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Robert Siegel （Host）： Sunshine 1）glinted off the White 2）Dome that 3）crowns the U.S. 4）Capitol today. It’s visible around much of Washington. And from far away you wouldn’t notice， but the century-and-a-halfold dome has seen better days. It is about to get a major 5）facelift.
Stephen Ayers： It is one of the most， if not the most， recognizable symbols across the globe.
Siegel： That’s the 6）architect of the Capitol， Stephen Ayers. Part of his job is maintaining the Capitol dome. It is literally cracking up， and Ayers is leading the effort to fix it. NPR’s David Welna has the story.
David Welna （Byline）： From a distance， the Capitol dome looks like a 7）gleaming extension of the 8）marble 9）edifice from which it rises. But it’s an 10）illusion. It is in fact nearly nine million pounds of 11）cast iron 12）slathered with at least 10 coats of lead-based paint. The dome is the masterpiece of Thomas Walter， the architect in charge of widening the Capitol during the 1850s.
The original did have a smaller dome. But according to Stephen Ayers， the current architect of the Capitol， Walter thought the expanded building should be topped by something more grand.
Ayers： He designed this new dome and hung this drawing in his office， and members of Congress would come by and see it and were immediately 13）enamored with it.
Welna： Without so much as holding a hearing on it， Congress approved $100，000 to top the Capitol with Walter’s cast iron crown， though it ended up costing 10 times that much. In photos from Abraham Lincoln’s first inauguration， the half-built dome looms in the background. Within a month， the nation was plunged into Civil War. But Ayers says work on the dome continued.
Ayers： President Lincoln picked up on that fact and made a great analogy， that if this construction of this great dome is going to continue， so will our union.
Welna： The dome was finished by Lincoln’s second inauguration. The following month， the Civil War ended and Lincoln was 14）assassinated. His body lay in state below the new dome in the Capitol 15）rotunda. A century later， near the end of the Eisenhower administration， the 16）rusting iron 17）orb got a major facelift. But Ayers says it’s 18）deteriorated a lot since then.
Ayers： A dozen years ago， there were 300 and some cracks. A few more years， there were 500 cracks， then 900 cracks and now 1，300. And we thought， you know， with 1，300 cracks， it’s…now is the time to 19）intervene and make sure it’s preserved for generations to come. Welna： Late last year， some of us journalists who work below the dome got the rare opportunity to climb to the top of the nearly 300-foot-tall structure. It was a chance to see firsthand the toll the elements had taken on it.
罗伯特·西格尔（主持人）：今天阳光灿烂，美国国会大厦的白色圆顶光辉远耀。其庄严身影在华盛顿的大部分地方都能看得见。远看不觉，但其实这经历了一百五十年风霜的圆顶已沧桑尽露。大型修缮工程即将启动。
史蒂芬·艾耶斯：全球知名地标中，美国国会大厦就算不是最眼熟的，也是最具辨识度的标志性建筑之一。
西格尔：刚才大家听到的是国会大厦的总建筑师史蒂芬·艾耶斯的介绍。他的职责包含对国会大厦的维修保养。国会大厦如今确实是裂痕重重，所以，艾耶斯统领团队准备对大厦开展维修工程。以下是大卫？威尔纳的报道。
大卫·威尔纳（记者）：从远处看，国会山庄的圆顶仿佛簇新亮丽，像是那大理石楼宇向上延伸而成。但这是假象。圆顶其实由近九百万磅重的铸铁构成，上面厚厚地涂了至少十层的铅涂料。汤姆斯·华特是19世纪50年代主管国会大厦扩建工程的建筑师，国会大厦的圆顶正是他的大师之作。原来的国会大厦上的确建有一个较小的圆顶。而据史蒂芬·艾耶斯说，当时的国会大厦总建筑师华特认为扩建后的大楼组群应该冠以更雄伟的圆顶。
艾耶斯：当时他设计了这一新式圆顶，并把图纸挂在办公室里，国会的成员们过来看到，马上被这设计迷住了。
威尔纳：连听证会也没开，国会就批准按华特的设计兴建这造价十万美元的铸铁圆顶，而最后的费用是这预算的十倍。在美国总统亚布尔罕·林肯首次就职典礼的历史图片上，背景就出现了国会大厦当时兴建到一半的圆顶。距离典礼不到一个月的时间，美国便陷入了内战。艾耶斯说，尽管战争爆发，圆顶的建筑工程没有停下来。
艾耶斯：林肯总统留意到当时的情况，作了个巧妙的比喻，说，既然这伟大的圆顶工程不却步，我们联邦力量也会坚韧走下去。
威尔纳：圆顶建造工程在林肯的第二次就职典礼举行前完成。之后的那个月，美国内战结束，林肯被刺杀。他的遗体被停放在国会大厦圆顶之下的中央大厅接受瞻仰。一百年之后，艾森豪威尔执政后期，政府对这开始生锈的铁穹进行了一次大型的整修。但艾耶斯说，自那之后，圆顶已是每况愈下。
艾耶斯：十几年前，发现的裂痕有三百多条，过几年就发展到五百条，再来就是九百条，而现在已经有一千三百条，得出手修补了，我们必须确保圆顶能千百年屹立不倒。
威尔纳：去年底，在国会大厦圆顶之下工作的部分记者们难得获邀登上接近三百英尺圆顶之上，亲眼目睹风霜雨雪对圆顶造成的损耗。
Kevin Hildebrand： The first set of steps that we’ll go up are fairly tight， so be careful of your shoulders and your cameras， particularly.
