2020 Saw Many Successes in Space Exploration
2020-12-28
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1Space exploration gave moments of hope in a difficult year.
2Three countries sent spacecraft toward Mars in 2020.
3Astronauts launched into orbit from the United States for the first time in nearly 10 years.
4And robotic explorers collected rocks from the Moon and from an asteroid.
5Expectations are high for 2021 also.
6Next February, landings are expected on Mars and the planned launch of the James Webb Space Telescope is to take place in the autumn.
7The huge telescope is taking the place of the famous Hubble Space Telescope.
8Other developments are expected too.
9The aerospace company Boeing hopes to catch up with SpaceX in launching astronauts.
10And space tourism may finally get off the ground.
11Scott Hubbard served as the U.S. space agency's (NASA) first Mars program director. He now teaches at Stanford University.
12He said, "2021 promises to be as much of a space exploration bright spot, perhaps even more."
13Although the coronavirus crisis created problems for all space programs in 2020, most very important projects still went forward.
14The U.S., China and the United Arab Emirates launched spacecraft toward Mars.
15NASA's Perseverance robot explorer is set to land on February 18.
16Perseverance will cut into the dry soil, collecting samples for return to Earth.
17The UAE's spacecraft is that country's first attempt to visit another planet.
18It will study the Martian atmosphere.
19China's Tianwen-1 will look for signs of ancient life on the red planet.
20China also carried out explorations of the Moon in 2020.
21In December, a Chinese spacecraft landed and then launched off the moon's surface.
22It collected the first moon rocks returned to Earth since the 1970s.
23Japan brought back pieces of the asteroid Ryugu.
24More asteroid samples are on the way.
25NASA's Osiris-Rex spacecraft got samples from the asteroid Bennu in October.
26The samples are planned to return in 2023.
27Elon Musk's company SpaceX did a lot in 2020.
28In May, SpaceX became the first private company to send people into orbit, a success that could only be claimed by three powerful nations before.
29In November, four more astronauts rode a SpaceX Dragon to the International Space Station.
30Three weeks later, SpaceX launched its biggest shipment yet to the space station for NASA.
31Mark Kelly who was elected as a Senator for the state of Arizona said the event was something "Americans should be proud of."
32Until the SpaceX flights, Russia's three-person Soyuz spacecraft were the only way to get astronauts to the space station after NASA's flights stopped.
33SpaceX ended the year with a test flight of Starship, the spacecraft the company is building to carry people to the moon and Mars.
34The event on December 9 was marked by an explosion on landing.
35Even so, Musk said he was extremely happy.
36In addition, SpaceX is expanding the number of people willing to ride in its Dragon spaceship.
37Late next year, SpaceX expects to launch the first privately financed Dragon flight in a deal with Houston-based Axiom Space.
38Axiom's Michael Lopez-Alegria, an ex-NASA astronaut and former president of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, will go with Israeli businessman Eytan Stibbe.
39They will be joined by two other people paying to visit the space station.
40"This is the true beginning of private spaceflight and will get the ball rolling toward multiple private missions to orbit per year," Lopez-Alegria said in an email.
41Two other space-travel companies are still doing test flights.
42They are Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic.
43Those companies have not yet set dates for sending people on short flights to the edge of space and back.
44U.S. President Donald Trump said he wants a moon landing by American astronauts to happen by 2024.
45It would be the first since NASA's Apollo program more than 50 years ago.
46In December, NASA introduced 18 astronauts who will train for the moon program named Artemis.
47John Logsdon of George Washington University's Space Policy Institute said the last four years "have been positive for the U.S. civilian space program."
48Logsdon added, "No...major programs were cancelled, the human exploration program was given clear direction, and funding for existing programs was increased."
49I'm John Russell.
