APOLLO THIRTEEN

32 阿波罗登月计划(二)

DATE=4-18-01
TITLE=EXPLORATIONS #1948 - PROJECT APOLLO (PART TWO): APOLLO THIRTEEN BYLINE=MARILYN RICE CHRISTIANO

     ANNCR:
     Explorations --- a program in special English by the Voice of America.     (Theme)
     ANNCR:
     American （1） astronauts in Apollo eleven landed on the moon July twentieth, nineteen- sixty- nine. A second landing¹ was made four months later. Both （2） flights were almost perfect. Everything worked as planned. Everyone expected the third moon-landing flight, Apollo thirteen, would go as well as the first two. But it did not.
     Today, Shirley Griffith and Sarah long tell you the story of Apollo thirteen --- the flight that almost did not come home.
     (Theme)
     Voice one:
     Apollo thirteen (3) roared² into space on Thursday, April eleventh, nineteen- seventy. The time was thirteen-thirteen, one-thirteen p.m. local time.
     Navy³ captain James Lovell was （4） commander of Apollo thirteen. He had flown on Apollo eight, the first flight to （5）orbit⁴ the moon.
     The two other crewmembers were （6）civilians -- John Swigert and Fred Haise. Apollo thirteen was their first space flight.
     Voice two:
     The apollo thirteen spacecraft was like the earlier Apollo's. It had three major parts. One was the command （7）module⁵. The astronauts would ride to the moon in the command module and then ride back to earth in it. It was the only part of the spacecraft that could survive the fiery⁶ return through the earth's atmosphere.
     The （8） lunar module was the second part. It would carry two of the astronauts to the moon's surface. It would later launch⁷ them from the moon to rejoin the command module.
     The third part of the apollo （9）spacecraft was the service module. It had a rocket engine that the astronauts fired to begin circling the moon. They fired it again to break out of moon orbit for the return flight to earth. The service module carried （10）tanks of （11）oxygen for the flight, and the fuel cells that produced electricity and water the astronauts needed to survive.
     Voice one:
     There was what seemed to be a minor⁸ problem during the ground tests before launch. Two large tanks in the service module held （12）liquid oxygen. The oxygen was the fuel that provided⁹ water and （13）electricity for the command module. One of the oxygen tanks failed to empty normally¹⁰ during the ground test. Engineers had to boil off the remaining oxygen by turning on a heater in the tank.
     Commander Lovell said later he should have demanded the oxygen tank be replaced. But it seemed to be fixed¹¹. So no change was made.
Voice two:
     After launch, Apollo thirteen sailed smoothly¹² through space for two days. Controllers on the ground joked that the flight had gone so well they did not have enough to do.
     That changed a few hours later. The first sign of trouble was a tiny burst of light in the western sky over the United States. It looked like a far-away star had （14）exploded.
     Voice one:
    Near the space center in Houston, Texas, some （15）amateur star-watchers were trying to see the Apollo spacecraft through telescopes. One of the groups had fixed a telescope to a television set so that objects seen by the telescope appeared on the television screen.
     The spacecraft was too far away to be seen. But suddenly, a bright spot appeared on the television screen. Over the next ten minutes it grew into a white circle.
     The (16) observers¹³ on the ground had no reason to believe the white spot they saw was made by the spacecraft. They thought it was a problem with the television. So they went home to bed.
     Voice two:
     It was not a problem with their television. It was a serious problem with Apollo thirteen.
      It happened a few minutes after the three astronauts completed a television (17) broadcast to earth. The astronauts heard a loud noise. The spacecraft shook. Warning lights came on. (18) Swinger called to (19) mission¹⁴ control; "Houston, we've had a problem here."
    The number two oxygen tanks in the service module had exploded. The liquid oxygen escaped into space. It formed a huge gas ball that expanded rapidly. Sunlight made it glow¹⁵. Within ten minutes, it was almost eighty (20) kilometers across. Then it slowly disappeared. The cloud was the white spot the observers in Houston had seen on their television.
     Voice one:
     The loss of one oxygen tank should not have been a major problem. Apollo had two oxygen tanks. So, if one failed, the other could be used. But the astronauts soon learned¹⁶ that the explosion¹⁷ had caused the other oxygen tank to leak.
     The astronauts were three- hundred- twenty- thousand kilometers from earth with little oxygen, electricity and water. Their situation was (21) extremely serious. No one knew if they could get the spacecraft back to earth, or if they could survive long enough to return.
     Voice two:
     The astronauts and the flight control center quickly decided¹⁸ that the lunar module could be their (22) lifeboat. It carried oxygen, water, electricity and food for two men for two days on the moon's surface.
     But there were three astronauts. And the trip back to earth would take four days. The men greatly reduced their use of water, food and heat. And they turned off all the electrical devices¹⁹ they could.
     Back on earth, space scientists and engineers worked around the clock to design and test new ideas to help the astronauts survive.
     Voice one:
     Getting enough good air to breathe became the most serious problem. The carbon (23) dioxide the astronauts breathed out was poisoning the air. The lunar module had a few devices for removing carbon dioxide. But there were not enough to remove all the carbon dioxide they created.
     Engineers on the ground designed a way the astronauts could connect air-cleaning devices from the command module to the air system in the lunar module. The astronauts made the connector from a plastic bag, cardboard²⁰ and tape. It worked. Carbon dioxide was no longer a problem.
     Voice two:
     Now the problem was how to get the astronauts back to earth as quickly and safely as possible. They were more than two-thirds of the way to the moon on a flight path that would take them to a moon landing. They needed to change their flight path to take them around the moon and back toward²¹ earth. They had to do this by firing the lunar module (24) rocket engine for just the right amount of time. And they had to make this move without the equipment in the command module that kept the spacecraft on its flight path.
     Five hours after the explosion, flight (25) controllers advised firing the rocket for thirty-five seconds. This sent the spacecraft around the moon instead of down to it. Two hours after Apollo thirteen went around the moon, the astronauts fired the rocket for five minutes. This speeded up the spacecraft to reach earth nine hours sooner.
     Voice one:
     The lunar module was extremely (26) uncomfortable. The astronauts had very little to drink and eat. But the cold was the worst part of the return trip. The temperature inside the lunar module was only a few degrees above freezing. It was too cold for them to sleep much.
     They used the electrical power in the lunar module to add electricity to the batteries of the (27) command module. They would need the electrical power for their landing.
     Voice two:
     The crew moved back to the command module a few hours before landing. They turned on the necessary equipment and broke away from the damaged service module. As the service module moved away, they saw for the first time the damage done by the exploding oxygen tank. Equipment was hanging from a huge hole in the side of the module.
     One hour before landing, Lovell, Swinger and Hayes said thanks and goodbye to their lifeboat, the lunar module. They separated from it and sent it flying away from them.
     Voice one:
     Now, the command module of apollo thirteen headed alone toward earth. It fell through the atmosphere. Its (28) parachutes opened, slowing its fall toward the Pacific Ocean, near (29) Samoa.
     Ships and planes were waiting in the landing area. And thousands of millions of people around the world were watching the live television broadcast of the landing. People everywhere cheered as the cameras found the spacecraft (30) floating downward beneath its three parachutes. They watched as it dropped softly²² into the water.
     The apollo thirteen astronauts were safely home.
     (Theme)
     ANNCR:
     This special English program was written by Marilyn Rice christiania and directed by Paul Thompson. Your narrators were Shirley Griffith and Sarah long. Join us again next week for another explorations program on the voice of America when we finish the story of the apollo moon-landing program.

