NASA to Launch Instruments to Study Water on Moon

2024 · VOA Learning English

This speaker is a general-american model. Each line below can be recorded and scored against it.

Transcript

1. The American space agency NASA is preparing to launch a spacecraft to seek more detailed information on water sources on the moon.

   0.0s–13.6sPractise this

2. The spacecraft is an orbiter called Lunar Trailblazer. It is set to launch later this year, or in early 2025.

   13.9s–26.1sPractise this

3. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will carry the orbiter to space. That rocket will also transport another moon exploring spacecraft.

   26.3s–37.9sPractise this

4. In a recent statement, NASA said Lunar Trailblazer passed a series of important operational tests.

   38.0s–48.3sPractise this

5. It is currently completing additional software testing designed to simulate different elements of the trip, or mission.

   49.3s–59.0sPractise this

6. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is leading the mission, in cooperation with the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena,

   59.0s–73.2sPractise this

7. California. Lockheed Martin Space provided the spacecraft, linked it with the flight system, and supports operations as part of a contract with Caltech.

   73.1s–87.3sPractise this

8. The spacecraft will use two science instruments to carry out its mission.

   87.3s–95.7sPractise this

9. Both instruments are designed to map the moon in search of areas containing water, as well as what forms the water is in.

   95.7s–106.3sPractise this

10. The two instruments use infrared technology to produce highly detailed mapped images.

    106.5s–116.1sPractise this

11. Lunar Trailblazer weighs about 200 kilograms and measures 3.5 meters with its solar equipment fully deployed.

    116.2s–128.6sPractise this

12. The spacecraft is set to orbit the moon about 100 kilometers from the lunar surface.

    128.7s–136.4sPractise this

13. Several past studies have provided strong evidence that water exists on the moon.

    136.4s–145.3sPractise this

14. But the evidence has not included exact details on where it is and what forms it might take. Scientists believe most of the water is solid, in the form of ice.

    145.4s–160.5sPractise this

15. But there could be areas where water exists in liquid form, or as a gas in the atmosphere.

    160.4s–168.4sPractise this

16. One study released last month suggested that existing water on the moon is more widespread than previously thought.

    168.4s–179.2sPractise this

17. That study was based on new examinations of data collected by India’s Chandrayaan-1 orbiting spacecraft.

    179.7s–189.6sPractise this

18. NASA has said its search for water on the moon is important because it is seen as a necessary resource for future exploration activities.

    189.7s–203.5sPractise this

19. Astronauts could process it for drinking water, to cool equipment, to create breathable oxygen or even to make rocket fuel.

    203.6s–214.3sPractise this

20. NASA said Lunar Trailblazer will make it easier for future human or robotic science investigators to use the water to see where it first came from.

    214.5s–229.4sPractise this

21. For example, the presence of ammonia in ice could suggest it came from comets NASA said.

    229.5s–238.8sPractise this

22. The presence of sulfur, on the other hand, could show it rose to the surface from deep inside the lunar interior when the moon was young and volcanically active.

    238.9s–253.4sPractise this

23. One of the instruments, the High-resolution Volatiles and Minerals Moon Mapper, was developed by the JPL.

    253.4s–262.6sPractise this

24. The other, called the Lunar Thermal Mapper, was built by a team at the University of Oxford in Britain.

    262.7s–271.6sPractise this

25. Neil Bowles is an instrument scientist for the Lunar Thermal Mapper.

    271.7s–278.1sPractise this

26. He said in a statement the instrument would center on producing detailed maps of lunar surface temperatures.

    278.2s–287.4sPractise this

27. He added that the other instrument will look for a series of signs, called signatures, of water molecules.

    287.5s–297.5sPractise this

28. “Both instruments will allow us to understand how surface temperature affects water, improving our knowledge of the presence and distribution of these molecules on

    297.5s–312.7sPractise this

29. the moon,” Bowles said. The orbiter is designed to provide scientists with new information about how much movement there is of water molecules on the moon.

    312.4s–326.7sPractise this

30. Such movements can be linked to how much sun specific areas receive.

    326.9s–334.1sPractise this

31. “Understanding whether water molecules move freely across the surface of the moon or are locked inside rock is also scientifically important,” NASA said in a

    334.4s–349.4sPractise this

32. statement. Rachel Klima is an investigator for the Lunar Trailblazer spacecraft and its systems at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland.

    349.2s–364.5sPractise this

33. She said data collected by the instruments can help provide information about where the moon’s water first came from.

    364.5s–374.7sPractise this

34. Klima compared such examinations to those involving glaciers that help scientists learn about Earth’s ancient history.

    374.9s–386.5sPractise this

35. Ice on the moon, she said, “could provide clues as to where that water came from and how and when it got there.” I’m Bryan Lynn.

    386.7s–399.9sPractise this