A small device, Moxie, has produced oxygen on the surface of Mars,
“This is the first demonstration of actually using
“The thin atmosphere on Mars is 96 percent carbon dioxide and much more
The device, Moxie, uses some special pumps,
Despite the challenges, Moxie has proved durable in the extreme conditions on Mars and scientists regard the test results
2 . Meteorites (陨石) can offer clues about what the early solar system was like. But finding them is far from difficult. Now, some scientists are turning to drones (无人机) and machine learning to help spot freshly fallen meteorites much more efficiently. “A team of six people on a meteorite-hunting expedition can search about 200,000 square meters per day,” says Seamus Anderson, a planetary scientist in Australia.
Around 2016, Anderson began toying with the concept of using drones to take pictures of the g round to look for meteorites. That idea blossomed into a Ph.D. project. In 2022, he and his colleagues reported their first successful recovery of a meteorite spotted with a drone. They’ve since found four more meteorites at a different site. Drone-based searches are much faster than the standard search way. “You’re going from about 300 days of human effort down to about a dozen or so,” he says.
Anderson and his workmates have used drones to search for meteorites in remote parts of Western Australia and South Australia. The team is tipped off about a fall site by networks of ground-based cameras that track meteoroids flashing through the Earth’s atmosphere. The researchers have to do a series of fun but difficult work before the hunt. They pack a four-wheel drive vehicle with drone and computer equipment, battery charging stations, generators, fuel, food, camping equipment, tables, chairs and much more. The drive to the fall site can take more than a day, often on rough or nonexistent roads. Anderson says, “You hope you don’t pop a tire.”
After arriving, the team flies its primary drone at an altitude of about 20 meters. Its camera takes an image of the ground once every second, and the scientists download the data every 40 minutes or so when the drone lands to receive fresh batteries. A typical day of flying can net over 10,000 images, which are then divided digitally into 100 million or so smaller sections. Those “tiles”, each 2 meters on a side, are fed into a machine learning algorithm (算法) that has been trained to recognize meteorites based on images of real land rocks which are spray-painted black.
1. Why do the scientists study meteorites?| A．To spot the planetary course. | B．To promote machine learning. |
| C．To test the functions of drones. | D．To explore the past of solar system. |
| A．Their barriers. | B．Their causes. |
| C．Their efficiency. | D．Their concept. |
| A．Fun and light. | B．Smooth and flexible. |
| C．Difficult and unpleasant. | D．Complicated and tough. |
| A．By dividing them in half. | B．By storing them for analysis. |
| C．By combining them into a picture. | D．By linking them with a digital printer. |
3 . The famous scientist Stephen Hawking spoke at a science festival in Norway in 2017, “We are running out of space and the only places to go to are other worlds... Spreading out may be the only thing that saves us from ourselves. I’m convinced that humans need to leave Earth.”
Hawking was not alone in this view. Many experts feel that the only way for humanity to last far into the future is to colonize (移民于) other planets. That way, if a terrible disease, nuclear war or some other disaster strikes Earth, civilization as we know it would still have a chance. Mars is one of the most attractive destinations. NASA, the United Arab Emirates, the private company SpaceX, and the organization Mars One all have plans to send humans there. “Either we spread Earth to other planets, or we risk going extinct,” SpaceX founder Elon Musk said at a conference in 2013.
But not everyone agrees that colonizing Mars or any other planet is such a great plan. The most common argument against going is that it’s just too expensive or dangerous. It will take huge amounts of money and other resources just to get people there, let alone set up a place for them to live. It’s not even clear if humans could survive on Mars. One of the biggest dangers there is deadly radiation that ruins the planet.
Maybe all the time and money people would pour into a Mars mission would be better spent on more urgent projects here on Earth, like dealing with poverty or climate change. Some experts argue that handling a problem like an asteroid (小行星) strike or disease outbreak while staying here on Earth would be much easier and less expensive than surviving on a new planet.
In addition, moving to a new planet could harm or destroy anything that already lives there. Mars seems uninhabited, but it could possibly host micro-organism like. Human visitors may destroy this life or permanently change or damage the Martian environment. Some feel that’s too much of a risk to take.
1. Why did the author mention NASA, the United Arab Emirates, SpaceX and Mars One?| A．To stress the risk of dying out on Earth. |
| B．To provide evidence for Hawking’s theory. |
| C．To show growing intention of moving to Mars. |
| D．To explain the advanced technology in astronomy. |
| A．Civilization is difficult to maintain on Earth. |
| B．It is costly and risky to colonize Mars. |
| C．Poverty is the most urgent problem to handle. |
| D．All the time and money should be spent on Earth. |
| A．Not fit to live on. | B．Not steady to keep. |
| C．Not easy to approach. | D．Not safe to set foot on. |
| A．Mars, Our Future Planet |
| B．Moving to A New Planet |
| C．Should We Colonize Mars? |
| D．Stay Home or Outer Space? |
China's Chang'e 5 mission
The sample capsule landed in Inner Mongolia
The material collected by Chang'e 5 was from a site in the northwest region of the moon's near side. This area was formed more recently, and the rocks here
Although Chang'e 5 was a short mission, it was one of
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Dear Li Hua,
I am glad to share with you some details about my passion for moon exploration.
It started with what I have been told about the moon as a kid but grew stronger with time. As it is known to us, there is rich cultural meaning behind the faithful companion of the earth. In Chinese culture, the moon is often compared to a quiet and elegant lady. Also, it reminds people their family and friends far away.
Human have never stopped exploring the moon. I believe it is of more importance. The development of relevant technology fuels the progress of science, benefit our everyday life. What’s more, I think moon exploration shows an important human feature, that is, curiosity about an unknown, that has brought our species this far.
Do you find that I’ve mentioned above interesting and reasonable?
Yours,
Kate
