THE NEXT DAY, March 22, at six o'clock in the morning, preparations for departure began.

第二天，3月22日早晨六点，诺第留斯号准备开走。

The last gleams of twilight were melting into night.

清晨的最后曙光没人黑暗中去了。

The cold was brisk. The constellations were glittering with startling intensity.

天气很冷。各星座在天空中照耀，特别明亮，

The wonderful Southern Cross, polar star of the Antarctic regions, twinkled at its zenith.

天空的顶点有那辉煌的南宿，那是南冰洋地区的极星。

The thermometer marked -12 degrees centigrade, and a fresh breeze left a sharp nip in the air.

温度表降到零下十二度，寒风吹来，刺人肌骨。

Ice floes were increasing over the open water. The sea was starting to congeal everywhere.

冰群在流动的水上愈来愈多了。海面渐渐冻结。

Numerous blackish patches were spreading over its surface, announcing the imminent formation of fresh ice.

无数灰黑的冰块摆在水面上，这表示新的冰层形成了。

Obviously this southernmost basin froze over during its six-month winter and became utterly inaccessible.

很显然，南极的海面在冬季六个月全是结冰的，绝对无法通过。

What happened to the whales during this period?

这个时期鲸鱼类怎样呢？

No doubt they went beneath the Ice Bank to find more feasible seas.

当然它们从冰山下面出去，找寻比较适宜居住的海水。

As for seals and walruses, they were accustomed to living in the harshest climates and stayed on in these icy waterways.

至于海豹和海马，习惯了严寒的天气，是仍然留在这冰天雪地中的。

These animals know by instinct how to gouge holes in the ice fields and keep them continually open; they go to these holes to breathe.

这些动物天赋有本能在这冰场中挖掘洞穴，老是让洞门敞开，它们可以到洞口来呼吸。

Once the birds have migrated northward to escape the cold, these marine mammals remain as sole lords of the polar continent.

鸟类被寒冷所迫，迁移到北方去。这时只有这些哺乳类动物是这南极大陆的唯一主人。

Meanwhile the ballast tanks filled with water and the Nautilus sank slowly.

这时，储水池装满了，诺第留斯号慢慢下降。

At a depth of 1,000 feet, it stopped.

到一千英尺深的时候，它停下来。

Its propeller churned the waves and it headed due north at a speed of fifteen miles per hour.

它的推进器搅动海水，以每小时十五海里的速度直向北方行驶。

Near the afternoon it was already cruising under the immense frozen carapace of the Ice Bank.

晚上，它已经驶到冰山下边巨大的冰冻甲壳下面了。