注释：
(1) astronaut[5AstrEnC:t]n.太空人, 宇航员
(2) flight[ flait ]n.飞行, 逃走v.成群飞行, 迁徙
(3) roar[ rC: ]n.吼叫, 怒号 v.滚动, 咆哮
(4) commander[ kE5mB:ndE ]n.司令官, 指挥官
(5) orbit[ 5C:bit ]n.轨道, 势力范围, 生活常规, 眼眶v.绕...轨道而行
(6) civilian[ si5viljEn ]n.平民, 公务员adj.民间的, 民用的
(7) module[ 5mCdju:l ]n.模数,登月舱
(8) lunar[ 5lju:nE ]adj.月的, 月亮的
(9) spacecraft[ 5speiskrB:ft ]n.太空船
(10) tank[ tANk ]n.桶、箱
(11) oxygen[ 5CksidVEn ]n. [化]氧
(12) liquid[ 5likwid ]n.液体, 流体adj.液体的,(财务)易变卖的
(13) electricity[Ilek5trIsItI]n.电流, 电, 电学
(14) exploded[ iks5plEudid ]adj.爆破了的, 被打破的
(15) amateur[ 5AmEtE(:), 5AmEtjuE ]n.业余爱好者, 业余艺术家
(16) observer[ Eb5zE:vE ]n.观测者, 观察员, 遵守者
(17) broadcast[ 5brC:dkB:st ]n.广播, 播音v.播撒(种子)
(18) swinger[ 5swiNE ]n.摆动(或挥动)的人, 赶时髦的人
(19) mission[ 5miFEn ]n.使命, 任务, 使团, 代表团
(20) kilometer[ 5kilEmi:tE ]n.[物]千米, 公里
(21) extremely[ iks5tri:mli ]adv.极端地, 非常地
(22) lifeboat[5laIfbEJt]n.救生艇
(23) dioxide[ dai5Cksaid ]n.二氧化物
(24) rocket[ 5rCkit ]n.火箭v.飞速上升
(25) controller[ kEn5trEulE ]n.管理员, 控制器
(26) uncomfortable[ Qn5kQmfEtEbl ]adj.不舒服的, 不安的
(27) command[ kE5mB:nd ]n.命令, 掌握, 司令部v.命令
(28) parachute[ 5pArEFu:t ]n.降落伞
(29) Samoa[ sE5mEuE ]n.萨摩亚群岛[南太平洋]
(30) floating[ 5flEutiN ]adj.漂浮的, 浮动的

