Read the following passage and choose the best answer for each question.

Where will you go on your next vacation? Disneyland? Sea World? Outer space?

That’s right; tourists are now paying big bucks to travel into space with astronauts! The first space tourist was Dennis Tito, an American businessman. In 2001, he paid about $20 million to ride on a Russian rocket to the International Space Station. The Space Station circles 220 miles above Earth. Tito stayed on the station for a week, hanging out with astronauts and eating space food. The latest space tourist was Anousheh Ansari, an Iranian-born woman from the United States who went to the Space Station in mid-September 2006.

How safe is space travel? Apart from the risk of crashing, space tourists have some special things to worry about. Earth’s atmosphere protects us from dangerous radiation from the sun. Space travelers are exposed to more of the sun’s rays. But for tourists spending only a few days or weeks in space, the radiation probably isn’t harmful.

A bigger problem might be space sickness. Without Earth’s gravity to hold them down, visitors to the Space Station float around inside the craft. It may look like fun on TV, but it can make first-time space travelers dizzy and sick. Luckily, the sickness usually wears off quickly. Then space tourists can enjoy their trip and the amazing view of Earth.

Why are space travelers exposed to more radiation?

Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin planted an American flag on the moon. They spoke to President Richard Nixon after that.

→ Before Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin ___________________________

Fill each blank with a suitable word to complete the following passage.

Space exploration is the investigation of the universe beyond the Earth’s atmosphere, by (1) ________ of manned or unmanned spacecraft. Despite the technological advancements achieved in the past, space exploration was only (2) _______ until the 20th century. The first successful orbital launch was made by the Soviet Union in 1957 which was called “Sputnik”. When the topic “SPACE EXPLORATION” is put (3)_______ the table, a question has often been asked: “Why should we spend money on NASA while there are so (4) _______ problems here on Earth?” However, this might be partially wrong since exploring the unknown may help us progress.

The advantages of space exploration include the materials (5) ________ can be obtained from outer space. For instance, asteroids have iron and nickel which could be utilized to satisfy the (6) ________ for metal. Therefore, numerous commercial companies have invested in developing technology for asteroid mining. Several comets and asteroids (7) ________ solid water in them. This water can be used for astronauts and scientists in space stations. The water can also be broken down to hydrogen which can be used as (8) ______ for the rockets. Scientists also believe that dinosaurs disappeared because they couldn’t go to (9) ________ planet. Sooner or later a killer comet will again cross Earth’s path, threatening all life. Fortunately, (10) _________we have knowledge about comets and space science, we will be able to survive.

Question 1:

Use the ideas below to write a paragraph of around 100 words about the benefits of space exploration.

• Might find new minerals, precious materials sometimes → make our lives easier

• Bring smart people work together → result in fantastic scientific discoveries, useful inventions

• Colonise other plants, make atmosphere suitable for human life

_______________________________________________________

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Complete the sentences with the words from the box. Use each word once only.

Was Viet Nam’s first telecom satellite Vinasat-l put into ________on April 18th, 2008?

Join each pair of sentences into one, using the prompts provided.

We are meeting an astronomer tonight. This astronomer has discovered three Earth-like planets.

→ The astronomer ___________________________________________.

Christer Fuglesang said he enjoyed floating around in the _____ environment.

The Milky Way is just a ______ in the universe and it contains our Solar System.

Dennis Tito became the first space tourist in 2001. Anousheh Ansari travelled into space as a tourist in 2006.

→ When Anousheh Ansari _______________________________________

I’m reading an article. The article is about NASA’s plans to return humans to the moon.

→ I’m reading _______________________________________________

Last week they visited a museum. The first artificial satellite is on display there.

→ Last week they ___________________________________________

The launch of the Space Shuttle Endeavour _____ broadcast live this morning.

Choose the correct option A, B, C, or D to complete the sentences.

The first _______ was done by Alexei Leonov, a Russian cosmonaut on March 18th, 1965. It was 10 minutes long.

Complete the sentences with the words from the box. Use each word once only.

The mission not only taught NASA about Venus, but also how to__________ a spacecraft far from Earth.

Complete the sentences with the words from the box. Use each word once only.

The tail of a_________ can extend over 84 million miles, nearly the distance between the earth and the sun.

Complete the sentences with the words from the box. Use each word once only.

People _________ in space because there is no gravity to pull them towards anything.