Welna： Leading the way is Kevin Hildebrand， the 20）restoration’s head architect. We climb a staircase that winds between an inner dome that caps the rotunda and the dome’s exterior shell， perched on 36 enormous 21）trusses. Hildebrand points to layered cast-iron plates that form the outer shell.
Hildebrand： A lot of the damage that we’re addressing are in the shelves and those are exposed to wide temperature swings， a lot of expansion. And when the rust develops between the plates， it binds the plates from moving and that creates enormous pressures within the ironwork， which relieve itself by cracking.
Welna： We ascend through multiple levels of the dome to its 22）cupola. When we get there， Hildebrand lifts a heavy hatch that opens to the dome’s exterior.
Hildebrand： Be very mindful that the iron is very hard and the last thing you want to do is to hit your head on this sharp edge， so please be very careful and duck as you go through the doorway.
Welna： Outside， a narrow walkway surrounds the base of the dome’s 23）uppermost fixture—a 20-foot-tall female bronze known as the Statue of Freedom. The 24）vista below of the nation’s capital is spectacular. Hildebrand points out a big crack that’s also in plain view. Hildebrand： As rust has developed and this railing has been pushed up by the pressure of the rust， the top plate has cracked， and that’s relieving the stress that’s in the ironwork. But what it also does then is compromise the structural integrity of that particular piece.
Welna： This spring， contractors will 25）encase the dome with 26）scaffolding and begin the restoration， working mostly at night and on weekends. They’ll remove the lead paint， seal the cracks， replace broken windows， and coat everything with 27）polymer and 28）urethane-based paint. The project’s price tag is close to $60 million. Hildebrand says the money came through thanks to the budget deal Congress approved late last year.
凯文·希尔德布兰：我们将攀爬的第一段阶梯挺窄的，所以得小心碰到肩膀，尤其要注意手上的摄影器材。
威尔纳：带领记者们登顶的是凯文·希尔德布兰，圆顶修缮工程的首席建筑师。国会大厦中央大厅的内穹以三十六个巨型桁架撑起圆顶的外壳，我们爬的楼梯就在两者之间盘旋而上。希尔德布兰指着构成圆顶外壳的铸铁层板。
希尔德布兰：我们要修缮的大部分是层板上出现的耗损，因为受到温度大幅变化的影响，这些层板往往会发生膨胀。加上铁板之间出现锈蚀，令其动弹不得，这给整个铁制建筑的内部造成了巨大的压力，导致裂缝的出现。
威尔纳：我们在圆顶内层层上爬，抵达最顶端的小圆塔，在那里，希尔德布兰掀起一道通往圆顶外部的沉重盖板。希尔德布兰：铁板是很硬的，大家要特别小心，千万别一头撞到这锋利的边缘上，穿过活门的时候要低头避开这盖板。
威尔纳：在外部，圆顶最高点上有一塑像——二十英尺高的自由女神铜像，其底座周围有一圈狭窄的走道。站在这里，首都的风景一览无遗。希尔德布兰指着圆顶上同样是一览无遗的一道大裂缝。
希尔德布兰：因为生锈的缘故，围栏被铁锈推高，最顶层的铁板也开裂，是释放内压的表现，但同时也损害了那一部分的结构稳固性。
威尔纳：这个春季，承建商将围着整个圆顶搭起脚手架，开始修缮工作，主要是在晚上和周末施工。他们将清除圆顶上的铅涂料，修补裂缝，更换损坏窗户，全部涂上高分子聚氨酯涂料。维修工程的预算接近六千万美元。希尔德布兰说幸好去年年底国会通过了预算方案，资金终于到位。
Hildebrand： To me， it’s symbolic of the joining of both parties in Congress to come together to fund an effort that’s incredibly important to our country. And preserving the Capitol dome is not a question for discussion. It’s just something that has to happen.
