The Mir Space Station

1　The Russian Mir Space Station, which came down in 2001 at last after 15 years of pioneering the concept of long-term human space flight, is remembered for its accomplishments in the human space flight history. It can be credited with many firsts in space.

2　During Mir’s lifetime, Russia spent about US $4.2 billion to build and maintain the station.

3　The Soviet Union launched Mir, which was designed to last from three to five years, on February 20, 1986, and housed 104 astronauts over 12 years and seven months, most of whom were not Russian. In fact, it became the first international space station by playing host to1 62 people from 11 countries. From 1995 through 1998, seven astronauts from the United States took turns living on Mir for up to six months each2. They were among the 37 Americans who visited the station during nine stopovers by space shuttles.

4　The more than 400 million the United States provided Russian for the visits not only kept Mir operating, but also gave the Americans and their partners in the international station project valuable experience in long-term flight and multinational operations.

5　A debate continues over Mir’s contributions to science. During its existence, Mir was the laboratory for 23,000 experiments and carried scientific equipment, estimated to be worth $80 million, from many nations.3 Experiments on Mir are credited with a range of findings, from the first solid measurement of the ration of heavy helium atoms in space to how to grow wheat in space. But for those favouring human space exploration, Mir showed that people could live and work in space long enough for a trip to Mars. The longest single stay in space is the 437.7 days that Russian astronaut Valery Polyakov spent on Mir from 1994 to 1995. And Sergie Avdeyev accumulated 747.6 days in space in three trips to the space station. The longest American stay was that of Shannon Lucid4, who spent 188 days aboard Mir in 1996.

6　Despite the many firsts Mir accomplished, 1997 was a bad year out of 15 for Mir. In 1997, an oxygen generator caught fire. Later, the main computer system broke down, causing the station to drift several times and there were power failures.

7　Most of these problems were repaired, with American help and suppliers, but Mir’s reputation as a space station was ruined.

8　Mir’s setbacks are nothing, though5, when we compare them with its accomplishments. Mir was a tremendous success, which will be remembered as a milestone in space exploration and the space station that showed long-term human habitation in space was possible. But it’s time to move on to the next generation. The International Space Station being built will be better, but it owes a great debt to Mir.

詞匯：

pioneer 開拓 accomplishment 成就

credit / 歸功于 host 主人

stopover 中途短暫停留 multinational 多國的

ration 含量 helium 氦

aboard 在（船、飛機、車）上 setback 挫折

milestone 里程碑 habitation 居住 debt 債

注釋：

1．play host to：當(dāng)東道主

2．... seven astronauts from the United States took turns living on Mir for up to six months each.來自美國的七位宇航員輪流在和平號上住了六個月之久。

take turns：輪流

living on Mir for up to six months each是現(xiàn)在分詞短語，用作狀語。

3．During its existence, Mir was the laboratory for 23,000 experiments and carried scientific equipment, estimated to be worth $80 million, from many nations：在和平號存在的時間里，它是進行23 000個實驗的實驗室，并攜帶了許多國家提供的價值估計為8 000萬美元的科學(xué)儀器。

estimated to be worth $80 million是過去分詞短語，用作定語。

4．The longest American stay was that of Shannon Lucid ...：美國人停留時間最長的一次是Shannon Lucid的那一次……

that替代前半句的stay。

5．Mir’s setbacks are nothing, though ... ：但是，和平號這些挫折算不了什么……

though：但是

練習(xí)：

1．Paragraph 4 ________

2．Paragraph 5 ________

3．Paragraph 6 ________

4．ParaeraDh 8 ________

A　Undeniable Mir’s Achievements

B　Rewards Following the US Financial Injection

C　Mir’s Problem Year

D　Mir Regarded as a Complete Failure

E　Mir’s Firsts in Scientific Experiments and Space Exploration

F　A Great Debt Owed to the International Space Station

5．Mir enhanced the confidence in the scientists that humans living in space for a long time was ________.

6．In Mir, the US astronauts created ________.

7．When we think of Mir in terms of its achievements, its setbacks are ________.

8．The writer tends to think that Mir was ________.

