CNN 2012-05-26

 We appreciate the students at * Virginia’s high for getting us a start today. I am K C, it’s May 23rd, and we’re ready to a launch seeing today’s headline.

 

3.2.1.0 A launch of this Space X falcon¹ 9 rocket has NASA’s turns to the private sect² to resupply the international space station.

 

What you’re watching is the beginning of a new era in space exploration. It’s the first time a commercial rocket, one owned by a private company, has taken off for the international space station. Space X falcon 9 rocket is carrying 1300 pounds of food, cloths and supplies. The company has a contract with NASA worth nearly 400 million dollars. And it’s trying to show that private companies can get to the ISS safely and efficiently³. J explains the shift in space exploration.

 

No one’s going to any planets right now, cuz our own vehicles can’t take anybody to a planet. So all of these companies are trying to develop their own rockets, their own spacecrafts, in order to take US astronauts to the international space station. What NASA decided⁴ to do is to get out of the low earth orbit business. How do you do that? You start turning over to commercial companies, he flights to the international space station, taking crew, taking cargo⁵, and eliminating the shuttle program. It was the only way that NASA was going to be able to move out and doing things that NASA does best which is to do deep space exploration. So now you have several commercial companies, competing for contracts for taking cargo to the international space station, competing for contracts to ultimately take astronauts to the international space station. The only place to go right now until their space hotels, until their private space stations is the international space station. So you know these companies really need NASA’s money and NASA’s seed money in order to develop their space pro⁶, and at this point, the real only customer out there to go to the international space station, you know, is NASA. Space X is saying that it can charge NASA 20 million dollars as a seed to fly astronauts to the international space station. Right now because NASA has no way to get there but using Russian’s and their Soviet’s rockets, NASA is paying 50-60 millions dollars as a seed to the Russians. So a big difference in how much it’s gonna cost if someone like Space X or *, US commercial companies start flying air shuttle, it’ll bring the cost way down.

1 falcon   

n.隼，猎鹰

参考例句：

• The falcon was twice his size with pouted feathers.鹰张开羽毛比两只鹰还大。
• The boys went hunting with their falcon.男孩子们带着猎鹰出去打猎了。

2 sect   

n.派别，宗教，学派，派系

参考例句：

• When he was sixteen he joined a religious sect.他16岁的时候加入了一个宗教教派。
• Each religious sect in the town had its own church.该城每一个宗教教派都有自己的教堂。

3 efficiently   

adv.高效率地，有能力地

参考例句：

• The worker oils the machine to operate it more efficiently.工人给机器上油以使机器运转更有效。
• Local authorities have to learn to allocate resources efficiently.地方政府必须学会有效地分配资源。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

6 pro   

n.赞成，赞成的意见，赞成者

参考例句：

• The two debating teams argued the question pro and con.辩论的两组从赞成与反对两方面辩这一问题。
• Are you pro or con nuclear disarmament?你是赞成还是反对核裁军？