VOA慢速英语--2021年计划的主要太空任务

After a series of successful space missions during the past year, 2021 promises some exciting new international exploration projects.

Three nations have launched spacecraft designed to begin exploring Mars in 2021.

The U.S. space agency, NASA, is expecting its explorer, called Perseverance¹, to land on the Red Planet on February 18. The explorer, or rover, is on a mission to "search for signs of life and collect rock and soil samples," NASA says.

Perseverance is NASA's fifth Mars explorer. It is carrying a small experimental helicopter, called Ingenuity². The device would be the first to test the abilities of such a craft on another planet. One important experiment will test a device designed to capture carbon dioxide from Mars' atmosphere and turn it into oxygen.

China's Tianwen-1 spacecraft launched last July on a mission to search Mars for signs of water. It is also expected to reach Mars in February. The spacecraft will attempt to land at Utopia Planitia, a large flat area in the northern half of the planet. Once there, Tianwen-1 will deploy³ a rover for exploration.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) launched its Hope Probe in July 2020. The explorer is also to reach the Red Planet next month. The country describes Hope as "the first probe to provide a complete picture of the Martian atmosphere and its layers."

The mission will study climate and weather activity on the lower atmosphere of Mars. Hope will also observe and study hydrogen and oxygen in the Martian upper atmosphere, the UAE's space agency said.

New space vehicles to be tested

Boeing is expected to carry out another unpiloted flight test of its Starliner spacecraft. The company was chosen by NASA – along with America's SpaceX – for its Commercial Crew Program. The program uses private spacecraft to transport U.S. astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS). SpaceX has already completed two successful crewed missions to the ISS.

If Boeing's unpiloted test goes well, the company is expected to move ahead with its first crewed test flight of Starliner.

NASA said it plans to complete final preparations for the first flight of its Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft for a possible launch sometime in the autumn. The flight would be the first unpiloted test flight for SLS and Orion. The goal is to complete a month-long mission around the moon.

The test is part of NASA's Artemis program, which aims to land the first woman and next man on the moon by 2024. The program's long-term goal is to establish a continued human presence on the moon.

NASA tests planetary defense⁴

In late July, NASA says it will launch its first "test for planetary defense" against asteroids⁶. The mission is called the Double Asteroid⁵ Redirection Test (DART). It will send a spacecraft to purposely crash into an asteroid at a high speed in an attempt to change the asteroid's orbit in space. The target is a near-Earth asteroid called Didymos. The operation will only be a test of defensive⁷ capability⁸, since Didymos represents no threat to Earth.

In October, NASA plans to launch its Lucy space mission. The operation aims to study a population of unusual objects orbiting Jupiter known as the Trojan asteroids. The space agency says the mission will involve a 12-year trip to eight different asteroids.

Also in October, NASA plans to launch its James Webb Space Telescope which has been delayed several times. It is NASA's replacement⁹ for the Hubble Space Telescope, which has been in operation for 30 years.

The James Webb is a large infrared¹⁰ telescope that has a nearly seven-meter mirror for observing space. NASA says the mission is designed to look deeper into space and offer more answers about the past of the universe than any other spacecraft.

Words in This Story

mission – n. the flight of a spacecraft to perform a certain task or job

sample – n. a small amount of something that gives information about what it was taken from

probe – n. a vehicle used to examine or observe something closely

layer – n. a level of something spread over an area

asteroid – n. small planets or space rocks that orbit the sun

capability – n. the ability to do a certain job or task

mirror – n. a piece of glass that reflects light or images

1 perseverance   

n.坚持不懈，不屈不挠

参考例句：

• It may take some perseverance to find the right people.要找到合适的人也许需要有点锲而不舍的精神。
• Perseverance leads to success.有恒心就能胜利。

2 ingenuity   

n.别出心裁；善于发明创造

参考例句：

• The boy showed ingenuity in making toys.那个小男孩做玩具很有创造力。
• I admire your ingenuity and perseverance.我钦佩你的别出心裁和毅力。

3 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。

4 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

5 asteroid   

n.小行星；海盘车(动物)

参考例句：

• Astronomers have yet to witness an asteroid impact with another planet.天文学家还没有目击过小行星撞击其它行星。
• It's very unlikely that an asteroid will crash into Earth but the danger exists.小行星撞地球的可能性很小，但这样的危险还是存在的。

6 asteroids   

n.小行星( asteroid的名词复数 )；海盘车，海星

参考例句：

• Asteroids,also known as "minor planets",are numerous in the outer space. 小行星，亦称为“小型行星”，在外太空中不计其数。
• Most stars probably have their quota of planets, meteorids, comets, and asteroids. 多数恒星也许还拥有若干行星、流星、彗星和小行星。

7 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

8 capability   

n.能力；才能；(pl)可发展的能力或特性等

参考例句：

• She has the capability to become a very fine actress.她有潜力成为杰出演员。
• Organizing a whole department is beyond his capability.组织整个部门是他能力以外的事。

9 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

10 infrared   

adj./n.红外线(的)

参考例句：

• Infrared is widely used in industry and medical science.红外线广泛应用于工业和医学科学。
• Infrared radiation has wavelengths longer than those of visible light.红外辐射的波长比可见光的波长长。