From VOA Learning English, this is Science in
the News. I’m June Simms.
And I’m Jim Tedder. Today on the program, we tell about developments1
in
space exploration. We
tell about an American decision to extend2 the life of
the International Space Station.
We also3 tell about
the American space agency’s Mars4 rover Opportunity
and new findings5 from the red planet. We have a report6 about
what appear to be7 high energy particles8
from outside our solar system.
But first, we report on plans for an unusual map.
A man-made9
satellite called Gaia started a long trip10 late
last year. The satellite was
designed to11 travel more than a million kilometers from Earth12.
Scientists are hoping13 that
Gaia will take pictures14 of our galaxy, the Milky
Way15. They plan to
use the pictures to create the first three-dimensional -- or 3-D -- map of the
Milky Way. It will show the height16,
depth17 and width18 of stars
and other large, recognizable19 objects.
The satellite weighs two tons20. It was launched21 on
a Russian Soyuz rocket22 last December from the
European Space Agency’s center in French Guiana. Gaia rose23 quickly
and soon began24 orbiting the Earth.
It then deployed25 a
10-meter-large circular sunshield26. The device27 is keeping28
instruments on the satellite -- including two telescopes – cool29
on the long trip.
The scientists hope to use the telescope to
study distant stars. Gaia was designed
to be mechanically stable30. That is why31 the
satellite has so few moving parts32. In addition33, its
temperature must not change34 very much.
Mark McCaughrean is the chief scientist for
the Gaia mission. He says the
information Gaia gathers35 will help scientists understand
how our galaxy developed, how it looks36 today, and
how it may change.
“It will measure37 the
positions of a billion stars but also their speeds, their motions. And with that we can run a movie38
of the Milky Way. We can run it forwards39,
into the future, how the Milky Way will develop by looking at all the stars and
how they move. But we can run it
backwards40
as well41, and we can see how the Milky Way actually42
formed in the first place.”
Gerard F. Gilmore is with the Institute of
Astronomy at England’s Cambridge University.
He says the 3-D images will one day show half of the Milky Way. He says the map will provide43
new knowledge44 about what keeps the galaxy together45.
“And the particular interest46
that I have in here, locally, is in the nature of dark matter47. What is dark matter made of? Dark matter is most of the weight48 in
the Milky Way. It is dark matter that holds49
the Milky Way together. If
there weren’t50 all this dark material, our sun would fly off away51
from the galaxy. The whole52 galaxy would fall apart53.”
Scientists expect the satellite to operate for
five years in an area about 1.5 million kilometers from Earth. It will take54
about 70 pictures of each of55
the one billion stars in the Milky Way.
The mission is expected to
cost56 about $1.3 billion.
The United States’ space agency has announced
plans to keep57
the International Space Station operating until58
2024. The $100 billion space station has already been in service for59
15 years. It was supposed60 to halt61 operations in 2020.
VOCABULARY
1. developments = desenvolvimentos
2. extend = prolongar
3. also
= também
4. Mars
= Marte
5. findings
= descobertas
6. report = relatorio
7. appear to be = parece ser
8. particles
= particulas
9. man-made
= feito pelo homem
10. trip
= viagem
11. was
designed to = foi projetado para
12. Earth
= Planeta Terra
13. hoping
= esperando
14. take
pictures = tirar fotos
15. Milky
Way = Via Lactea
16. height
= altura
17. depth
= profundidade
18. width
= largura
19. recognizable
= reconhecivel
20. weighs
two tons = pesa duas toneladas
21. launched
= lançados
22. rocket
= foguete
23. rose
= elevou-se
24. soon
began = logo começou
25. deployed
= implantou
26. sunshield
= escudo solar
27. device
= dispositivo
28. keeping
= mantendo
29. cool
= fresco, refrigerado
30. mechanically
stable = estável mecanicamente
31. That
is why = É por isso que
32. so
few moving parts = tão poucas peças móveis
33. In addition = além disso
34. must not change = não deve mudar
35. gathers
= reune, coleta
36. how
it looks = como ela se parece
37. measure
= medir
38. run
a movie = rodar um filme
39. forwards
= para a frente
40. backwards
= para trás
41. as
well = também
42. actually
= realmente
43. provide
= fornecer
44. knowledge
= conhecimento
45. together
= junto, unido
46. particular
interest = interesse específico
47. dark
matter = matéria escura
48. weight = peso
49. holds = mantém
50. If there weren’t = se não houvesse
51. would fly off away = voaria para longe
52. whole
= todo(a)
53. fall
apart = desmoronar, separar-se
54. take
= tirar (fotos)
55. each
of = cada uma das
56. is
expected to cost = espera-se que vá custar
57. keep
= manter
58. until
= até
59. has
already been in service for = já está em serviço há
60. It was supposed to = deveria supostamente
61. halt
= parar, interromper
