[page]听力文本[/page]
Russia,US Set to Forge New Era in Space
When the Soviet Union put the first man in space in 1961, Yuri Gagarin’s flight was celebrated as a major Cold War victory. And as Russia gears up to celebrate the 50th anniversary of that flight in April, it also prepares for once unheard of cooperation with its former Cold War enemy, the United States.
NASA has cancelled its plans for a post-shuttle space vehicle. Until U.S. commercial firms build spaceships capable of carrying humans, America plans to pay Russia to ferry U.S. astronauts to space on board Soyuz spacecraft.
NASA is retiring the shuttle despite believing it is technologically more sophisticated than the Soyuz, says Robert Navias, the agency's program and mission operations lead. “The Soyuz, by comparison, you can think of as a sports car, three crewmembers jammed into a small section of a module," he said.
A string of incidents related to Soyuz has raised concerns. Problems during a landing in April 2008 resulted in a dangerously steep re-entry trajectory.
Russian Cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev says the older technology of the Soyuz is nothing to worry about. "They built it in such a way that we can change some parts, some hardware and actually this Soyuz is going to be different, because we changed the computer, we changed some logic and still it inherits some reliability," he said.
The U.S. will pay Russia more than $50 million for each round trip ticket to the Space Station. So far, six seats are reserved for 2013 and 2014.
Rising powers such as China and India are entering a new era of competition for space supremacy. But former Cold War foes Russia and the U.S. have put rivalry aside, in favor of cooperation in the exploration of space.
[page]参考翻译[/page]
1961年，苏联第一次将人类送上太空，尤里·加加林(Yuri Gagarin)的飞行被视为冷战时期的重大胜利来庆祝。俄罗斯准备在四月份庆祝这次升空50周年之际，还准备与冷战时期的敌人美国进行前所未有的首次合作。
NASA已经取消了宇宙飞船计划。直到美国商用飞机公司建造出能够载人的宇宙飞船，美国计划为俄罗斯提供资金，使用“联盟号”宇宙飞船将美国宇航员送上太空。
NASA项目和任务执行负责人Robert Navias表示，尽管他们相信自己的技术比“联盟号”更加成熟，然而他们仍然决定让自己的飞船退役。
“相比之下，联盟号就好像一辆跑车，三名宇航员挤在太空舱狭小的空间中。”
与联盟号有关的一系列事件引发了人们的担忧。2008年4月份着陆期间出现的问题导致飞船非常危险地重返轨道。
俄罗斯宇航员Sergei Krikalev说，联盟号技术较为落后，没有什么好担心的。“联盟号宇宙飞船的建造方式使我们可以对一些部件，一些硬件进行更换，这一架联盟号会有所不同，因为我们更换了电脑，更换了一些逻辑运算，但是仍然继承了以前的飞船的可靠性。”
对于前往国际空间站的每一次旅行，美国将支付给俄罗斯超过5000万美元。目前为止，他们已经预定了2013年和2014年的六个座位。
中国和印度等新兴大国正在进入争夺太空主权的新时代。但是冷战时期的敌人俄罗斯和美国却抛开竞争因素，共同努力探索太空。
[page]词汇学习[/page]
1.anniversary n.周年纪念，周年纪念日
例句：Today is my parents' 30th wedding anniversary.
今天是我父母结婚30周年纪念日。
2.sophisticated adj.精密的, 尖端的,复杂巧妙的,先进的
例句：This is a very sophisticated machine.
这是一台非常精密的机器。
3.steep adj.陡的, 急剧升降的, 斜坡、 陡峭的,山等
例句：A car is climbing the steep hill slowly.
一辆汽车正在陡峭的山坡上缓缓爬行。
4.inherit vt.vi.继承
例句：If he dies without making a will, his closest relative will inherit.
如果他没有立下遗嘱就去世了, 他的至亲将成为其继承人。
He intended that his son should inherit his business.
他打算让他的儿子继承他的生意。
5.reliability n.可靠，可信赖
例句：a good reputation for reliability
以可靠著名
His failure to appear raises serious doubts as to his reliability.
他未露面实在使人怀疑他是否可靠。
6.reserve v.预订或保留(座位、住处等); 订购
例句：These seats are reserved for teachers.
这些座位是留给老师的。
7.rivalry n.竞争, 竞赛,较量(~ withsb/sth for sth| ~between A and B for sth)
例句：Rivalry with other schools is encouraged.
校际的竞争受到鼓励。
[page]内容解析[/page]
1.And as Russia gears up to celebrate the 50th anniversary of that flight in April, it also prepares for once unheard of cooperation with its former Cold War enemy, the United States.
gear up使做好行动准备
例句：The Department is gearing up for increased intake of students.
这个系正在为扩大招生做好准备。
The party is all geared up for the forthcoming election campaign.
该党为即将来临的竞选活动已完全做好了准备。
2.Until U.S. commercial firms build spaceships capable of carrying humans, America plans to pay Russia to ferry U.S. astronauts to space on board Soyuz spacecraft.
be capable of能够…,可以…,做得出…
例句：It should be capable of detecting exoplanets smaller than the Earth.
这架望远镜能够侦测到体积比地球还小的系外行星。
3.The Soyuz, by comparison, you can think of as a sports car, three crewmembers jammed into a small section of a module.
by comparison相比之下
例句：This dress is really cheaper by comparison.
比较起来, 这件衣服确实便宜。
4.But former Cold War foes Russia and the U.S. have put rivalry aside, in favor of cooperation in the exploration of space.
put aside撇开, 储备
例句：One should always put a little money aside for a rainy day.
一个人总应积攒点钱以备不时之需。
I have put aside 5 minutes to talk to you.
我抽出五分钟来与你交谈。
