GETTING CURIOUS ABOUT CURIOSITY'S MISSION TO MARS
The topic of space exploration reached a high point during the 1960s, as Soviets and Americans competed for dominance. Yet after the Soviets put the first man in space and Americans landed the first men on the moon, many people lost interest as nothing else could compare to these groundbreaking accomplishments. Recently, a robotic rover on a mission to Mars has generated massive interest the public.
Curiosity is a robotic car-sized rover that is part of NASA's long-term plan to learn more about the terrain and conditions on the Red Planet. One of its main goals was to determine whether or not it was possible for life to develop on Mars. Using mechanical arms, Curiosity can gather soil and rock samples from the ground and analyze them to determine their chemical composition. Since transporting around Mars was vital to the success of the mission, a lot of effort was put into Curiosity's transportation abilities. Mars' terrain is not smooth, so designers enabled Curiosity to roll over bumpy areas. Once Curiosity left the Earth, there would be no opportunities to repair it, so engineers also had to be spot on about Curiosity's power solution. Therefore, they devised a system that can generate power internally from a radioisotope generator. Finally, to capture stunning pictures of Mars, Curiosity was equipped with several state-of-the art cameras. The cameras also help the rover avoid hazards, navigate, and detect information about the atmosphere.
After a 350-million-mile journey, Curiosity landed on Mars in 2012, an impressive 1.5 miles away from its initial target. Upon arrival, NASA's website crashed due to an overload of visitors. People just couldn't seem to get enough information on the mission. But the real thrills came in the weeks and months that followed, as people got their first real glimpse about what life was really like on Mars. The mission was originally supposed to last for two years, but scientists are now optimistic that it could continue for up to 15 years, depending on Curiosity's condition. No matter what happens at this point, it is safe to say that Curiosity's mission to Mars has been a smashing success.
Question 35. According to the passage, the popularity of space exploration reached its___________ in the 1960s.
A. drop B. break C. peak D. hit
Question 36. Why did Curiosity have arms?
A. So it could study objects on Mars. B. So it could push itself up if it fell.
C. So it could steer the ship it was on. D. So it could defend itself from attack.
Question 37. What best matches the meaning of the phrase "spot on" in paragraph 2?
A. available B. perfect C. seen D. location
Question 38. All of the following are the difficulties that Curiosity had to overcome EXCEPT that ___________
A. it rolled over bumpy areas when it was in action
B. it got no repair from technicians when it was in action
C. it was equipped with several state-of-the-art cameras
D. it had to operate on its own energy
Question 39. Why did NASA's website crash in 2012?
A. It wasn't meant to work in space. B. It was quite poorly designed.
C. Many people tried to attack it. D. Many people visited it at once.
Question 40. What has been the highlight of Curiosity's mission that the author suggests so far?
A. The rock samples that were collected
B. The journey on the spaceship
C. The incredible pictures that were taken
D. Discovering new planets in the solar system very
Question 41. Which of the following is NOT the accomplishment done by Curiosity?
A. Navigating the spaceship in space
B. Collecting soil and rock samples from Mars
C. Taking a lot of photos about what life was really like on Mars
D. Proving the durability of a robotic rover on another planet
Question 42. We can infer from the sentence “After a 350-million-mile journey, Curiosity... its initial target" in paragraph 3 that___________
A. the journey to Mars in 2012 was so impressive compared to others in space
B. NASA scientists achieved their initial target with the landing of Curiosity on Mars
C. Curiosity worked in a distance of 1.5 miles from its initial target
D. the calculations of the orbit done by NASA scientists were nearly perfect
Đề thi thử THPT 2021 - Tiếng Anh - GV Vũ Thị Mai Phương - Đề 1 - có lời giải
