1 . In the universe, as we know, there is the sun, the moon, the earth and many stars. Through our geography lessons, we know the earth goes around the sun, and the moon goes around the earth. We have day and night because the earth keeps turning all the time. When our part of the earth turns to the sun, it is day. When our part of the earth turns away from the sun, it is night.
Just because the moon is closer to the earth than the sun, it looks much bigger than the sun. Big things look smaller when they are farther, and small things also look bigger when they are nearer.
The sun is bright enough to give out very strong light. The moon can’t give out any light at all, but it looks quite bright too. Why? In fact, the light from the moon comes from the sun. The moon looks much bigger and brighter than the stars. But actually the stars are much bigger and brighter than the moon. They look smaller than the moon also because they are farther away from the earth.
There are still many other planets in the solar system (太阳系). All of them move round the sun. But of all these planets, only on the earth there are living things and people can only live on the earth too. At 9:00 am on October 15th, 2003, Chinese pilot Yang Liwei was sent up to space. He stayed there for 21 hours. It was the first time for Chinese to get into space.
1. When our part of the earth turns away from the sun, the other part of the earth is ______.| A．night | B．day | C．evening |
| A．the earth | B．the moon | C．the sun |
| A．On November 15th, 2003. | B．On October 16th, 2003. | C．On October 15th, 2003. |
| A．The moon goes around the earth, and it can’t give out any light at all. |
| B．The moon goes around the sun, and its light is from the sun. |
| C．The sun goes around the earth, and it can give out very strong light. |
2 . In our solar system (太阳系), some planets have a great number of moons (卫星) while some have none. Recently scientists have discovered 12 more moons going around Jupiter (木星). That means Jupiter now has a total of 92 moons, more than any other planet in our solar system.
Scott Sheppard was a member of the team that made the latest discoveries. The new moons were found using telescopes (望远镜) in Hawaii and Chile. Sheppard said, “I hope we can take clear photos of one of these moons in the near future to better understand it.”
Jupiter’s newly discovered moons are between one and three kilometers in size. They have not yet been named, as half of them are too small—less than 1.5 kilometers—to own a name.
Sheppard has already taken part in 70 moon discoveries for Jupiter. He also discovered moons going around Saturn (土星). It had been the planet with the most moons until the most recent announcement. It now is known to have 83 moons. Saturn held the top position since 2019 when Sheppard’s team discovered 20 more moons. Before that, Jupiter was the solar system’s leader with 79 moons.
Sheppard expects to keep adding moons to both Jupiter and Saturn in the future. Uranus and Neptune also have many small moons. But they are much farther from Earth, so discovering new moons around those planets is more difficult.
This year, the European Space Agency has sent a spaceship to explore Jupiter. The spaceship, called JUICE, took off in April. The task is to make further research on Jupiter and its three large moons.
1. According to Paragraph 2, Sheppard wanted to ________ in the near future.| A．get to new moons | B．take clear photos of one moon |
| C．do nothing | D．study everything |
| A．they are hard to study | B．they are newly discovered |
| C．some of them are not big enough | D．they are ugly |
| A．63. | B．93. | C．101. | D．332. |
| A．It is easy to discover all moons. | B．JUICE is trying to find out new planets. |
| C．More research is being done on Jupiter. | D．People all like new moons. |
What do black holes look like? We finally got the answer: they look like dark circles with a bright ring around the outside. Scientists took the world’s first photo of a black hole. The black hole is very far from Earth—about 55 million light years away. This is not the only black hole in the universe.
Black holes are mysterious in the universe. A photo can help us learn more about them. How much do you know about black holes? Try to answer the following questions.
Q: What is a black hole?
A: A black hole comes from a dying star. The star turns in to a small point. The point has much mass and strong gravity (引力) . The strong gravity of a black hole pulls things. The black hole “eats” these things. Black holes can even “eat” light. That’s why a black hole looks “black”.
Q: If black holes are “black”, how do scientists know they are there?
A: We cannot see black holes. But we can see how their strong gravity works on the things around them. A black hole’s gravity pulls dust and gas into it. And if a star is orbiting (绕轨道运行) a point in space, scientists can study the star’s orbit. They can tell if the star is orbiting a black hole.
Q: How did scientists take the picture of the black hole?
