英语听力精选进阶版 13280

Earth-orbit ‘sweeper’ proposed

Report

After a half century of successes in space, low-Earth orbit has become a very messy place.

More than 17,000 pieces of space junk bigger than a hand's breadth are floating around up there; the largest of them weighs nearly ten tonnes.

The debris¹ poses a growing risk to communication satellites and occasionally manned space missions. As time goes on catastrophic collisions become more likely, which would create even more debris.

Marco Castronuovo has a simple plan to solve the problem, starting with the largest, heaviest threats. He's proposed sending up a robotic mission that will skip between chunks² of junk, affixing³ a little rocket to each one that will drive them out of orbit. The debris would then burn up harmlessly in the atmosphere over an ocean.

Each orbital housekeeper⁴ could clean up five objects a year, and would be sent on a seven-year mission.

It's a slow but straightforward⁵ solution to a problem that could otherwise leave low-Earth orbit completely unusable.

Jason Palmer, BBC News

1 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

2 chunks   

厚厚的一块( chunk的名词复数 )； （某物）相当大的数量或部分

参考例句：

• a tin of pineapple chunks 一罐菠萝块
• Those chunks of meat are rather large—could you chop them up a bIt'smaller? 这些肉块相当大，还能再切小一点吗？

3 affixing   

v.附加( affix的现在分词 )；粘贴；加以；盖（印章）

参考例句：

• Formally approves a document by affixing a signature. 以签名的形式正式批准文件。 来自互联网
• Forfixing, insulating, shock affixing parts or screws of many items such as appliances, stereos, and eyeglasses. 电器、音响响、光学学、电脑等的零件、螺丝固定绝缘、防震与接著。 来自互联网

4 housekeeper   

n.管理家务的主妇，女管家

参考例句：

• A spotless stove told us that his mother is a diligent housekeeper.炉子清洁无瑕就表明他母亲是个勤劳的主妇。
• She is an economical housekeeper and feeds her family cheaply.她节约持家，一家人吃得很省。

5 straightforward   

adj.正直的，坦率的；易懂的，简单的

参考例句：

• A straightforward talk is better than a flowery speech.巧言不如直说。
• I must insist on your giving me a straightforward answer.我一定要你给我一个直截了当的回答。