NASA's Jet Propulsion(喷气推进) Laboratory (JPL) ...

NASA's Jet Propulsion(喷气推进) Laboratory (JPL) attracted Marlyse Reeves from an early age. Growing up in Pasadena, California, in JPL's backyard, Reeves developed a love for everything related to outer space, and the lab was a regular destination for school field trips. Even as a child, Reeves, now as an MIT senior, knew she wanted to work in the space industry. Her love of space was cultivated at home, too. At MIT, Reeves quickly found her place in the Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics (航空航天系).

As a junior, Reeves was selected to participate in the Gordon­MIT Engineering Leadership Program. The program focuses on leadership for engineers—people who may have high technical IQs but who may be not good at expressing themselves. Reeves holds the point that in industry, people have to communicate with other engineers—to explain their ideas and fit into the organizational structure.

In the second year of the program, students become coaches for the new students, which means a team coach observes, and instructs the younger group. So Reeves thinks it's really the second­year students who are guiding the first­year students into how they can improve as leaders.

Reeves has been with Women in Aerospace Engineering (WAE) since its beginning in her sophomore year. The group builds a community for women in all aspects of aeronautics. Last month, Reeves helped organize the first WAE Day, an event for 18 high school girls in the Boston area to come to MIT to learn about aerospace engineering. Reeves says events like these are especially important for exposing young women to the possibilities of the field.

Just as she says, “Being a person who has gone into the aerospace industry and has seen the lack of women, there are often times when I am the only female in the room. I think it's important for young women and girls to have role models, and just see that there are women doing it. I have met a lot of strong female role models for myself in industry... A lot of our events are open to men as well. We want to build a community of people who support women in aerospace.”

1.What can we learn from the first paragraph?

A. Reeves seldom visited JPL at an early age.

B. Reeves became interested in space from childhood.

C. Reeves is now a new student studying at MIT.

D. Reeves would like to study in the Department of Mathematics at MIT.

2.What is the aim of the Gordon­MIT Engineering Leadership Program?

A. It is aimed at developing engineers' leadership.

B. It focuses on increasing students' technical skills.

C. It tends to improve students' observation abilities.

D. It aims to train excellent engineers for MIT in advance.

3.What is the attitude of Reeves towards women in the aerospace industry?

A. She thinks the industry is prejudiced against women.

B. She thinks women have a higher IQ than men in the field.

C. She believes having role models has a positive effect on women.

D. She feels it is difficult for women to become successful in the field.

4.Why does Reeves attach importance to the WAE Day?

A. Because it's a girl's dream.

B. Because it makes her a leader.

C. Because it helps women experience more about aeronautics.

D. Because it can strengthen the community.

高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析

October 31, 2009, California

Tsien Hsue-shen, PhD'39, one of the founders of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, died on October 31, He was 98.

Tsien, born in the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou, graduated from the National Qinghua University in 1934 and in August of 1935 he left China to study at the Massachusetts Institute Technology. In 1936 he went to the California Institute of Technology to commence graduate studies .Tsien obtained his doctor degree in 1939 and would remain at Caltech for 20 years, becoming the Goddard Professor and establishing a reputation as one of the leading rocket scientists in the United States.

In 1943, Tsien and two others in the Caltech rocketry group drafted the first document to use the name Jet Propulsion Laboratory. During the Second World War, he was amongst the other scientists participated the "Manhattan Project" .After World War II he served as a consultant to the  United States Army Air Force. During this time, Conlonel Tsien worked on designing an intercontinental space plane. His work would inspire the X--20Dyna-Soar which would later be the inspiration for the Space Shuttle. In1945 Tsien Hsue--shen married Jiang Ying, the daughter of Jiang Baili--one of the Chinese nationalist leader Chiang Kai--shen's leading military strategists. But in 1950, the Chinese-born scientist was accused of harboring Communist sympathies and stripped of his security clearance.