1Space exploration gave moments of hope in a difficult year. 2Three countries sent spacecraft toward Mars in 2020. Astronauts launched into orbit from the United States for the first time in nearly 10 years. And robotic explorers collected rocks from the Moon and from an asteroid. 3High Expectations for 2021 4Expectations are high for 2021 also. Next February, landings are expected on Mars and the planned launch of the James Webb Space Telescope is to take place in the autumn. The huge telescope is taking the place of the famous Hubble Space Telescope. 5Other developments are expected too. The aerospace company Boeing hopes to catch up with SpaceX in launching astronauts. And space tourism may finally get off the ground. 6Scott Hubbard served as the U.S. space agency's (NASA) first Mars program director. He now teaches at Stanford University. He said, "2021 promises to be as much of a space exploration bright spot, perhaps even more." 7Big Projects Moved Forward 8Although the coronavirus crisis created problems for all space programs in 2020, most very important projects still went forward. 9The U.S., China and the United Arab Emirates launched spacecraft toward Mars. 10NASA's Perseverance robot explorer is set to land on February 18. Perseverance will cut into the dry soil, collecting samples for return to Earth. 11The UAE's spacecraft is that country's first attempt to visit another planet. It will study the Martian atmosphere. 12China's Tianwen-1 will look for signs of ancient life on the red planet. 13China also carried out explorations of the Moon in 2020. In December, a Chinese spacecraft landed and then launched off the moon's surface. It collected the first moon rocks returned to Earth since the 1970s. 14Japan brought back pieces of the asteroid Ryugu. More asteroid samples are on the way. NASA's Osiris-Rex spacecraft got samples from the asteroid Bennu in October. The samples are planned to return in 2023. 15Elon Musk's company SpaceX did a lot in 2020. In May, SpaceX became the first private company to send people into orbit, a success that could only be claimed by three powerful nations before. 16In November, four more astronauts rode a SpaceX Dragon to the International Space Station. Three weeks later, SpaceX launched its biggest shipment yet to the space station for NASA. 17Mark Kelly who was elected as a Senator for the state of Arizona said the event was something "Americans should be proud of." 18Until the SpaceX flights, Russia's three-person Soyuz spacecraft were the only way to get astronauts to the space station after NASA's flights stopped. 19SpaceX ended the year with a test flight of Starship, the spacecraft the company is building to carry people to the moon and Mars. The event on December 9 was marked by an explosion on landing. Even so, Musk said he was extremely happy. 20In addition, SpaceX is expanding the number of people willing to ride in its Dragon spaceship. Late next year, SpaceX expects to launch the first privately financed Dragon flight in a deal with Houston-based Axiom Space. 21Axiom's Michael Lopez-Alegria, an ex-NASA astronaut and former president of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, will go with Israeli businessman Eytan Stibbe. They will be joined by two other people paying to visit the space station. 22"This is the true beginning of private spaceflight and will get the ball rolling toward multiple private missions to orbit per year," Lopez-Alegria said in an email. 23Two other space-travel companies are still doing test flights. They are Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin and Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic. Those companies have not yet set dates for sending people on short flights to the edge of space and back. 24The Future of Space Programs in the U.S. 25U.S. President Donald Trump said he wants a moon landing by American astronauts to happen by 2024. It would be the first since NASA's Apollo program more than 50 years ago. 26In December, NASA introduced 18 astronauts who will train for the moon program named Artemis. 27John Logsdon of George Washington University's Space Policy Institute said the last four years "have been positive for the U.S. civilian space program." Logsdon added, "No...major programs were cancelled, the human exploration program was given clear direction, and funding for existing programs was increased." 28I'm John Russell. 29Marcia Dunn reported this story for the Associated Press. John Russell adapted it for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor. 30_____________________________________________________________ 31Words in This Story 32spacecraft - n. a vehicle that is used for travel in outer space 33asteroid -- n. any one of thousands of small planets that circle around the sun 34tourism - n. the activity of traveling to a place for pleasure 35spot -- n. a small area of a surface that is different from other areas: a particular space or area 36sample -- n. a small amount of something that gives you information about the thing it was taken from 37multiple - adj. more than one 38mission -- n. a task or job that someone is given to do 39proud - adj. causing people to be pleased 40positive - adj. a good result, not bad 41funding - n. available money for a purpose