A: Scientists didn’t use a camera to take the picture. They used eight radio telescopes in different places across the world. The telescopes got information from the black hole. Scientists used computers to deal with the information. It took them two years to get the final picture.
Q: Will the sun turn into a black hole? And if it does, will it “eat” Earth?
A: The sun won’t become a black hole. According to NASA, it does not have enough mass to turn into one. When the sun dies, it will become a smaller and cooler star. Even if the sun becomes a black hole, Earth would still be safe.
1. Which of the following is NOT true about black holes?| A．They are about 55 million light years away from Earth. |
| B．Black holes look “black” because they pull light and “eat” it. |
| C．There is more than one black hole in space. |
| A．moves | B．shakes | C．feels |
| A．using cameras to take pictures |
| B．using radio telescopes around the world |
| C．watching the stars carefully in the sky |
| A．Earth will die at once. | B．Earth will become black. | C．Earth will still be safe. |
| A．Learning about black holes | B．Earth and the black holes | C．Something about the universe |
4 . Fun Facts about Our Moon
Have you ever noticed the ways the moon changes? The moon can be bright or dull. Sometimes, we don’t see the moon in the sky at all! Other times, the moon shows up even when the sun is out.
When the moon looks bright, it’s partly because of the sun. The moon has no light of its own. It only reflects the sun’s light. But how?
Think about daytime. The sun makes everything around you bright with light. During daytime, sunlight hits Earth’s surface and makes it bright. During nighttime, the sun is near another part of Earth’s surface, making that part bright, so you see darkness. At night, you also see the moon.
In the same way that sunlight shines on Earth’s surface and makes it bright, sunlight shines on the moon’s surface and makes that bright. Even though you can’t see the sun at night, sunlight reaches the moon’s surface. The sun acts like a giant flashlight in the sky that’s pointed at the moon.
Other things can make the moon look brighter or duller, too. Sometimes, the moon looks brighter because it’s closer to Earth. Fog and clouds in the sky can make the moon look dimmer.
The moon is always in the sky, but we don’t usually see it during daytime. One reason for this is that the sun is so powerful that it makes the sky very bright. The brightness makes the moon hard to see. Imagine turning on a flashlight in a darkroom and aiming it at a wall. You would see the flashlight’s bright light clearly. Now, imagine turning on a flashlight in a room that already has all the lights on. You would hardly see the light from the flashlight because the other lights are more powerful. The moon becomes difficult to see in daytime for the same reason.
The next time you see the big, bright moon in the sky, think of the sun shining its light onto it.
1. The word “reflects” in paragraph 2 probably means _______.| A．sends back | B．picks up | C．carries on |
| A．The moon cannot be seen in daytime. |
| B．The moon shines bright from the sun. |
| C．You can see the flashlight’s light in a bright room clearly. |
| A．The sunlight can shine on both the Earth’s surface and the moon’s surface. |
| B．The fog and clouds in the sky can make the moon brighter. |
| C．The moon becomes difficult to see in daytime because it’s closer to Earth. |
| A．To state reasons that make the sun look bright or dull. |
| B．To tell how darkness makes the moon look bright in the sky. |
| C．To explain reasons that make the moon look different sometimes. |
Why is it called Mars（火星）? Well, Mars is the name of the Roman god of war（罗马战神）. People see the planet（星球）as a symbol of war for thousands of years. It is also known as the Red Planet because of its color. It is red because it’s rich in iron（铁）. Chinese people called it the “fire star” for the same reason.
Scientists was interested in the planet. They first saw Mars in the sky more than 4, 000 years ago. Then, people from all over the world studied the planet. About 200 years ago, scientists started to study pieces of Mars. They broke away and drifted（漂流）through space for millions of years before they got to Earth.
Scientists have learned some things about Mars. For example, Mars is home to a 21-kilometer-tall mountain—the tallest in our solar system（太阳系）. However, Qomolangma, Earth’s highest mountain, is just 9 kilometers tall. Like Earth, Mars has moons. It has two moons named Phobos and Deimos. The Red Planet also has the largest dust storms（沙尘暴）in the solar system. And they can last for months.
Earth is 10 times heavier than Mars. So The Red Planet’s gravity（重力）is only 37 percent as strong as Earth’s, meaning you can jump nearly two times higher on Mars. For the same reason, you are two times heavier on Earth than on Mars.
