The Moon is a natural satellite that moves around the Earth.
The Moon’s surface is covered with craters (环形山), which are big round pits.
Do you know that humans have actually visited the Moon? In 1969, the Apollo 11 mission landed astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the Moon’s surface.
| A．It is our closest neighbour in space. |
| B．The Moon plays an important role in our lives. |
| C．Do you know how many satellites the Earth has? |
| D．They were the first humans to set foot on the Moon. |
| E．Have you ever noticed that the Moon changes its shape? |
| F．These craters were formed by asteroids (小行星) and meteoroids (流星体) crashing into the Moon’s surface. |
Do you know anything about the Moon?
Scientists have told us so much about the Moon.
The Moon is an unfriendly place.
But from the Moon, you can see our beautiful Earth. It is shining more brightly than the other stars in the dark.
| A．There is no air or water. |
| B．How much do you know about it? |
| C．The Moon is also a very quiet world. |
| D．You can take some photos with your camera. |
| E．It’s meaningless for us to have the idea of going to the Moon. |
| F．When the Sun shines in the day, the temperature is very high. |
| G．It’s hard for us to live on the Moon. |
3 . Is there intelligent (有智力的) life on other planets? For years, scientists said “no” or “we don’t know”. But today this is changing. Seth Shostak and Alexandra Barnett are astronomers (天文学家). They believe intelligent life exists (存在) somewhere in the universe. They also think we will soon contact these beings(人；生物).
Why do Shostak and Barnett think intelligent life exists on other planets? The first reason is time. Scientists believe the universe is about 12 billion years old. “This is long enough for other planets to have intelligent life,” say Shostak and Barnett. The second reason is size—the universe is huge. “Tools like the Hubble Telescope (哈勃望远镜) have shown that there are at least 100 billion galaxies,” says Shostak. “And our galaxy, the Milky Way, has at least 100 billion stars. Some planets going around these stars might be similar to Earth.”
In the past, it was hard to look for signs of intelligent life in the universe. But now, powerful telescopes(高倍望远镜) allow scientists to discover smaller planets. These planets might have intelligent life.
Have beings from space already visited Earth? “Probably not,” says Shostak. However, intelligent beings may contact us in other way, such as radio signals (信号). In fact, they may be trying to communicate with us now, but we don’t have the right tools to receive their messages. However, this is changing. By 2025, we could make contact with other life forms in our universe and we might help each other.
1. Seth Shostak and Alexandra Barnett are ______.| A．astronomers | B．farmers | C．singers | D．drivers |
| A．There were not any smaller planets. |
| B．The Milky Way didn’t exist at that time. |
| C．The astronomers were not interested in them. |
| D．There were not any powerful telescopes. |
| A．messages | B．tools | C．intelligent beings | D．radio signals |
| A．The Age and Size of Earth | B．Why Intelligent Life Might Exist |
| C．Our Galaxy: The Milky Way | D．Earth: The Only Planet with Intelligent Life |
4 . The question whether there is life on Mars (火星) has made the public think a lot for more than a century. The closest look showed Mars to be a dusty, cold world, covered by air too thin to breathe. A British spaceship and Europe’s Mars spaceship plan to land on Mars or enter orbit (轨道) around it. One of the NASA’s (美国宇航局) spaceships is expected to land on January 3, the other is going to land on the opposite side of Mars on January 24.
Since 1960, over twenty spaceships sent to Mars have failed. Most have been lost on flying up or landing because those are the most difficult times of any flights.
Scientists wanted to find out whether there was water in Mars. In October, a team of scientists reported that Mars had been a dry wasteland. But weeks later, a second team reported differently that they had found some marks showed clearly that they were made by the rivers. Such marks told us that Mars was a warmer place billions of years ago—just as life first appeared here on Earth. Scientists at once raise a question: if what they said is true, what happened on Mars? Then what about the earth?
1. Which is right about Mars?| A．It’s cold without dust. | B．There is no water or air. |
| C．It’s warm with some thin air. | D．It’s a dusty, cold world almost without air. |
| A．will land on the different sides of Mars | B．will land on the same day |
| C．will enter orbit around Mars | D．will land with a man |
| A．nothing but air | B．nothing |
| C．water billions of years ago | D．thick air and lakes |
| A．Life disappeared on Mars. | B．Spaceships can’t land on Mars. |
| C．The air on the earth gets less and less. | D．The earth might be changed like Mars. |
5 . Have you ever seen the auroras (极光) in the sky? Cosmic radiation (宇宙辐射) creates these pretty lights in the North and South Pole areas. It seems that cosmic radiation is a beautiful gift from space. But for some people, it can be dangerous.
