Mankind is exploring space in the hope of 【小题1】(find) out more about the universe. China’s space programme started 【小题2】(late) than those of Russia and the US, 【小题3】 it has made great progress in a short time. China became the third country in the world to independently send 【小题4】(human) into space in 2003, 【小题5】 Yang Liwei orbited Earth in the Shenzhou 5 spacecraft 【小题6】(successful) . Then Shenzhou 6 and 7 completed a second manned orbit and the first Chinese spacewalk, 【小题7】(follow) by the vehicle Jade Rabbit being sent to the moon to study its surface. After that, China launched the Tiangong 2 space lab into space and Tianzhou to dock with it. This signalled one step further in China’s plan 【小题8】(establish) a space station in the future. More recently, China 【小题9】(send) Chang’e 4 to explore the surface of 【小题10】 far side of the moon to make measurements and observations.

The lunar soil samples 【小题1】(bring) back by China’s Chang’e-5 probe (探测器) will go on display for the public in Beijing soon after 【小题2】(they) first showing at the Great Hall of the People.

The Chang’e-5 probe 【小题3】(collect) 1,731 grams of lunar samples, and the return capsule landed in north China on December 17, 2020. Lunar soil is a 【小题4】(combine) of bedrock dust and glassy pieces containing different minerals and other substances, and is a result of meteorite (陨石), space rays and solar wind 【小题5】(hit) the moon over time. The lunar soil looks like concrete, with each piece about 100 micrometers 【小题6】 size.

It’s 【小题7】(possible) to grow vegetables in the soil as it is lacking organic nutrients (营养物) and extremely dry. On the contrary, the soil on Earth is composed of minerals, organic materials and water, 【小题8】 allow plants and flowers to grow.

For scientific purposes, it is an ideal opportunity for humans 【小题9】(study) the moon—analyzing soil taken directly from the lunar surface in the lab—which is an experience that neither remote sensing 【小题10】 meteorite study can provide.

Chinese astronauts on December 9th, 2021 beamed back a science lesson from the country’s under-construction space station. Students from five cities, including Beijing and Hong Kong, peppered the astronauts with questions about living conditions in space and 【小题1】 (treat) to a virtual tour of the station. The event was also open to the public through a livestream.

Wang Yaping, 【小题2】 only woman aboard the station, served as the main 【小题3】 (instruct), while Ye Guangfu assisted and commander-in-chief Zhai Zhigang worked the camera. Wang had taught a similar lesson while aboard one of China’s earlier experimental stations in 2013.

The three arrived at the station in October, 2021 for a six-month stay, 【小题4】 (charge) mainly with preparing the main Tianhe module for the arrival of two 【小题5】   (addition) modules named Mengtian and Wentian ahead of completion by the end of 2022.

Their Shenzhou-13 mission is China’s 【小题6】 (long) since it first put a human in space in 2003,becoming only the third country to do so after Russia and the U. S.

The three are the second crew on the permanent station, 【小题7】 upon completion will weigh about 66 tons, much smaller than the International Space Station, which launched its first module in 1998 and 【小题8】 (weigh) around 450 tons.

Along with installing equipment in preparation 【小题9】 the station’s expansion, the crew is assessing living conditions in the Tianhe module, 【小题10】 (perform) experiments in space medicine and other areas.