In September 1955 he was permitted to leave for China, where Tsien resumed his research, founded the Institute of Mechanics, and went on to become the father of China's missile program, a trusted member of the government and Party's inner circle, and the nation's most honored scientist, Tsien retired in 1991 and has maintained a low public profile in Beijing, China. The PRC government launched its manned space program in 1992 and used Tsien's research as the basis for the Long March rocket which successfully launched the Shenzhou V mission in October of 2003.The elderly Tsien was able to watch China's first manned space mission on television from his hospital bed.

In his late years, since the 1980s, Tsien devoted himself to spirituality research, and advocated scientific investigation of traditional Chinese medicine, Qigong and "special human body functions".

1.The underlined word "commence" in this passage probably means ____

A. make up    B. get    C. begin   D. promise

2.Tsien Hsue--shen got married at the age of ______

A.45          B.28     C. 24      D.34

3.What is the right order of the events related to Tsien Hsue--shen ?

a. his later life    b. return to China    c. career in the U.S.A  d. his early life and education

A. a-b-c-d    B. d-c-b-a     C. d-b-c-a     D. c-b-d-a

4.Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A. Tsien Hsue--shen got a doctor's degree in 1939.

B. Tsien Hsue--shen married Jiang Ying, the daughter of Chinese nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shen.

C. Tsien Hsue-shen has made a contribution to the Space Shuttle.

D. Tsien Hsue-shen was interested in traditional Chinese medicine, qigong and "special human body functions" in his later life.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

1

October 31, 2009, California

Tsien Hsue-shen, PhD'39, one of the founders of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, died on October 31, He was 98.

Tsien, born in the eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou, graduated from the National Qinghua University in 1934 and in August of 1935 he left China to study at the Massachusetts Institute Technology. In 1936 he went to the California Institute of Technology to commence graduate studies .Tsien obtained his doctor degree in 1939 and would remain at Caltech for 20 years, becoming the Goddard Professor and establishing a reputation as one of the leading rocket scientists in the United States.

In 1943, Tsien and two others in the Caltech rocketry group drafted the first document to use the name Jet Propulsion Laboratory. During the Second World War, he was amongst the other scientists participated the "Manhattan Project" .After World War II he served as a consultant to the  United States Army Air Force. During this time, Conlonel Tsien worked on designing an intercontinental space plane. His work would inspire the X--20Dyna-Soar which would later be the inspiration for the Space Shuttle. In1945 Tsien Hsue--shen married Jiang Ying, the daughter of Jiang Baili--one of the Chinese nationalist leader Chiang Kai--shen's leading military strategists. But in 1950, the Chinese-born scientist was accused of harboring Communist sympathies and stripped of his security clearance.

In September 1955 he was permitted to leave for China, where Tsien resumed his research, founded the Institute of Mechanics, and went on to become the father of China's missile program, a trusted member of the government and Party's inner circle, and the nation's most honored scientist, Tsien retired in 1991 and has maintained a low public profile in Beijing, China. The PRC government launched its manned space program in 1992 and used Tsien's research as the basis for the Long March rocket which successfully launched the Shenzhou V mission in October of 2003.The elderly Tsien was able to watch China's first manned space mission on television from his hospital bed.

In his late years, since the 1980s, Tsien devoted himself to spirituality research, and advocated scientific investigation of traditional Chinese medicine, Qigong and "special human body functions".

【小题1】           The underlined word "commence" in this passage probably means ____

A. make up    B. get    C. begin   D. promise

【小题2】           Tsien Hsue--shen got married at the age of ______

A.45          B.28     C. 24      D.34

【小题3】           What is the right order of the events related to Tsien Hsue--shen ?

a. his later life

b. return to China

c. career in the U.S.A

d. his early life and education

A. a-b-c-d    B. d-c-b-a     C. d-b-c-a     D. c-b-d-a

【小题4】           Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A. Tsien Hsue--shen got a doctor's degree in 1939.

B. Tsien Hsue--shen married Jiang Ying, the daughter of Chinese nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shen.

C. Tsien Hsue-shen has made a contribution to the Space Shuttle.

D. Tsien Hsue-shen was interested in traditional Chinese medicine, qigong and "special human body functions" in his later life.