Welna： On that， the lawmakers who meet down below completely agree.
Senator Ben Cardin： We want to make sure the integrity of the dome is maintained.
Welna： That’s Maryland Democratic Senator Ben Cardin. As a former congressman， he’s served under the dome on both sides of the Capitol.
Cardin： I would hope that perhaps repairing the dome will also help us repair what’s happening under the dome， and maybe we can get together and do the people’s business and resolve the issues that have been long-standing. So maybe the cooperation we’ve seen in fixing the visible symbol of Congress will also help in regards to the product of Congress.
Welna： The dome’s restoration should go relatively quickly， says Architect of the Capitol Ayers.
Ayers： We’re pretty confident that we can get it done in two years， and certainly done before the next presidential inauguration.
Welna： Congress likely won’t have mended its own deep fissures by then， but it will have a dome above it that Ayers says should hold up well for at least another half-century.
希尔德布兰：国会两党派齐心协力为国家极为重要的工程争取拨款，在我看来，这极具象征意义。维护国会大厦圆顶是不容争议的，是必须进行的项目。
威尔纳：这一点上，国会圆顶之下开会讨论的议员们一致同意。
参议员本·卡丹：我们要确保圆顶的稳固性得以保持。
威尔纳：那是代表马里兰州的民主党参议员本·卡丹。作为前任众议员，他在这圆顶之下，国会两党他都服务过。
卡丹：我希望我们能借修缮圆顶的机会同时修补圆顶下党派的关系，或许我们可以走到一起，为大众谋求利益，解决长期悬而未决的问题。所以，在修缮圆顶这可见象征物一事上我们看到的合作也许有助减少日后国会在议案讨论中的无谓争拗。
威尔纳：国会大厦总建筑师艾耶斯说，圆顶的修缮工程的进展应该会比较快。
艾耶斯：我们很有信心可以在两年内完成工程，美国下一任总统就职前肯定能完成。
威尔纳：国会的党派裂痕则不太可能这么快修复，但总算有个坚固的圆顶加诸其上。艾耶斯说，这次修缮后，圆顶至少又可以扛半个世纪了。
Stephen Ayers： It is one of the most， if not the most， recognizable symbols across the globe.
Siegel： That’s the 6）architect of the Capitol， Stephen Ayers. Part of his job is maintaining the Capitol dome. It is literally cracking up， and Ayers is leading the effort to fix it. NPR’s David Welna has the story.
David Welna （Byline）： From a distance， the Capitol dome looks like a 7）gleaming extension of the 8）marble 9）edifice from which it rises. But it’s an 10）illusion. It is in fact nearly nine million pounds of 11）cast iron 12）slathered with at least 10 coats of lead-based paint. The dome is the masterpiece of Thomas Walter， the architect in charge of widening the Capitol during the 1850s.
The original did have a smaller dome. But according to Stephen Ayers， the current architect of the Capitol， Walter thought the expanded building should be topped by something more grand.
Ayers： He designed this new dome and hung this drawing in his office， and members of Congress would come by and see it and were immediately 13）enamored with it.
Welna： Without so much as holding a hearing on it， Congress approved $100，000 to top the Capitol with Walter’s cast iron crown， though it ended up costing 10 times that much. In photos from Abraham Lincoln’s first inauguration， the half-built dome looms in the background. Within a month， the nation was plunged into Civil War. But Ayers says work on the dome continued.
Ayers： President Lincoln picked up on that fact and made a great analogy， that if this construction of this great dome is going to continue， so will our union.
Welna： The dome was finished by Lincoln’s second inauguration. The following month， the Civil War ended and Lincoln was 14）assassinated. His body lay in state below the new dome in the Capitol 15）rotunda. A century later， near the end of the Eisenhower administration， the 16）rusting iron 17）orb got a major facelift. But Ayers says it’s 18）deteriorated a lot since then.
Ayers： A dozen years ago， there were 300 and some cracks. A few more years， there were 500 cracks， then 900 cracks and now 1，300. And we thought， you know， with 1，300 cracks， it’s…now is the time to 19）intervene and make sure it’s preserved for generations to come. Welna： Late last year， some of us journalists who work below the dome got the rare opportunity to climb to the top of the nearly 300-foot-tall structure. It was a chance to see firsthand the toll the elements had taken on it.
