Space tourism is no longer just science fiction
新太空競賽 太空旅行不再只是科幻小說 by Beren Tofino
On Christmas Eve in 1968, astronauts orbiting the moon photographed Earth. That picture, "Earthrise," is considered one of the most important photographs of all time and provided a brand-new perspective on the world.
Back then you'd rarely encounter words like "spaceport" outside of science fiction. But these days spaceport routinely appears in mainstream news reports because private companies have started building them and flying tourists into space.
The original Space Race was a 20th century competition between global superpowers. But now there's a new space race that is less political and more commercial.
It's a rivalry between billionaire entrepreneurs who have entered the space industry with competing companies.
With goals that include building industrial bases in space and colonies on Mars, their ambitions are bigger than their bank accounts. So they are competing for contracts to build the next lunar lander and lease rocket launch sites as well as signing up passengers.
Almost anyone can buy a ticket to visit space as a tourist if they have enough money! Unfortunately, space tourism currently is a luxury experience for the superrich because the cost is as high as the destination - astronomical. But still, imagine taking a vacation selfie with Earth in the background!
Info Cloud
Topic: launch into something, launch out on something 開始談論/投入新事物
Welcome to Info Cloud! Rex, I have to say, I'm so excited about today. I think we should just launch into our time together!
Let's do that! Let's launch into today's topic!
And friends, today we are talking about LAUNCH INTO SOMETHING!
When you launch into something you start saying something with a lot of energy.
You can say, "The teacher launched into many words of encouragement for her students. She praised them for doing such a great job over the past week."
Or Kevin caught a big fish while fishing over the weekend. He launched into the story of the big catch as soon as he got home.
Now we can use this phrase when we share something with enthusiasm, but it can also be used if you are angry or have a lot of emotion about a topic.
You can say Dad launched into a speech about his son's lack of discipline in school when he saw his test scores.
Or the customer launched into complaining about the service at the restaurant while waiting for their order.
Now you can also LAUNCH OUT ON SOMETHING. When you launch out on something, you begin doing something that is new and different.
You can say Jenn is launching out on a new career. She was a teacher and now she is launching into a medical career. So friends, can you launch into practicing these phrases today? Or maybe you are going to launch out on something new that you want to share!
Language Lab
perspective adj. 思考問題的角度或觀點
- Elaine feels that parents should pay for their kids to go on the class trip, while Pete’s perspective is that each kid should earn their own money to go.
- When thinking about wars, it is good to have a historical perspective of countries’ relationships.
- A woman’s perspective is completely different from a man’s when it comes to harassment.
mainstream adj. 主流的
- The company my brother works for holds beliefs that are considered mainstream in our society.
- Mainstream media really supports that presidential candidate this year.
- Even though some kids are deaf or have learning challenges, they are included in mainstream education in some countries.
rivalry n. 相互較勁
- There is an intense rivalry between the two schools in sports and debate. |
- Ethnic rivalries were the cause of war in Eastern Europe in the 90s.
rival n. 競爭對手
- When Edith became unhappy with her job, she quit and went to work for a rival company.
lease v. 租借或租用
- My friend prefers to lease a car instead of buying one.
- Nate needs to find an apartment to lease before he moves to New York City.
lease n.租約或租契
- Shirley just signed a two-year lease on an apartment in an eastern suburb of the city.
orbit n.
the curved path that something (such as a moon or satellite) follows as it goes around something else (such as a planet)
rotate v.
to move or turn in a circle
stranger than fiction