高三英语简单题查看答案及解析

Dr Robert Hutchings Goddard is regarded as the father of modern rocket propulsion(推进）。As a physicist of great insight,Goddard also had his unique gift for invention.It was in honor of this brilliant scientist that NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt,Maryland,was set up on May 1,1959.

Goddard first obtained public notice in 1907 in a cloud of smoke from a powder rocket fired in, the basement of the Worcester Polytechnic Institute's physics building.School officials took an immediate interest in the work of the student Goddard. The school's administration,to his surprise,did not expel him.He thus began his lifetime of fine work.

In 1914,Goddard received two U.S.patents.One was for a rocket using liquid fuel.The other was for a two-or three-stage rocket using solid fuel.

By 1926,Goddard had constructed and successfully tested the first rocket using liquid fuel. At that time,Goddard' s rockets left little impression on government officials.Only through modest amount of money from the Smithsonian Institution and the Daniel Guggenheim Foundation was Goddard able to sustain his devoted research and testing.

Goddard' s greatest engineering contributions were made during his work in the 1920s and 1930s.He received a total of $10,000 from the Smithsonian by 1927,and through the personal efforts of Charles A.Lindbergh,he later received financial support from the Daniel and Florence Guggenheim Foundation.

Goddard 's work largely anticipated the later German V-2 missiles in technical detail.His rocket flight in 1929 carried the first scientific payload(有效负荷），a barometer(气压计）and a camera.During World War II,Goddard was appointed by the U.S.Navy to the development of practical jet-assisted takeoff and liquid propellant(推进燃料）rocket motors capable of variable thrust.In both areas,he was successful.Robert H.Goddard died on August 10,1945,four days after the first atomic bomb was dropped on Japan.

1.What was NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt established for?

A.To attract people's attention.

B.To make Goddard famous.

C.To show respect to Goddard.

D.To introduce Goddard 's invention.

2.According to Paragraph 2,how did the school officials respond to what Goddard did in the physics building in 1907?

A.They wanted to know more about it.

B.They were disappointed at it.

C.They made him drop out of school.

D.They ordered him to stop it.

3.What does the underlined word"sustain"in the fourth paragraph mean?

A.Delay. B.Reduce.

C.Create. D.Continue.

4.When probably was Goddard chosen to work to develop practical jet-assisted takeoff?

A.In 1927. B.In 1929.

C.In 1940. D.In 1946.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

NASA’s Curiosity vehicle recently recorded the largest level of methane(甲烷) ever measured during its seven-year Mars mission. The discovery is exciting because the existence of methane gas could support the case for life on Mars.

Methane has no color or smell. A special instrument on Curiosity’s Mars Science Laboratory recorded the increased gas level. The device, called a laser spectrometer, measures levels of chemical elements and gases in the Martian atmosphere. In addition to methane, the instrument can record levels of water and CO2. Nearly all the methane gas found in Earth’s atmosphere is produced by biological activity. It usually comes from animal and plant life. But it can also be formed by geological(地质的) processes, such as interactions between rocks and water. NASA said the increased methane was measured to be about 21 parts per billion by volume (ppbv). One ppbv means that if you take a volume of air on Mars, one billionth of the volume of air is methane.

It was not the first time Curiosity has found methane gas in the Martian atmosphere. About a year ago, NASA announced that Curiosity had discovered sharp seasonal increases in the gas. This time, NASA said the measured methane gas level was clearly larger than any others observed in the past. NASA officials even temporarily stopped Curiosity’s other activities to investigate further.

“It’s exciting because microbial(微生物的) life is an important source of methane on Earth,” NASA said in a statement announcing the discovery. However, Curiosity’s team carried out a follow-up methane experiment that showed a sharp drop in levels of the gas. The second examination found the level was less than one part per billion by volume. That number was close to the background levels Curiosity sees all the time. The rise and fall of the methane gas levels left NASA scientists with more questions than answers. The scientists are continuing to study possible causes for the sudden increase. The methane mystery continues.

Curiosity does not have instruments that can exactly identify whether the source of the methane is biological or geological. One leading theory is that methane is being released from underground areas created by possible life forms that disappeared long ago. Even though Mars has no active volcanoes, scientists believe it is also possible that methane is being produced by reactions involving carbon materials and water.