1. Why does Mars get the name “fire star”?| A．Because it is red. | B．Because it is rich in iron. | C．Because it is the symbol of war. |
| A．Millions of years ago. | B．Over 4, 000 years ago. | C．More than 200 years ago. |
| A．Scientists. | B．Pieces of Mars. | C．Stars. |
| A．the color | B．the weather | C．the size |
| A．Mars has stronger gravity than Earth. |
| B．People are heavier on Mars than on Earth. |
| C．People can jump higher on Mars than on Earth. |
Many space-lovers dream of traveling into space, but it costs too much to make that dream come true. Luckily, here is a chance for people who love exploring space. An unusual new reality show（真人秀）called Space Hero is in the works.
Space Hero must be popular and attractive because it will be the world’s first reality show in space. It will send a lucky winner to the International Space Station（ISS）where he’ll have a ten-day stay. According to the show creators（创建者）, a seat for the winner has already been booked with the NASA（美国国家航空航天局）on spaceship.
How will the show work? The plan of the show is to first pick a group of space-lovers from around the world. The show is open to anyone who is older than 18. “We’re opening space to everyone, not only to astronauts and rich people”, one of the creators said. Twelve men and twelve women will-be picked. And then they will be taken to a “Space Village” to take part in the space training for the final trip: Besides the physical tests that are really difficult to finish, the mental tests are also needed during the training.
In the end, the people who watch the show can choose their favorite person to be sent to space. When the winner has been picked, the show will follow that lucky person’s journey and film during the whole time. The creators of Space Hero hope the show will encourage interest in space travel.
1. How long can the lucky winner stay on ISS?2. Is the reality show open to everyone?
3. What does the space training include?
4. Who will decide on the winner of the show finally?
5. What do you think of the reality show?
7 . Wang Yaping, together with Zhai Zhigang and Ye Guangfu, went into space aboard the Shenzhou XⅢ on Oct 16. The 41-year-old Wang became the first female astronaut(女航天员) to enter Tiangong space station.
Wang’s space dream started in 2003, when China sent its first astronaut Yang Liwei into space. At that time, Wang was a pilot in the Chinese army. After having safe flights for 1,600 hours over nine years, Wang was a strong candidate(候选人) to become an astronaut in 2010. She pushed herself hard, getting the same training as men. “The space environment won’t change because you are a woman,” she told Xinhua.
The hardest part is the high-G training. Sitting in a spinning(旋转的) machine, Wang would become blind for a while because her brain was short of blood. “There’s a red button(按钮), ” said Wang. “If you can’t stand it, you can press it to stop.” But Wang never used it. “There is no such red button in my heart.” That strong spirit finally made her dream come true in 2013. She joined the team for the Shenzhou X mission(任务).
Wang said that as astronauts, women have their own advantages(优势). “Women may be more patient and can better deal with loneliness. Women’s hearts are also easier to adapt(适应) to the weightless environment, making them more suitable for long-term missions.”
Wang Yaping went a long way before becoming the first woman to enter the Tiangong space station. She sets a good example for all women who dream of going to space.
1. What do Wang’s words mean in Paragraph 2?| A．The space environment is easy to change. |
| B．Both male and female astronauts can go to space. |
| C．Men and women will face the same difficulties in space. |
| A．Hard-working. | B．Warm-hearted. | C．Friendly. |
| A．Wang is the first female astronaut in the world. |
| B．Wang dreamed of being an astronaut in 2003. |
| C．Wang pressed the red button when she became blind after the high-G training. |
| A．Old habits die hard. |
| B．Never too old to learn. |
| C．Nothing is difficult if you put your heart into it. |
Thousands of years ago, Chinese poet Qu Yuan wrote the poem Tianwen, meaning Quest for Heavenly Truth. He came up with a series of questions about the sky, stars, nature and the world around us. The poem showed his spirit of finding the truth.
Inspired (激励) by the great poet, China named its latest series of planetary exploration missions (行星探测任务) after the poem in 2020. The first one in the series — a Mars exploration mission — has been named Tianwen 1, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) said on April 24th, 2020, China’s Space Day. This shows China’s wish to explore the universe.