罗伯特·西格尔（主持人）：今天阳光灿烂，美国国会大厦的白色圆顶光辉远耀。其庄严身影在华盛顿的大部分地方都能看得见。远看不觉，但其实这经历了一百五十年风霜的圆顶已沧桑尽露。大型修缮工程即将启动。
史蒂芬·艾耶斯：全球知名地标中，美国国会大厦就算不是最眼熟的，也是最具辨识度的标志性建筑之一。
西格尔：刚才大家听到的是国会大厦的总建筑师史蒂芬·艾耶斯的介绍。他的职责包含对国会大厦的维修保养。国会大厦如今确实是裂痕重重，所以，艾耶斯统领团队准备对大厦开展维修工程。以下是大卫？威尔纳的报道。
大卫·威尔纳（记者）：从远处看，国会山庄的圆顶仿佛簇新亮丽，像是那大理石楼宇向上延伸而成。但这是假象。圆顶其实由近九百万磅重的铸铁构成，上面厚厚地涂了至少十层的铅涂料。汤姆斯·华特是19世纪50年代主管国会大厦扩建工程的建筑师，国会大厦的圆顶正是他的大师之作。原来的国会大厦上的确建有一个较小的圆顶。而据史蒂芬·艾耶斯说，当时的国会大厦总建筑师华特认为扩建后的大楼组群应该冠以更雄伟的圆顶。
艾耶斯：当时他设计了这一新式圆顶，并把图纸挂在办公室里，国会的成员们过来看到，马上被这设计迷住了。
威尔纳：连听证会也没开，国会就批准按华特的设计兴建这造价十万美元的铸铁圆顶，而最后的费用是这预算的十倍。在美国总统亚布尔罕·林肯首次就职典礼的历史图片上，背景就出现了国会大厦当时兴建到一半的圆顶。距离典礼不到一个月的时间，美国便陷入了内战。艾耶斯说，尽管战争爆发，圆顶的建筑工程没有停下来。
艾耶斯：林肯总统留意到当时的情况，作了个巧妙的比喻，说，既然这伟大的圆顶工程不却步，我们联邦力量也会坚韧走下去。
威尔纳：圆顶建造工程在林肯的第二次就职典礼举行前完成。之后的那个月，美国内战结束，林肯被刺杀。他的遗体被停放在国会大厦圆顶之下的中央大厅接受瞻仰。一百年之后，艾森豪威尔执政后期，政府对这开始生锈的铁穹进行了一次大型的整修。但艾耶斯说，自那之后，圆顶已是每况愈下。
艾耶斯：十几年前，发现的裂痕有三百多条，过几年就发展到五百条，再来就是九百条，而现在已经有一千三百条，得出手修补了，我们必须确保圆顶能千百年屹立不倒。
威尔纳：去年底，在国会大厦圆顶之下工作的部分记者们难得获邀登上接近三百英尺圆顶之上，亲眼目睹风霜雨雪对圆顶造成的损耗。
Kevin Hildebrand： The first set of steps that we’ll go up are fairly tight， so be careful of your shoulders and your cameras， particularly.
Welna： Leading the way is Kevin Hildebrand， the 20）restoration’s head architect. We climb a staircase that winds between an inner dome that caps the rotunda and the dome’s exterior shell， perched on 36 enormous 21）trusses. Hildebrand points to layered cast-iron plates that form the outer shell.
Hildebrand： A lot of the damage that we’re addressing are in the shelves and those are exposed to wide temperature swings， a lot of expansion. And when the rust develops between the plates， it binds the plates from moving and that creates enormous pressures within the ironwork， which relieve itself by cracking.
Welna： We ascend through multiple levels of the dome to its 22）cupola. When we get there， Hildebrand lifts a heavy hatch that opens to the dome’s exterior.
Hildebrand： Be very mindful that the iron is very hard and the last thing you want to do is to hit your head on this sharp edge， so please be very careful and duck as you go through the doorway.
Welna： Outside， a narrow walkway surrounds the base of the dome’s 23）uppermost fixture—a 20-foot-tall female bronze known as the Statue of Freedom. The 24）vista below of the nation’s capital is spectacular. Hildebrand points out a big crack that’s also in plain view. Hildebrand： As rust has developed and this railing has been pushed up by the pressure of the rust， the top plate has cracked， and that’s relieving the stress that’s in the ironwork. But what it also does then is compromise the structural integrity of that particular piece.