A clearer understanding of methane levels over time could help scientists determine where they’re located on Mars. Scientists hope this understanding will come as Curiosity continues to collect methane data in its search for possible life.

1.Curiosity discovered.

A.the largest methane gas level ever observed on Mars

B.the existence of life on Mars

C.the reason for the increased methane

D.interactions between rocks and water

2.Why did NASA officials once stop Curiosity’s other activities?

A.To further examine the methane gas level on Mars.

B.To seek possible life existing on Mars.

C.To check the quality of Curiosity’s mission.

D.To find seasonal increases in the methane gas.

3.What can we learn from the last three paragraphs?

A.Causes for the change of methane have been proved by Curiosity.

B.Curiosity has proved the location of methane by instruments.

C.Scientists think reactions involving carbon materials and water may produce methane.

D.Identifying the source of methane has helped scientists search for possible life on Mars.

4.The passage is probably taken from .

A.a geography textbook B.a science newspaper

C.a health magazine D.a travel brochure

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

NASA’s twin Mars rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, have been exploring the Red Planet since 2004. But a little more than a year ago, NASA lost contact with Spirit. The space agency has tried several ways to make contact with the rover, but Spirit has not sent back any signals.

Spirit landed on Mars on January 4, 2004. Three weeks later, Opportunity arrived. Soon after, the rovers went to the opposite side of Mars. Spirit’s original mission was only designed to last for three months, but Spirit has worked for more than five years doing additional missions. Both rovers have made important discoveries about ancient Mars. They have taken thousands of images and found evidence in the rocks of a water, warmer past in Mars’ history.

Spirit is solar-powered. It got stuck in a sand trap in April 2009, trapped deep into the soil and with its wheels turning around and around but not able to move forwards or backwards. Spirit had to agree that there is nothing that can be done to change the situation—it’s never going to move again. However, even if it is a not moving station, it can still study the planet’s atmosphere and deep interior.

NASA has been concentrating on trying to position its solar panels to get as much energy from the sun as possible, or to get the rover leaning in a manner that will allow the most amount of sunlight falling on its solar panels, in order to keep it alive during the coming winter months. Engineers have planned to rock the vehicle back and forth to acquire a more favorable position. However, no matter how many efforts have been made, Spirit still could not get out of the soft soil and could not lean itself toward the sun as the Martian winter approached. Without enough energy reaching its solar panels and with so little energy in its batteries, it went into hibernation, just like a polar bear, and has not communicated with Earth since March 22, 2010.

Whatever the future holds for Spirit, its mission has been an outstanding success. When it landed on the Red Planet in January 2004, no one was really sure how long it would continue working in the cold and dusty environment. As a matter of fact, three months was its original goal.

After so many fruitless efforts, NASA scientists are losing hope of ever reconnecting with Spirit, but they will give it one more try. Ground controllers are contacting Spirit over a range of frequencies and at different times during the day in case its internal clock stopped working and it lost track of time. They also are commanding the rover to turn on its backup radio transmitter in case the main one is dead.

If this final effort to connect isn’t successful, NASA will shift the focus to its twin robot, Opportunity, which is in a different part of Mars. Opportunity is still on the move and continues to travel freely to this day. It has traveled 16.6 miles so far, and is currently rolling towards another crater it has yet to explore.

NASA has spent more than $900 million on the project but shows no sign of giving up on these determined and hard-working robots. The rovers are, though, experiencing gradual wear and tear, the expected damage to something caused by using it repeatedly over a period of time. Even before Spirit got trapped, one of its wheels had failed. And NASA says it’s just a matter of time before both robots break down completely.

1.According to the passage, what can we know about Spirit?

A. It had explored Mars several times.

B. Its original mission was to work for five years.

C. It landed on Mars three weeks later than Opportunity.

D. It discovered that Mars was once a warm and wetter place.

2.According to the passage, which of the following is NOT what NASA did?