China has made great progress in space exploration. In 1970, China sent its first man-made Earth satellite (卫星), becoming the fifth country in the world to send a man-made satellite independently. Since 2003, China has carried out six Shenzhou manned missions. China’s moon exploration missions — the Chang’e series — started in 2007. In December 2018, China became the first country to send the probe (探测器) Chang’e 4 to the moon’s far side.
The Tianwen series will follow the Shenzhou and Chang’e series and move further into space. The first step is to send a Mars probe this year, which will mean the start of China’s exploration of the red planet. The probe is planned to circle around, land on and explore Mars in one mission. If it succeeds, it will be the first to finish all of these tasks in one mission. The Long March 5 rocket will send the probe to Mars.
After this mission, China plans to visit Mars again in 2028, aiming to collect soil from the ground of the planet and bring it to Earth. Around 2030, China will explore Jupiter and several small planets.
1. The first Mars exploration mission is named Tianwen 1 because ________.| A．it explains the spirit of Chinese people |
| B．it shows the wish of exploring the universe |
| C．it has many questions about the sky, stars and the world |
| A．how China explored the moon |
| B．how many missions China has completed |
| C．the development of China’s exploration in space |
| A．Moon | B．Mars | C．Jupiter |
| A．China will send the probe on Space Day. |
| B．It will be the first mission of the Tianwen series. |
| C．China will send a Mars probe named Long March 5. |
| A．China Started to Explore Mars |
| B．Tianwen and China’s Exploration Missions in Space |
| C．The History of Chinese Planetary Exploration Missions |
A special lecture began on Thursday morning, given by a teacher aboard a space module about 340 km above her students on Earth, the first such attempt by Chinese.
Astronaut Wang Yaping, one of the three crew members of Shenzhou-10 spacecraft, greeted about 330 primary and middle school students at a Beijing high school, through a live video feed system. “Hello, everyone. I am Wang Yaping. 1. 今天我上这堂课。” She said. The students in her class are gathering at the High School Affiliated to Renmin University in Beijing. 2. More than 60 million students and teachers are also watching the live broadcast(直播) on TV.
3. 这堂课的第一部分都是关于重量。 Nie Haisheng, commander of the crew, made a bit show of crossing his legs into a meditation sitting posture in the air, which only a martial art master can do in the movies but is impossible for real people on the Earth. “4. Thanks to the weightless condition, we are all masters,” Wang joked. Then, she introduced the special scale on board of the orbiter. 5. The lesson is aimed(旨意) at making space more popular, as well as inspiring enthusiasm for the universe and science, according to Zhou Jianping, designer-in-chief of China’s manned space program, who added that the lesson will also accumulate experience for similar larger activities.
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10 . On the morning of Nov. 24, China made history by starting the world’s first lunar return mission of the past 44 years. On that day, a Long March 5 rocket was sent into space from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan province. It’s carrying the Chang’e 5 lunar probe. The mission will last about 23 days, according to the China National Space Administration. The Chang’e 5 mission is special for several reasons.
A return mission
It’s China’s first sample return mission. This means that the Chang’e 5 probe will take back samples of the moon’s soil and rocks. The samples will return to Earth sometime in December.
The last lunar sample return mission was the former Soviet Union’s Luna 24 mission in 1976.
Larger samples
The Chang’e 5 mission plans to bring back larger samples than missions in the past. The former Soviet Union brought back 330 grams of lunar soil samples, while Chang’e 5 is aiming for 2 kilograms of lunar samples. Chang’e 5 doesn’t need a return cabin, so it only needs a small amount of fuel. This lets it carry heavier samples.
A new landing site
Chang’e 5’s lunar landing site is known as the Ocean of Storms. It’s on the near side of the moon seen from Earth. No probes have visited this site before. It’s geologically younger than the sampling sites from the US and former Soviet Union missions. The new samples will help us learn more about the moon’s history.
| A．The mission will last over three weeks. |
| B．Chang’e 5 is a carrier rocket. |
| C．The mission started 44 years ago. |
| A．Find out if there is water on the moon. |
| B．Carry soil samples from Earth to the moon. |
| C．Take back soil and rock samples from the moon. |
| A．It has a better return cabin. |
| B．It can take heavier samples back. |
| C．It can get more kinds of samples. |
| A．It is the youngest place on the moon. |
| B．Many countries have landed their probes there. |
| C．It is the part of the moon we can see from Earth. |
