Space: The Big Frontier

Before you start

1. Read the article. Match these headings with the paragraphs (A-E).

• Life on Mars • The Space Race • The Last Frontier

• Globetrotters • Into Deep Space

2. Find sentences in the text that mean the same as these colloquial sentences. Paragraph letters are in brackets.

1 The space age kicked off when they sent up Sputnik 1. (B)

2 But they carried on sending out robot ships to have a look round. (B)

3 Space exploration is in again because of that new telescope. (C)

4 It’s so good that it’s found loads of new planets. (C)

5 They’re going to launch robot ships to find places like Earth. (D)

Space: The Big Frontier

A 'What's beyond that hill?' 'What's on the other side of that river?' Curiosity and the desire to explore have been with us since our ancestors left Africa to spread out over the world. By the beginning of the 21st century, virtually all of Planet Earth has been visited, photoed, described and mapped. We have left our mark (and our rubbish) in the four corners of the globe. Now only one frontier remains to explore - space.

B The age of space exploration began in 1957, when Sputnik 1 was launched by the Soviet Union. The first successful manned flight took place in 1961, when Yuri Gagarin was shot into space. This triggered the 'space race' between the USA and the USSR, culminating in the moon landing in 1969. After this, there was something of an anticlimax and the number of manned missions dropped off, largely due to the end of the space race. Nevertheless, space probes like Pioneer and Voyager continued to be sent out in order to explore the neighbouring planets such as Mars and Venus. The American shuttle and the Russian Mir Space Station were also ground-breaking, as they developed the practicalities of space travel.

C Recently, there has been another burst of interest in space as a result of the Hubble Telescope. It was launched in 1990 so that astronomers could observe space without interference from the Earth's atmosphere. The Hubble has provided views of such phenomena as distant galaxies, dying stars and black holes.

Because of its precision, over fifty new planets have been located beyond our solar system. Other exciting developments have been the Prospector and Pathfinder probes for exploring our solar system, looking for water on the Moon and primitive life on Mars.

D The International Space Station is now being built in the Earth's orbit and soon will be working as a permanently manned scientific base, so as to research life in space and provide a stepping stone in case future manned missions are sent out. Further space probes, such as Deep Space, will be sent out in order thatthey might detect small Earth-like planets where there might be life. A permanent base will probably be established on the Moon in the next twenty years and a manned mission to Mars might take place some time after. Later in the century, some scientists believe we may develop the technology soas to be able to begin interstellar exploration, starting with our nearest star, Proxima Centauri, four light years away..

E In conclusion, space exploration is still in its infancy and is restricted by many technical problems but the possibilities are incredible. While humankind's innate curiosity remains, we will keep exploring. The sky is no longer the limit.

3. Match these words with the idiomatic expressions from the text (1-6) in italics.

Just beginning, all over the world, a stage on the way, the possibilities are endless, started off, shown we’ve been

1 We have left our mark everywhere.

2 The four corners of the globe.

3 It trigged the space race.

4 It’s a stepping stone.

5 It’s in its infancy.

6 The sky’s the limit.

Дата добавления: 2015-11-14