首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
The international space station is getting a new, inflatable room that resembles a giant spare tire, NASA announced on Wednesday
The international space station is getting a new, inflatable room that resembles a giant spare tire, NASA announced on Wednesday
admin
2015-09-26
80
问题
The international space station is getting a new, inflatable room that resembles a giant spare tire, NASA announced on Wednesday Slated to launch in mid-2015, the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module, or BEAM, will fly to space deflated before being puffed into a 13-by-10-foot cylinder. Rather than providing new living space for astronauts, the module will test whether inflatable habitats have a future as orbiting laboratories, lunar outposts or living quarters for deep-space missions. And it’s arriving at a bargain price for space hardware. NASA is paying Bigelow Aerospace of Nevada $17.8 million for the module.
"This is a great way for NASA to utilize private-sector investment, and for pennies on the dollar to expand our understanding of this technology," said Lori Garver, the agency’s deputy administrator. Station astronauts will periodically enter the BEAM to check whether its thick yet flexible walls, which include layers of Kevlar(凯芙拉,一种芳纶纤维), adequately block the twin hazards of space travel: radiation and micrometeoroids(微流星体)traveling faster than bullets. "The plan is to have the hatch closed most of the time, with the crew going in and out a few times a year to collect data," Garver said. The module will stay attached to the station for two years. "We have ambitions to go to the moon someday, have a base there," said Robert Bigelow, the real estate and hotel magnate who founded Bigelow Aerospace. Inflatables offer two advantages over traditional aluminum-can-like modules. They weigh less per cubic foot of living space, making them cheaper to launch, and they can balloon to diameters far too wide to fit on current rockets.
Bigelow licensed the concept from NASA in 1999 after the agency abandoned plans to use inflatable living quarters for a mission to Mars. NASA is Bigelow’s first customer. On Wednesday, Bigelow said he and his wife have invested $250 million into developing inflatable space habitats. They hope to attract wealthy tourists, pharmaceutical companies and governments that want affordable space programs to an orbital outpost that Bigelow says will be ready to fly in 2016.
Called Alpha, the private space station will offer living space for 12, twice the occupancy of the international space station. Renting one-sixth of Alpha for two months will cost $25 million, Bigelow said, transportation not included. It’s unclear if a market exists for a private space station, said Scott Pace, director of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University. Still, Bigelow has already tasted success. In 2006 and 2007, the company launched two small inflatable satellites atop Russian ballistic missiles. Both operated as planned.
Wednesday’s announcement marks a deepening of NASA’s partnerships with commercial companies. The agency is also funding three companies developing craft to transport astronauts to and from orbit—vehicles also needed to bring customers to Bigelow’s outposts. One of those companies, Space Exploration Technologies, or Space X, will fly the BEAM module to the space station in the "trunk" of one of its uncrewed Dragon capsules. "It sounds like a good deal for both NASA and Bigelow," said Pace. "Nothing can replace flight-test experience. "
The project may also stymie criticism that the 16-nation international space station, which took 13 years to construct, has been underutilized by NASA, said former station commander—Michael Lopez-Alegria, President of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. "It’s a real step in the right direction."
What is Scott Pace’s attitude towards Alpha?
选项
A、Optimistic.
B、Pessimistic.
C、Objective.
D、Indifferent.
答案
C
解析
态度题。根据题干关键词Scott Pace’s定位到第四段。该段讲到私人空间站阿尔法租金昂贵,斯科特·佩斯表示目前还不清楚这个私人空间站是否能有市场。由此可知,佩斯对阿尔法的态度既不积极也不消极,而是客观中立的,所以[C]为正确答案。
转载请注明原文地址:https://www.kaotiyun.com/show/gqXK777K
0
专业英语四级
相关试题推荐
Modernholistictreatmentfocuseson______.
TheUnitedStatesisatypicalcountry
Accordingtotheconversation,anexampleof"Christmastrimmings"couldbe______.
Onceuponatime,youbelievedinthetoothfairy.Youcountedonthestabilityofhousingpricesanddependedonbankerstobe,
Inatelephonesurveyofmorethan2,000adults,21%saidtheybelievedthesunrevolvedaroundtheearth.An【C1】______7%did
Afterthreehundredyearsofunion,Scotsaretobegiventhechancetovoteforindependence.Theofferofalegally-bindingre
Inthepast,mostforestershavebeenmen,buttoday,thenumberofwomen______thisfieldisclimbing.
Inrecentdecadeschildspecialistshavetriedmoreandmoretohelpparentswiththeirchildren’sschoolbehavior.Schoolsofe
Lastsummer,sometwenty-eightthousandhomelesspeoplewereofferedshelterbythecityofNewYork.Ofthisnumber,twelvetho
Hardshipdidnotendwithfreedom.Therewere(1)______regionalvariationinboththestatusand(2)______offreeblacksduringt
随机试题
安全切断阀阀瓣密封垫损坏会造成()。
在Excel中进行单元格复制时,无论单元格是什么内容,复制出来的内容与原单元格总是完全一致的。()
与动脉粥样硬化密切有关的物质是
戴尔公司的“按需定制”属于()。
某生产企业为增值税一般纳税人,经认定为国家扶持的高新技术企业,2016年有关经营情况和纳税情况如下:(1)销售收入230万元,销售成本120万元。(2)投资收益共计100万元,全部为国债利息收入。(3)销售费用60万元,其中广告费5万元、业务宣传费3
甲公司许可乙公司独占使用其注册商标,在合同履行期间,市场上出现大量侵犯该注册商标专用权的商品。对此,下列关于侵权诉讼的说法哪些是正确的?
在多媒体的音频处理中,由于人所敏感的音频最高为(14)赫兹(Hz),因此,数字音频文件中对音频的采样频率为(15)赫兹(Hz)。对一个双声道的立体声,保持一秒钟声音,其波形文件所需的字节数为(16),这里假设每个采样点的量化位数为8位。MIDI文件是最常用
Therocketengine,withitssteadyroarlikethatofawaterfallorathunderstorm,isanimpressivesymbolofthenewspaceage
何谓幸福?每个人自有不同的衡量标准,虽然幸福的结局是那样的皆大欢喜。幸福可以漾在脸上,幸福也可以写在心里,当幸福在阳光下熠熠生辉时,幸福是灼人的。为什么幸福是灼人的?因为幸福是一种力量,是千锤百炼之后提升出来的一种力量。一种踏遍阴森荆棘的勇气,一种翻越陡峭
A(11)physician,whowaslyingonhisdeathbed,wassurroundedbyseveralfellowphysicians,whowereweepingathisloss.
最新回复
(
0
)