2006年VOA标准英语-US Moves Step Closer to Manned Moon Missio

By Paul Sisco
Washington
12 April 2006
 
Watch NASA Moon report

  
  

The U.S. space agency NASA this week outlined its next big step to returning astronauts to the moon. 

The U.S. Space Agency, NASA plans to return to the moon  … fulfilling, in part, a vision laid out by President Bush in January 2004.

"We will build new ships to carry man forward into the universe to gain a new foothold on the moon, and prepare for  a new journey  to worlds beyond our own," he said.

Neil Armstrong was the first of 12 astronauts to leave a footprint on the moon.
“It's one one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

Eugene Cernan  
  
Astronaut Eugene Cernan was the last man on the moon, more than three decades ago. ''.... in the merry merry month of ... December.'"

That was December 1972….

Astronaut Eugene Cernan says, "I did not really believe I would be sitting here three decades later still being the last man to have left a my footprints on the surface.  Ah, Quite frankly¹, it's a little disappointing."

But U.S. administration officials believe, after a series of unmanned, robotic missions to the moon, the U.S. will return astronauts there by 2020.  An optimistic goal, one NASA officials are trying to meet.  This week NASA officials in Washington D.C., discussed the first robotic mission scheduled for October 2008. 

Scott Horowitz   
  
NASA Assistant Administrator² Scott Horowitz says of the plans to return to the moon, "To go back to the moon, …we have to be able to communicate, we have to be able to navigate  we need good maps ... the topography of the moon.  One of the primary resources that we're looking for at the moon which is what is the hydrogen all about at the polar regions of the moon."

Daniel Andrews is the project manager on the lunar crater³ observation and sensing satellite, or LCROS.

They plan to excavate⁴ a crater on the moon's south pole; a place they believe contains hydrogen and possibly water.

"What we're basically doing, is we're taking the upper stage of the launch vehicle, the one that delivers LRO [Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter] and LCROS [Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite] to the moon and when its finished its mission, which means its now-spent upper stage, its got the mass of a SUV, a good sized SUV, and we send it into the south pole of the moon, and the whole idea is we create a substantial plume⁵, excavate a bunch of material some of which may be water ice and be able to measure that directly as the plume is created, and ah, its a great opportunity to really understand what we have there," he said.

A series of planned robotic missions to the moon between 2008 and 2016 will study and map the lunar surface, paving the way for man's eventual⁶ return to the moon.
 
 

1 frankly   

adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说

参考例句：

• To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说，我一点也不赞成这个主意。
• Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说，我不反对改革。

2 administrator   

n.经营管理者，行政官员

参考例句：

• The role of administrator absorbed much of Ben's energy.行政职务耗掉本很多精力。
• He has proved himself capable as administrator.他表现出管理才能。

3 crater   

n.火山口，弹坑

参考例句：

• With a telescope you can see the huge crater of Ve-suvius.用望远镜你能看到巨大的维苏威火山口。
• They came to the lip of a dead crater.他们来到了一个死火山口。

4 excavate   

vt.挖掘，挖出

参考例句：

• They plan to excavate a large hole.他们计划挖个大洞。
• A new Danish expedition is again excavating the site in annual summer digs.一支新的丹麦探险队又在那个遗址上进行一年一度的夏季挖掘。

5 plume   

n.羽毛；v.整理羽毛，骚首弄姿，用羽毛装饰

参考例句：

• Her hat was adorned with a plume.她帽子上饰着羽毛。
• He does not plume himself on these achievements.他并不因这些成就而自夸。

6 eventual   

adj.最后的，结局的，最终的

参考例句：

• Several schools face eventual closure.几所学校面临最终关闭。
• Both parties expressed optimism about an eventual solution.双方对问题的最终解决都表示乐观。