It was July 1976. An unmanned spaceship, Viking One, had arrived at Mars. On July 20th, the spaceship
. Part of it continued toward a landing on the planet. It fell
through the late afternoon Mars’ sky.
Forty kilometers above the planet, the thin
began to slow its fall. Six kilometers above the planet a big parachute(降落伞)opened. The landing craft fell more slowly. Then, three rocket engines
. And the landing craft set down
on the surface.
in the Viking One Lander immediately sent a message to the earth. It said, “I am here. I am down safely. I am beginning my work. ”
The message
at the speed of light. It took twenty minutes to reach the earth, more than three hundred and twenty million kilometers
. Scientists and engineers at the control center
.
Moments later, television receiver in the control center began to
the first picture from Viking One. People at the center could see the feet of the landing craft sitting firmly on the
11 soil of Mars. Those pictures were our first
look at the planet. They showed a red surface, full of rocks, with no sign of
. It was our first look at a planet that is full of surprises, mysteries and promise. Viking One was launched toward Mars in August, 1975. The spaceship had two
: an orbiter(轨道飞行器)and a lander(着陆器). The orbiter would circle
Mars. It would take pictures of Mars’ surface. It would
the atmosphere.
The
would go down to the surface. It would carry
to dig up and study soil and
.
It also would report about any evidence of life on the planet. The lander would send this
to the orbiter and then back to the earth.
| 小题1: | | A．separated | B．appeared | | C．worked | D．started |
|
| 小题2: | | A．correctly | B．slowly | C．quickly | D．directly |
|
| 小题3: | | A．air | B．universe | | C．space | D．atmosphere |
|
| 小题4: | | A．fired | B．fell | C．opened | D．floated |
|
| 小题5: | | A．heavily | B．softly | | C．suddenly | D．immediately |
|
| 小题6: | | A．A computer | B．A rocket | | C．A pilot | D．An astronaut |
|
| 小题7: | | A．spread | B．traveled | C．shot | D．moved |
|
| 小题8: | | A．far | B．long | C．distant | D．away |
|
| 小题9: | | A．shouted | B．watched | | C．cheered | D．welcomed |
|
| 小题10: | | A．make | B．take | C．show | D．search |
|
| 小题11: | | A．red | B．brown | C．gray | D．black |
|
| 小题12: | | A．careful | B．close | C．real | D．clear |
|
| 小题14: | | A．parts | B．rockets | C．engines | D．centers |
|
| 小题15: | | A．through | B．towards | C．over | D．around |
|
| 小题16: | | A．enter | B．examine | | C．collect | D．discover |
|
| 小题17: | | A．orbiter | B．lander | | C．spaceship | D．rocket |
|
| 小题18: | | A．engineers | B．astronauts | | C．parachutes | D．instruments |
|
| 小题19: | | A．surface | B．trees | C．rocks | D．pictures |
|
| 小题20: | | A．spaceship | B．rocket | | C．lander | D．information |
|
