While scientists are searching the cause of the Columbia disaster， NASA is moving ahead with plans to develop a new craft that would¹ replace shuttles on space station missions by 2012 and respond quickly to space station emergencies.

    The space agency released the first set of mission needs and requirements several days ago for the orbital space plane， which would be designed to transport a crew of four to and from the International Space Station.

    Although it includes few specifics2， the plan stipulates the orbiter will be safer， cheaper and require less preparation time than the shuttle. It would be able to transport four crew members by 2012 – though it would be available for rescue missions by 2010. NASA says the craft should be able to transport injured or ill space station crew members to “definitive medical care3” within 24 hours.

    The release of the requirements showed NASA remains focused on the long-term priorities of space exploration， even as questions linger concerning the loss of Columbia and its seven-member crew on February 1，20034.

    Experts at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville， Alabama， have been working for years on a successor to the shuttle. The project， known as the Space Launch Initiative， was divided last year into two parts – one focusing on a future launch vehicle， the other on a space station orbiter. The orbiter is expected to be ready sooner.

    The program’s managers say NASA officials have told them not to alter Space Launch Initiative in light of the Columbiadisaster.

    U.S. President George W. Bush asked Congress for about US$1 billion for Space Launch Initiative in 2004， funds that would be almost equally split between the Orbital Space Plane and Next Generation Launch Technology.

词汇

shuttle["ʃʌtl] n.（织机的）穿梭机; 

initiative[ɪ"nɪʃətɪv] n.创始，倡议;

orbiter[ˈɔ:bɪtə(r)] n.轨道航天飞机

in light of 鉴于，由于

linger ["lɪŋɡə(r)]v.继续存留

注释：

1．would:这是虚拟语气的用法，表示未来可能发生的事。下面第三段出现的两个would也属这种用法。

2．few specifics:（谈到）很少细节。specific意为“详情，细节”时，一定要用复数形式的specifics o

3．"definitive medical care”：“最权威的医疗机构”

The orbital space craft has been designed for____.

A:controlling the Intemational Space Station B:carrying astronauts to the International Space Station C:transporting equipment to the International Space Station D:training astronauts in space flights

Passage Five
A new kind of radar has been developed for spaceship travelers. A working laboratory model of a new system of radar that makes use of a beam of light is said to be ten thousand times more accurate than the best comparable system of radar that used microwaves.
The model has shown that this radar system, known as laser-doppler radar, can measure with absolute precision speeds varying from spaceship orbital injection (进入) velocities (速度) of five miles per second down to virtual stops--speeds of less than one ten thousandth of an inch per second. According to the scientists who are developing this system, such fine measures of velocity are of prime importance in space missions. In a rendezvous (对接) between two spaceships, or in a landing approach by a vehicle onto an orbiting space station, a bump could rip open a ship’s skin, or a nudge could knock the station out of its orbit.
The light-beam radar, which operates at a frequency of trillions (百万兆) of cycles per second, could easily detect and measure the movement of a vehicle edging up to a satellite space station. A control system using so precise a signal as this would allow a huge vehicle to dock at a space station as lightly as a feather.

A:Rendezvous in Space B:Landing at a Space Station C:New Radar for the Space Age D:Space Navigation

A:control the International Space Station. B:carry astronauts to the International Space Station. C:transport equipment to the International Space Station D:train astronauts in space flights.

{{B}}第三篇{{/B}}

A:control the International Space Station. B:carry astronauts to the International Space Station. C:transport equipment to the International Space Station. D:train astronauts in space flights.

第三篇 Human Space Exploration While scientists are searching the cause of the Columbia disaster, NASA is moving ahead with plans to develop a new craft that would replace shuttles(航天飞机)on space stationmissions by 2012 and respond quickly to space station emergencies． The space agency released the first set of mission needs and requirements several days ago for me orbital space plane(轨道航天飞机)，which would be designed to transport a crew of four to and from the International Space Station． Although it includes few specifics，the plan states the orbiter(轨道航天飞机)will be safer cheaper and require less preparation time than the shuttle．It would be able to transport four crew members by 2012--though it would be available for rescue missions by 2010.NASA says the craft should be able to transport injured or ill space station crew members to“definitive(决定性的)medical care” within 24 hours． The release of the requirements showed NASA remains focused on the long-term priorities of space exploration，even as questions exist concerning the loss of Columbia and its seven．member crew on February l，2003．． Expels at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville，Alabama，have been working for years on a successor to the shuttle．The project，known as the Space Launch Initiative(倡议)，was divided last year into two parts----one focusing on a future launch vehicle，the other on a space station orbiter．The orbiter is expected to be ready sooner． The program’s managers say NASA officials have told them not to alter Space Launch Initiative in light of the Columbia disaster． U．S．President George W：Bush asked Congress for about US$1 billion for Space Launch Initiative in 2004，funds that would be almost equally split between the Orbital Space Plane and Next Generation Launch Technology． NASA plans to design the new space craft to

A:control the International Space Station． B:carry astronauts to the International Space Station． C:transport equipment to the International Space Station D:train astronauts in space flights．

A:control the International Space Station B:carry astronauts to the International Space Station C:transport equipment to the International Space Station D:train astronauts in space flights

{{B}}第三篇{{/B}}

A:controlling the International Space Station. B:carrying astronauts to the International Space Station. C:transporting equipment to the International Space Station. D:training astronauts in space flights.