes?

A They were all starting from the east of the Pacific.

B They would all die out by the end of the week.

C They would just maintain their activities in the ocean.

D They would all blow with a speed of over 140 mph.

解析:选C。C 细节理解题。根据文章对三个飓风的介绍可知,它们都不会登陆(make a landfall)。故选C。

2.Forecasters said that ________ would end up as a tropical storm the next day.

A Kilo

B Ignacio

C Fred

D Jimena

解析:选B。B 细节理解题。根据文章第三段Ignacio is now expected to weaken further and could become a tropical storm by tomorrow可知,飓风Ignacio将逐渐减弱,最终成为热带风暴。

3.Why is Jimena considered the most powerful of all the storms?

A It hit with winds at the speed of 85 mph.

B It remained blowing at the speed of 140mph.

C It keeps blowing at the speed of 134 mph at its peak.

D It keeps up winds at a speed of well over 140mph.

解析:选D。D 细节理解题。根据文章第四段Jimena ... is the most powerful of all the storms. It keeps up winds in excess of 140mph可知,飓风Jimena是这三场飓风中威力最大的,平均风速为每小时140多英里。

4.What can we infer from the passage?

A This passage was published in a newspaper.

B This passage was included in a science fiction.

C This passage was from a TV weather forecaster.

D This passage was published in a science magazine.

解析:选A。A 推理判断题。根据文章第六段Forecaster Dennis Feltgen told USA Today可知,气象预报员Dennis Feltgen接受了《今日美国》的采访。由此判断,本文原载于报纸,故选A。