Welna： This spring， contractors will 25）encase the dome with 26）scaffolding and begin the restoration， working mostly at night and on weekends. They’ll remove the lead paint， seal the cracks， replace broken windows， and coat everything with 27）polymer and 28）urethane-based paint. The project’s price tag is close to $60 million. Hildebrand says the money came through thanks to the budget deal Congress approved late last year.
凯文·希尔德布兰：我们将攀爬的第一段阶梯挺窄的，所以得小心碰到肩膀，尤其要注意手上的摄影器材。
威尔纳：带领记者们登顶的是凯文·希尔德布兰，圆顶修缮工程的首席建筑师。国会大厦中央大厅的内穹以三十六个巨型桁架撑起圆顶的外壳，我们爬的楼梯就在两者之间盘旋而上。希尔德布兰指着构成圆顶外壳的铸铁层板。
希尔德布兰：我们要修缮的大部分是层板上出现的耗损，因为受到温度大幅变化的影响，这些层板往往会发生膨胀。加上铁板之间出现锈蚀，令其动弹不得，这给整个铁制建筑的内部造成了巨大的压力，导致裂缝的出现。
威尔纳：我们在圆顶内层层上爬，抵达最顶端的小圆塔，在那里，希尔德布兰掀起一道通往圆顶外部的沉重盖板。希尔德布兰：铁板是很硬的，大家要特别小心，千万别一头撞到这锋利的边缘上，穿过活门的时候要低头避开这盖板。
威尔纳：在外部，圆顶最高点上有一塑像——二十英尺高的自由女神铜像，其底座周围有一圈狭窄的走道。站在这里，首都的风景一览无遗。希尔德布兰指着圆顶上同样是一览无遗的一道大裂缝。
希尔德布兰：因为生锈的缘故，围栏被铁锈推高，最顶层的铁板也开裂，是释放内压的表现，但同时也损害了那一部分的结构稳固性。
威尔纳：这个春季，承建商将围着整个圆顶搭起脚手架，开始修缮工作，主要是在晚上和周末施工。他们将清除圆顶上的铅涂料，修补裂缝，更换损坏窗户，全部涂上高分子聚氨酯涂料。维修工程的预算接近六千万美元。希尔德布兰说幸好去年年底国会通过了预算方案，资金终于到位。
Hildebrand： To me， it’s symbolic of the joining of both parties in Congress to come together to fund an effort that’s incredibly important to our country. And preserving the Capitol dome is not a question for discussion. It’s just something that has to happen.
Welna： On that， the lawmakers who meet down below completely agree.
Senator Ben Cardin： We want to make sure the integrity of the dome is maintained.
Welna： That’s Maryland Democratic Senator Ben Cardin. As a former congressman， he’s served under the dome on both sides of the Capitol.
Cardin： I would hope that perhaps repairing the dome will also help us repair what’s happening under the dome， and maybe we can get together and do the people’s business and resolve the issues that have been long-standing. So maybe the cooperation we’ve seen in fixing the visible symbol of Congress will also help in regards to the product of Congress.
Welna： The dome’s restoration should go relatively quickly， says Architect of the Capitol Ayers.
Ayers： We’re pretty confident that we can get it done in two years， and certainly done before the next presidential inauguration.
Welna： Congress likely won’t have mended its own deep fissures by then， but it will have a dome above it that Ayers says should hold up well for at least another half-century.
希尔德布兰：国会两党派齐心协力为国家极为重要的工程争取拨款，在我看来，这极具象征意义。维护国会大厦圆顶是不容争议的，是必须进行的项目。
威尔纳：这一点上，国会圆顶之下开会讨论的议员们一致同意。
参议员本·卡丹：我们要确保圆顶的稳固性得以保持。
威尔纳：那是代表马里兰州的民主党参议员本·卡丹。作为前任众议员，他在这圆顶之下，国会两党他都服务过。
卡丹：我希望我们能借修缮圆顶的机会同时修补圆顶下党派的关系，或许我们可以走到一起，为大众谋求利益，解决长期悬而未决的问题。所以，在修缮圆顶这可见象征物一事上我们看到的合作也许有助减少日后国会在议案讨论中的无谓争拗。
威尔纳：国会大厦总建筑师艾耶斯说，圆顶的修缮工程的进展应该会比较快。
艾耶斯：我们很有信心可以在两年内完成工程，美国下一任总统就职前肯定能完成。
威尔纳：国会的党派裂痕则不太可能这么快修复，但总算有个坚固的圆顶加诸其上。艾耶斯说，这次修缮后，圆顶至少又可以扛半个世纪了。