A　everything

B　a great success

C　a tremendous failure

D　nothing

E　many firsts

F　quite possible

答案與題解：

1．B　本段談到，美國的經(jīng)濟支持產(chǎn)生了兩個作用，即不僅使和平號空間站的航行得以繼續(xù)，而且使美國及其他國家的宇航員取得了在宇宙空間長時間航行和多國合作的經(jīng)驗。

2．E　本段列舉了和平號空間站取得的許多個第一。firsts這個詞在第一段中出現(xiàn)，本段列舉了許多的事實以支持第一段的論點。

3．C　選項C是正確的。1997年是和平號遇到不少麻煩的一年。

4．A　本段對和平號空間站作出了積極的評價，并談到和平號出現(xiàn)的問題與其取得的成就相比是微不足道的。

5．F　選F的依據(jù)在第八段：（Mir）will be remembered as a milestone in space exploration and the space station that showed long-term human habitation in space was possible.

6．E　本文在第三段和第五段共列出美國借助和平號創(chuàng)造了多項第一，如：（1）From 1995 through 1998，seven astronauts from the United States took turns living on Mir for up to six months each.（第三段）（2）The longest American stay was that of Shannon Lucid, who spent 188 days aboard Mir in 1996.（第五段）

7．D　選D的依據(jù)在第八段：Mir’s setbacks are nothing, though, when we compare them with its accomplishments.

8．B　通篇文章都對和平號作出了積極的評價，并列出了不少具有重大意義的事實和數(shù)據(jù)。在第八段里，作者最后作出總結(jié)：Mir was a tremendous success, which will be remembered as a milestone in space exploration ...

譯文：和平號空間站

在人類長期空間飛行方面領(lǐng)先了 15年的俄國和平號空間站在2001年回歸。它因其在人類空間飛行史上的成就而被人們記住。它在太空領(lǐng)域占有很多第一次。

在和平號使用期間俄國花了大約 42億美元建造和維護空間站。

1986年 2月 20日蘇聯(lián)發(fā)射了被設(shè)計能使用 3～5年的和平號。它在 12年零 7個月里負(fù)載了 104位宇航員，他們大部分都不是俄國人。事實上，它作為來自 11個國家 62個宇航員的東道主成為第一個國際空間站。從 1995年到 1998年，來自美國的 7位宇航員輪流在和平號上各住了 6個月之久。他們是在宇宙飛船中途停留時來參觀過的 37位美國人中的幾個。

美國為參觀而支付的 4億多美元不僅使和平號繼續(xù)工作而且給在國際空間站項目中的美國人和他們的搭檔們提供了寶貴的長期飛行和多國合作方面的經(jīng)驗。

關(guān)于和平號空間站對科學(xué)的貢獻方面的爭論不斷。在和平號存在的時間里，它是 23000個實驗的實驗室，并且攜帶了許多國家提供的價值約八千萬美元的科學(xué)儀器。一系列的發(fā)現(xiàn)要歸功于和平號上的實驗，從第一次在太空有效地測量重氦原子的量到怎樣在太空種小麥。對那些對人類的太空探索有興趣的人來說，和平號告訴人們?nèi)丝梢栽谔展ぷ骱蜕畹臅r間足夠到達火星。在太空中一次停留最長的時間是俄國宇航員瓦雷利·波里亞科夫從 1994年到 1995年在和平號上停留的 437. 7天。吉·阿維德耶夫三次到太空站共計停留了 747.6天。美國人在空間站停留最長的一次是珊農(nóng)·露西的那一次，她 1996年在和平號上停留了 188天。

盡管和平號完成了很多第一次，但 1997年是它 15年中的一個壞年頭。 1997年一個氧氣發(fā)生器著火了。

后來主計算機崩潰導(dǎo)致太空始幾次失控。除此之外還有一些動力失敗事故。這些問題中的大部分都在美國的幫助和支持下被解決了，但是和平號作為太空站名聲掃地。

但是，和它的成就相比和平號這些挫折算不了什么。和平號是一個巨大的成功，它將作為太空探索中的里程碑和顯示人類有可能在太空長期生活的太空站而被記住。但是到了開始下一代的時候了。正在建造的太空站將更好，但這要歸功于和平號。

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（責(zé)任編輯：vstara）

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