A. Try to lean Spirit to make it get as much sunlight as possible.

B. Rock Spirit back and forth to make it acquire a more favorable position.

C. Make efforts to help Spirit get out of the soft soil where it is stuck.

D. Contact and order Spirit to turn on its backup radio transmitter.

3.The reason why Spirit failed to communicate with the Earth is that ________.

A. it didn’t have enough energy             B. it had finished its task

C. something was wrong with its wheels      D. it met an unidentified creature

4.By saying “NASA will shift the focus” in Paragraph 7, the author means that ______.

A. NASA will move the center of Spirit out of the sand

B. NASA will depend on Opportunity to do the exploration

C. NASA will do nothing but wait for some opportunity

D. NASA will make opportunity help Spirit

5.The last paragraph mainly informs us that _______.

A. NASA has planned to spend more money on Spirit

B. Spirit will be brought back to Earth

C. Spirit will stop operating totally in the future

D. Spirit will cause damage to Mars

6. What’s the text mainly about?

A. NASA makes the last effort to contact Spirit.

B. Spirit has made many important discoveries on Mars.

C. How Spirit got stuck and couldn’t move on Mars.

D. Why NASA tried many ways to contact Spirit.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Space Center Houston

1.Which of the following is TRUE?

A. It will usually take 4 to 5 hours for visitors to enjoy all the attractions.

B. Visitors to Space Center Houston can buy tickets only by calling or online.

C. Space Center Houston is suitable for families to visit together at Christmas.

D. John and his wife will spend $92 if they visit Space Center Houston in January 2015.

2.How does a visitor begin his journey into space at Space Center Houston?

A. By seeing the film On Human Destiny.

B. By visiting the real working areas.

C. By visiting Kids Space Place.

D. By taking the NASA Tram Tour.

3.At Space Center Houston, visitors can ________.

A. park the car free of charge

B. stay there for at most 5 hours

C. visit the real working areas anytime

D. shop at a 10% discount in the Gift Station

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Artemis is NASA’s new lunar exploration program. Through the Artemis program, NASA will use new technology to study the Moon in new and better ways, and prepare for human missions to Mars.

NASA’s new rocket will carry the Orion spacecraft to lunar orbit. Then, astronauts will dock (对接) Orion at a small spaceship called the Gateway, from which the crew will take trips to the lunar surface in a new human landing system, and then return to the Gateway. The crew will return to the Earth aboard Orion.

NASA will test the rocket and spacecraft in flight, then send a crew for a test flight:

Artemis 1 will be a test flight of the SLS rocket with the Orion spacecraft with no crew.

Artemis 2 will fly SLS and Orion with a crew past the Moon, then circle it and return to the Earth. This trip will be the farthest any human has gone into space.

Artemis 3 will send a crew with the first woman and the next man to land on the Moon by 2024. The Artemis 3 crew will visit the Moon’s South Pole. No one has ever been there.

At the Moon, astronauts will:

Search for the Moon’s water and use it.

Learn how to live and work on the surface of another celestial body (天体) where astronauts are just three days from home.

Test the technologies we need before sending astronauts on missions to Mars, which can take up-to three years round trip.

The Moon is a good place to learn new science. NASA will learn more about the Moon, the Earth and even the Sun. The Moon is a “test bed” for Mars. The Moon is a place to show that astronauts will one day be able to work away from the Earth on Mars for long periods of time.

1.What is the aim of the Artemis program?

A.To help astronauts return to the Earth. B.To be ready for the landing on Mars.

C.To study the Mars using new science. D.To test the Moon landing spacecraft, Orion.

2.Which will be the achievement of the Artemis series?

A.Going to the Moon’s South Pole. B.Making the farthest trip into space.

C.Sending the first man to the Moon. D.Flying to the Moon with three persons.

3.What will Artemis astronauts do on the Moon?

A.Send astronauts to Mars. B.Run a three-year-long test.

C.Find and make use of water. D.Learn to live not far from home.

4.What can we conclude from the text?

A.It is possible to live on another planet now.

B.The crew will reach the lunar surface from the Orion.

C.NASA has sent the first woman astronaut to the Moon.