A 53-year-old fight attendant in South Korea, who spent about 1,022 hours flying each year, passed away due to cancer. A South Korean court connected his death to great exposure (暴露) to cosmic radiation. During his career, nearly half of his flights crossed the areas in and around the North Pole, where cosmic radiation is extremely strong.
① Cosmic radiation from space is hitting Earth nonstop, coming from both the sun and other stars in the Milky Way.
② Earth’s magnetic field (磁场) and atmosphere (大气层) protect us from most cosmic radiation. The magnetic field is strongest near the equator and weakest at the poles. People living at higher latitudes (纬度), like in Heilongjiang province, are exposed to a little bit more cosmic radiation than those living at lower latitudes, like in Hainan province. Also, when you go higher in an airplane, the thin atmosphere increases exposure to cosmic radiation.
③ For flight attendants crossing polar areas and for astronauts in space, cosmic radiation can create health risks. NASA reported that the radiation exposure faced by astronauts spending six months in space is the same as having 1,000 chest X-rays.
④ However, what makes cosmic radiation dangerous also makes it useful. The light speed and energy of cosmic radiation have provided wonderful ideas for treating tumors (肿瘤). Scientists can now produce man-made radiation similar to cosmic radiation. Compared to the present ways of treating tumors, it can kill tumors better with less damage to healthy parts of the body around them.
1. The death of the flight attendant is believed to have something to do with ________.| A．long flight hours | B．lower latitudes |
| C．strong cosmic radiation | D．a family history of cancer |
| A．① | B．② | C．③ | D．④ |
a. they are closer to the sun and stars b. they are at higher latitudes in space
c. space suit cannot prevent cosmic radiation d. there is not much atmosphere protecting them
| A．ac | B．bc | C．ad | D．cd |
| A．Cosmic radiation is very dangerous. | B．People can produce cosmic radiation. |
| C．Earth is filled with cosmic radiation. | D．Cosmic radiation helps fight cancer. |
Scientists have worked out when our Sun will die. It won’t be any time soon. It will be in 10 billion years. The scientists are from the University of Manchester in the UK. They predict that in about 5 billion years from now, the Sun will turn into a “red giant”. This is the scientific name given to a star at the end of its life. When our Sun becomes a red giant, its centre will shrink (收缩) . Its outer layers will expand (膨胀) as far as Mars. This means Earth will be burnt and disappear. After our Sun turns into a red giant, it will become a bubble of gas and space dust. The scientists say no humans will be on Earth when the Sun dies out.
The Sun is still quite young in space years. It is just 4.6 billion years old. This means it is only around one third into its lifespan (寿命) . Professor Albert Zijlstra, a scientist from the University of Manchester, explained what happens at the end of a star’s life. He said, “By this point in the star’s life, it is running out of fuel. Then it turns off and dies.” Professor Zijlstra was happy that modern science can count the age of stars and what will happen to them. “We even have found out what the Sun will do when it dies.” He said.
1. According to the scientists, when will the sun die?2. When do we call a star “red giant”?
3. What will happen to humans when the sun dies out?
4. What’s the lifespan of the Sun?
5. Should we worry about the sun’s death? Why or why not?
7 . MARS(火星)—The Red Planet!
MARS—The Red Planet! is one of our Early Reader Space books. It has surprising facts and photos showing all about Mars. It is mainly written for kids aged 7-10, it’s an interesting way for readers to find out more about the red planet.
The Weather
The Weather is one of our Early Earth books for boys and girls aged 13-15. This is a fun and fantastic way for readers to find out more about the weather on our earth. It offers information in a fun way mixing facts, photos, and even has a web page with video clips explaining more about the information in the book.
Horses
Kids Book of Fun Facts & Amazing Pictures on Animals in Nature—A Perfect Horse Book For Kids Aged 5-8. The book written by Kate describes the most lovely animal on the planet for early readers. The book uses beautiful and clear pictures that help your child to understand the fun facts about this animal.
1. “MARS—The Red Planet!”, “The Weather” and “Horses” are all ________.| A．photos | B．facts | C．videos | D．books |
| A．5-8 | B．13-15 | C．7-10 | D．4-10 |
| A．maths | B．music | C．science | D．history |
8 . People around the word felt excited on the night of April 10, 2019. For the first time in history, people saw a photo of a black hole. The photo became popular at once. But do you know it has something to do with a computer scientist Katie Bouman. Without her, there won’t be this photo.
Black holes are very far from us, so it is very difficult to take photos of them. It’s like taking a photo of an orange that is on the moon. Many scientists had tried. However, none of them succeeded.
These failures didn’t stop Bouman from trying. Several years ago, she started working on a special computer program. During the part years, she has improved the program many times. Finally, it turned telescope data (望远镜数据) into a photo of a black hole.
