[彭蒙惠英语] 肯尼迪太空中心的幻象之旅(1/2)

NEWS worthy Clips (1/2)

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Kennedy Space Center’s Unworldly Journey

For more than a quarter century, space have gathered by the thousands near the Kennedy Space Center, craning for views of shuttles bound for another world. What it was like aboard, they could only wonder.

The Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex seeks to that experience with its first thrill ride, the Shuttle Launch Experience that opened in May 2007. Space “tourists” buckle themselves into a simulator and rumble their way into earth’s orbit*. Or so they might think.

Seats pitch* backward to 60 degrees. Low frequency speakers and mechanical shakers flood the cargo bay* with pounding roar and vibration. Pneumatic* seat devices deflate at just the right moment to create the sensation of increased gravity forces. Then, the main engine , leaving riders in silence. With another combination of pitch, sight and sound, riders may feel the sensation of weightlessness for a second or two. The shuttle’s overhead payload* doors open and riders can look down on the whole of Italy.

A ride with a purpose

It’s an illusion designed to trick your brain into believing that you’ve gone from ground to more than 200 miles in space in just a few minutes, says spokeswoman Andrea Farmer. When the ride is over, guests file down a long spiral ramp underneath a ceiling set out as. Along the inner wall of the spiral ramp, historical plagues commemorate* each of the shuttle flights since 1981.

The Shuttle Launch Experience is part of the Visitor Complex’s mission to connect with today’s youth. The creators hope the ride will raise the interest of young people and lure* them into deeper study of science and math. Besides youth, the ride will hopefully attract people interested in engineering and technology.

 

Vocabulary Focus

pitch(n)--- to move or be moved suddenly

commemorate (v)--- to show honor to the memory of an important event

lure (v)--- to persuade someone to do something by offering them something exciting

Specialized terms

orbit(n)--- （天体等的）运行轨道 the curved path through which objects in space move around a planet or star

cargo bay (n phr)--- 货舱 a large central area in the space shuttle where support equipment is carried

pneumatic(adj)--- （压缩气体来推动的；气动的 being operated by air pressure

payload(n)--- 载重量 the equipment and supplies carried in a spacecraft

                

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