1 landing   

n.登陆；着陆；楼梯平台

参考例句：

• Owing to engine trouble,the plane had to make a forced landing.由于发动机出了毛病，飞机不得不进行迫降。
• When are we landing?我们什么时候着陆？

2 roared   

v.咆哮( roar的过去式和过去分词 )；大笑；大哭；熊熊燃烧

参考例句：

• A log fire roared in the open hearth. 柴火在敞开着的壁炉里熊熊燃烧。
• Vroom! A sports car roared past. 呜的一声，一辆跑车疾驶而过。

3 navy   

n.海军，海军人员，海军军力，藏青色

参考例句：

• My brother is in the navy.我兄弟在海军服役。
• He has transferred from the army to the navy.他从陆军转到海军。

4 orbit   

n.轨道；vt.使沿轨道运行；使进入轨道运行；vi.沿轨道运行，环行

参考例句：

• The space rocket was launched and went into orbit.宇宙火箭发射后进入轨道。
• We can draw the earth's orbit round the sun.我们可以画出地球绕太阳运行的轨迹。

5 module   

n.组件，模块，模件；(航天器的)舱

参考例句：

• The centre module displays traffic guidance information.中央模块显示交通引导信息。
• Two large tanks in the service module held liquid oxygen.服务舱的两个大气瓶中装有液态氧。

6 fiery   

adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的

参考例句：

• She has fiery red hair.她有一头火红的头发。
• His fiery speech agitated the crowd.他热情洋溢的讲话激动了群众。

7 launch   

vt.发动，推出；发射；n.发射，下水，投产

参考例句：

• The makers are about to launch out a new product.制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。
• Would it be wise to launch into this rough sea?在这样汹涌的大海中游泳明智吗？

8 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

9 provided   

conj.假如，若是；adj.预备好的，由...供给的

参考例句：

• Provided it's fine we will have a pleasant holiday.如果天气良好，我们的假日将过得非常愉快。
• I will come provided that it's not raining tomorrow.如果明天不下雨，我就来。

10 normally   

adv.正常地，通常地

参考例句：

• I normally do all my shopping on Saturdays.我通常在星期六买东西。
• My pulse beats normally.我脉搏正常。

11 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

12 smoothly   

adv.平滑地，顺利地，流利地，流畅地

参考例句：

• The workmen are very cooperative,so the work goes on smoothly.工人们十分合作，所以工作进展顺利。
• Just change one or two words and the sentence will read smoothly.这句话只要动一两个字就顺了。

13 observers   

n.观察者( observer的名词复数 )；遵守者；观测者；目击者

参考例句：

• According to observers, the plane exploded shortly after take-off. 据目击者说，飞机起飞后不久就爆炸了。
• Some military observers fear the US could get entangled in another war. 一些军事观察家担心美国会卷入另一场战争。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 mission   

n.使命，任务，天职；代表团，使团

参考例句：

• He was charged with an important mission.他受委托承担一项重要使命。
• I'll leave you to undertake an important mission.我要让你承担一项重要使命。

15 glow   

n.白热光；激情；vi.发白热光，(身体)发热

参考例句：

• The sunset glow is just like a picture.晚霞恰如一幅图画。
• There was a dull red glow in the night sky above the steelworks.夜晚炼钢厂的上空闪着暗红色的光。

16 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。

17 explosion   

n.爆发，发出，爆炸

参考例句：

• The police arrived right at the moment of the explosion.警察就在爆炸的那个时候赶到了。
• The shock of the explosion was felt far away.爆炸引起的震动很远都可感觉到。

18 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。

19 devices   

n.设备；装置( device的名词复数 )；花招；（为实现某种目的的）计划；手段

参考例句：

• electrical labour-saving devices around the home 节省劳力的各种家用电器
• modern labour-saving devices such as washing machines and dishwashers 诸如洗衣机和洗碗机之类的现代化省力设备

20 cardboard   

n.硬纸板，卡纸板

参考例句：

• She brought the shopping home in a cardboard box.她将买的东西放在纸箱里带回家。
• There is a sheet of stiff cardboard in the drawer.在那个抽屉里有块硬纸板。

21 toward   

prep.对于，关于，接近，将近，向，朝

参考例句：

• Suddenly I saw a tall figure approaching toward the policeman.突然间我看到一个高大的身影朝警察靠近。
• Upon seeing her,I smiled and ran toward her. 看到她我笑了，并跑了过去。

22 softly   

adv.柔和地，静静地，温柔地

参考例句：

• He speaks too softly for her to hear.他讲话声音太轻，她听不见。
• She breathed her advice softly.她低声劝告。