D.The Artemis program is of great help to Mars exploring.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

NASA’s Mars detector (探测器), Opportunity, succeeded in finding signs that water once existed on the planet. Opportunity landed on Mars in January. Scientists now believe that the planet could once have supported life.

This discovery was chosen by Science, one of the world’s leading magazines, as the most important scientific achievement of 2004 last Friday.

“This little, wheeled, one-armed box went around another planet and has done something no human has ever managed,” according to Science. “It has discovered another place in the universe where life could once have existed.”

“Although we still can’t say that life could have existed in this environment, it is now certain that there was water on Mars,” said Steve Squyres, one of the scientists working on the Mars mission. The evidence comes from pictures and chemical readings taken by Opportunity. It includes marks on rocks like those caused by flowing water on Earth and salty chemicals like those found in dried-out sea-beds. Scientists said the new evidence proved beyond doubt that water has existed on Mars. But it is still unknown whether the water on Mars was like an ocean or justice.

While Opportunity has not found any signs of life, the presence of water means life is possible. “In everything we know about life on Earth, there is no example without liquid water,” Squyres said. “So water is important for the search for life on Mars.”

Researchers agree that a future mission (任务) should bring back physical samples (样品). But some scientists worry about the risk that this could introduce dangerous foreign creatures to Earth. “The problem here is how to get the samples back,” Squyres replied. “I think it is our responsibility to limit any risk.”

1.________ prove that water existed on Mars.

2.Which of the following is TURE according to the text?

3.How did scientists draw the conclusion that there was water on Mars?

4.It can be inferred that, if the creatures from Mars came to Earth, ________.

高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析

In today’s congratulatory phone call to the team behind NASA's Mars Curiosity rover（火星车）, President Barack Obama made sure that if the mission discovers Martians, he'll be one of the first to know.

"If in fact you do make contact with Martians, please let me know right away," Obama said during the call, "I've got a lot of things on my plate, but I expect that that will go to the top of the list. Even if they're just microbes(微生物), it will be pretty exciting."

Obama also said he was impressed by the attention that's been paid to flight director Bobak Ferdowsi, the "Mohawk Guy" whose star-spangled haircut and warmhearted behavior during Curiosity's Aug. 5 landing won him Internet fame.

"I, in the past, thought about getting a Mohawk myself," Obama joked. "But my team keeps on discouraging me. And now that he's received marriage proposals and thousands of new Twitter followers, I think I'm going to go back to my team and see if it makes sense."

The congratulatory phone call is a tradition for the White House. But it was clear that Obama particularly enjoyed congratulating the scientists and engineers behind the amazingly successful landing of NASA's newest Mars exploration.

He also said the achievement reflected the American spirit, and he gave his personal promise to protect these critical investments in science and technology.

"This is the kind of thing that inspires kids across the country," he said. "They’re telling their moms and dads they want to be part of a Mars mission, maybe even the first person to walk on Mars. And that kind of inspiration is the byproduct of work of the sort that you guys have done."

The Curiosity rover's $2.5 billion mission focuses on studying billions of years' worth of geology on Mars and determining whether the planet was ever potentially suitable for people to live in. The mission is not specifically designed to explore life, even on the range of microbes, but it could point the way for future life-exploration experiments.

1.Obama phoned the team behind NASA's Mars Curiosity rover in order to _______.

A．congratulate them on finding Martians　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

B．praise the flight director

C．congratulate on the rover’s landing　　　　　　　　　

D．encourage them to contact with Martians

2.What is the main idea of Paragraph 2 ?

A．Obama is very busy now.

B．Obama longs for the finding of life on Mars.

C．Obama is interested in biology.

D．Obama wants to contact Martians.

3.Which of the following about the Curiosity rover is TRUE ?

A．It costs billions of dollars.

B．It mainly aims to find life on Mars.

C．It carries the first person to Mars.

D．It proves Mars fit to live on.

4.What can we learn from the passage ?

A．Bobak Ferdowsi got a Mohawk haircut to win great Internet fame.

B．Obama called on the government and companies to invest in science.

C．America’s president seldom congratulates on scientific achievements.

D．Children showed special interest in the landing of Curiosity.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析