A
There is an ancient Chinese story about a giant man named Kua Fu who chases the sun. He drains (喝干) the Yellow and Wei rivers during his race and finally dies of dehydration(脱水). His failure has reminded people of the unstoppable power of the sun for centuries. And yet, scientists throughout history have tried to better understand the most important star in our sky. On Aug. 12, 2018, NASA launched the Parker Solar Probe(探测器), marking the start of its trip to the sun.
The probe itself is almost as big as a car and needed the help of a powerful rocket to escape Earth’s orbit, change direction and reach the sun. In order to reach the sun, the probe must complete seven flights of Venus, using the power of the planet’s gravity to change its path, sending it toward the sun. But that’s not the only difficult part of the journey. As the probe approaches the sun’s corona(日冕), it will have to bear temperatures reaching 1, 400 ℃, as well as deal with serious radiation. So how will the probe survive?
According to NASA, a special shield (保护罩)has been used, which is a special 11. 5 cm-thick carbon-composite shield that will be positioned between the probe and the sun’s corona. Its advanced technology like this will make the probe’s trip to the sun much smoother. If everything goes as planned, the probe will reach a speed of 692, 018 kilometers per hour as it orbits the sun, setting a new record for the fastest man-made object in history, NBC noted. It will fly close to the sun 24 times between 2018 and 2025, NBC added.
The “mission to touch the sun” will “not only make history by answering questions that have puzzled scientists for decades, but it may also lead to the discovery of new phenomena that are completely unknown to us now, ” Raouafi told Discovery Magazine. “This mission has the potential to push solar research into a new direction, ” he added.
【文章大意】这是一篇说明文。古有“夸父逐日”的故事, 自古至今人们一直未停止对太阳的探索。近日, 美国国家航空航天局发射了帕克太阳探索器, 人类“逐日”的梦想终于要实现了。
21. What does the underlined word “it” in Paragraph 2 refer to?
A. A powerful rocket. B. The probe.
C. Venus. D. The planet’s gravity.
【解析】选B。词义猜测题。根据上文的In order to reach the sun, the probe must complete seven flights of Venus可知, 此处是指利用行星引力的力量改变探测器的路径, 使它朝向太阳, 因此, 此处的it是指probe, 故选B。
22. What do we know about the Parker Solar Probe?
A. It’s the fastest probe ever designed.
B. It has an 11. 5-inch-thick shield.
C. It was designed to carry a powerful rocket.
D. It’s twice the size of a car.
【解析】选A。细节理解题。根据第三段的If everything goes as planned, the probe will reach a speed of 692, 018 kilometers per hour as it orbits the sun, setting a new record for the fastest man-made object in history, NBC noted. 可知, the Parker Solar Probe是曾被设计的最快的探测器, 故选A。
23. The probe will meet the challenges except______.
A. the route to the sun
B. the heat near the sun
C. the distance to the sun
D. the radiation from the sun
【解析】选C。细节理解题。根据第二段的the probe must complete seven flights of Venus, using the power of the planet’s gravity to change its path和As the probe approaches the sun’s corona, it will have to bear temperatures reaching 1, 400℃, as well as deal with serious radiation. 可知, 探测器将会遇到去太阳的路线, 太阳的温度和太阳的辐射的挑战, 但没有到太阳的距离问题, 故选C。
24. What’s the main purpose of the last paragraph?
A. To stress the importance of advanced technology.
B. To prove the mission is the greatest move in human history.
C. To suggest there is a long way to go in solar exploration.
D. To show the mission will fill a gap in solar research.
【解析】选D。目的意图题。根据上文主要介绍了“触日任务”, 再结合本段内容, 尤其是This mission has the potential to push solar research into a new direction. 可推断出, 本段的目的是想证明这一任务将填补太阳能研究的空白, 故选D。
