1 . 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. |
2 . Three Journeys into Space
Country | Soviet Union (苏联) | The USA | China |
Date | 12 April, 1961 | 5 May, 1961 | 15 October, 2003 |
Astronaut | Yuri Gagarin | Alan Shepherd | Yang Liwei |
Age | 27 | 38 | 38 |
Spaceship | Vostok 1 | Mercury 3 | Shenzhou 5 |
Time | 1 hour 48 minutes | 15 minutes | 21 hours |
Height | 327 kilometers | 185 kilometers | 343 kilometers |
Circles around the Earth | 1 | 0 | 14 |
1. _______ went into space first.
| A．China | B．The USA | C．Soviet Union |
| A．1 hour 48 minutes | B．only 15 minutes | C．21 hours |
3 . What's a spacewalk? Any time an astronaut gets out of a spacecraft (航天器) while in space, it is called a spacewalk. Astronauts go on spacewalks for many reasons. For example, experiments can be placed on the outside of a spacecraft. This lets scientists learn how being in space affects ( 影响) different things. By going on spacewalks, astronauts can also fix things instead of bringing them back to the earth to fix.
When astronauts go on spacewalks, they wear spacesuits to keep themselves safe. Inside spacesuits, astronauts have the oxygen (氧气) they need to breathe and the water they need to drink. To keep the astronauts and the spacecraft safe, the astronauts must leave and go back to the spacecraft through a special door. When on a spacewalk, astronauts use safety tethers to stay close to their spacecraft. Tethers are like ropes, connect the spacewalkers with the spacecraft. They keep astronauts from floating (漂浮) away into space. Another way astronauts stay safe during spacewalks is by wearing a SAFER. SAFER is worn like a backpack. It helps an astronaut move around in space.
How do astronauts train for spacewalks? One way is by going for a swim. Floating in space is a lot like floating in water. Astronauts practice spacewalks underwater in a huge special swimming pool. For every one hour they will spend on a spacewalk, astronauts need to train seven hours in the pool. Another way astronauts practice for a spacewalk is by using virtual reality(虚拟现实). It looks and feels just like a spacewalk.
Today, only three countries have finished spacewalks independently. They are Russia, the United States and China. The first person to go on a spacewalk in the world was Alexei Leonov from Russia. Zhai Zhigang is the first Chinese astronaut to go on a spacewalk. The world record of spacewalks is held by Russian astronaut Anatoly Solovyev. He has been on 16 spacewalks and spent more than 82 hours outside in space.
1. About the spacewalk, we can know ____________.| A．some things can be fixed by astronauts during spacewalks |
| B．all experiments must be placed on the outside of a spacecraft |
| C．an astronaut can get out of a spacecraft any time while in space |
| A．It keeps an astronaut from floating away into space. |
| B．It helps an astronaut move around in space. |
| C．It helps an astronaut have the oxygen to breathe and the water to drink. |
| A．spacewalkers | B．tethers | C．spaceship |
| A．floating in space | B．using virtual reality | C．training in water in a common swimming pool |
| A．16hours | B．more than 80 hours | C．more than 82 hours |
4 . How would you like to live in space someday? Some people already do--on a space station. The station circles the Earth 2230 miles above us. It moves around our planet at over 17,000 miles per hour.
Astronauts from different countries have called the space station home since the year 2000. Groups of three people take turns living on the station. They travel between their space home and the Earth on the space shuttle(航天飞机). What's it like to live on the space station? “It's like taking a four-month camping trip--in space!" says John Charles, a NASA scientist. The members of the station crew (工作人员) eat dried food, bathe with wet cloths and sleep in sleeping bags. They have to tie the sleeping bags to a wall before they sleep. If they don't do that, they will float(漂浮)around all night.
The weightlessness (失重) of space can be fun. The crew members like to jump up and down.
They also like to play catch in slow motion.
There's work to be done, too. The space station is a busy place. The station's crew members do science experiments. They also spend a lot of their time adding new parts to the station. The space shuttle brings the parts. The astronauts sometimes make space walks outside the station to connect the new parts. Building a house can take less than a year. Building the space station will take at least eight years!
1. What have astronauts called the space station since 2000?2. What is John Charles?
3. Why do the crew members have to tie the sleeping bags to a wall before they sleep?
4. Can the astronauts take showers on the space station?
5. How long will it take to build the space station?