Bouman has received lots of praise because of her work. The young woman, however, is modest. She said the success mainly depends on her team. “None of us could do it alone,” she said.
Would you like to make history as Bouman did? Set a goal for yourself and work hard at it. Maybe you will make it come true in the future.
1. When people saw a photo of a black hole for the first time, they felt very ________.| A．sad | B．excited | C．surprised | D．calm |
| A．Because it is too big for us. | B．Because it is too far from us. |
| C．Because it is too dark to see. | D．Because it is as small as an orange. |
| A．By taking a photo of an orange carefully. |
| B．By working on a special computer program. |
| C．By turning telescope data into a photo of a black hole. |
| D．By using more advanced cameras with the help of others. |
| A．A surprising photo | B．A great photo of a black hole |
| C．Make your dream come true | D．A photo of a black hole and Katie Bouman |
9 . Tonight our family was going out to play under the full moon.
We first started going on full moon walks for ourselves, because my husband Todd and I, loved them and we needed these little doses of moonlight to stay happy and to function (起作用) in society. But after we became parents, we did this for our children. We wanted Sierra and Bryce to see that there is much magic in the natural world and that most of it is accessible (可达到的) to anyone. We also wanted to show them that it was not necessary to travel far from home to have an adventure, learn, and experience something new. Nearly every month, our family went into the night to “play” by the full moon.
Once we arrived at our location that evening, Sierra and I stood holding hands, waiting to cheer the full moon in its rising. A thin sliver of the apricot (杏黄色) moon poked above the shape of the Blue Mountain Ridge. Everyone stood up and watched its rising. More of the moon came out until it turned into a brilliant orange sphere. Todd explained to Sierra and Bryce that the moon makes no light of its own, but simply acts like a mirror, reflecting (反射) the sunlight back to us long after the sun has sunk below the horizon (地平线).
“Does the moon’s face change?” Bryce asked. I told him that the moon rotates with the earth, but it does not spin on its axis (轴) like the earth does. The same side of the moon is always facing the earth. We never see the other side, the far side of the moon. Sierra said that the moon looked larger and closer when it was rising. I explained that it is an optical illusion (视错觉) because it is so close to the horizon that the moon tricks our eyes into comparing it with nearby objects to create the impression of increased size.
Much of the knowledge that Todd and I shared with the kids had been learned from our past life experiences. If we did not have the knowledge to explain and educate, we looked it up, either beforehand (提前) to improve the experience or afterwards together, after we wondered and came up with a list of questions.
Opportunities (机会) to explore magical experiences and learning is right in your neighbourhood. Sometimes all it takes is going outdoors and looking up at the heavens.
1. How often does the writer go to play under the full moon with his family?| A．Once a year. | B．Once a month. | C．Once a week. | D．Every day. |
| A．Circle. | B．Float. | C．Rise. | D．Drop. |
| A．the distance from the earth is becoming shorter |
| B．the other side of it never faces the earth |
| C．it does not spin on its axis like the earth does |
| D．comparing it with nearby objects creates an illusion |
| A．Never travel far from home to have an adventure. |
| B．Travel far from home to have an adventure more often. |
| C．Good learning opportunities are just around the corner. |
| D．There is much more magic in books and most of it is accessible to anyone. |
10 . Chinese scientists found Changesite-(Y)—the sixth new lunar mineral in moon samples (样品) brought back by the Chang’e 5 lunar probe (探测器) in December 2020. It has become the first lunar mineral found by Chinese scientists, making China the third nation in the world, after the United States and Russia, to have achieved such a success, reported China Daily.
Changesite-(Y) looks crystal clear like a diamond (钻石). But its chemical content (化学组成) is different from any other known mineral. It has a high level of rare earth, reported China Science Daily. Li Ziying, chief scientist of the lunar sample research, said that the finding of this new mineral will help researchers study the history and physical traits (特征) of the moon. The value of the rare earth in it will also be studied.
Besides the new mineral, scientists also measured the content of helium-3 (氦-3) from the Chang’e 5 samples. Helium-3 is a valuable fuel (燃料) that can provide safer nuclear energy (核能). It is not radioactive (放射性的) and would not produce dangerous waste. On Earth, we have only 15 to 20 tons of helium-3 that can be used. But after studying the moon’s soil, scientists said there could be at least 1 million tons of helium-3 on the moon. That’s enough for all people on Earth to have clean energy for 10,000 years!
1. How many kinds of lunar minerals have scientists found so far?| A．One. | B．Three. | C．Six. | D．Seven. |
| A．Its shape. | B．Its history. | C．Its looks. | D．Its size. |
| A．Helium-3 will not produce any waste. | B．Helium-3 on the moon may be radioactive. |
| C．The moon can provide us with enough clean energy. | D．There is enough nuclear energy on the moon for humans. |
