Lesson Fifteen
Pre-class Work
Read the text a third time. Learn the new words and expressions listed below.
Glossary
aborted
adj. stopped because it would be difficult and dangerous to continue 中途失败的；流产的
accumulation
n. the gradual increase in amount until there is a large quantity in one place 积累；累计
alert
v. to make sb. notice sth. important or dangerous
apparently
adv. obviously; evidently (Note: It usually implies that you are not completely sure.)
arc
v. to move in a curved shape
assemble
v. to put all the parts of sth. together in order
astronaut
n. sb. who travels and works in a spaceship
autopilot
n. 自动驾驶
bang
v. ～ out: (infml) to write sth. in a hurry, esp. on a typewriter
bathed
adj. 沐浴在（某种光线中）
bay
n. at ～: under fierce attack, which is impossible to escape from
blink
n. an act of shutting and opening your eyes quickly
v. shut and open your eyes quickly
booster
n. a rocket used to provide additional power to help to get a spacecraft off the ground（火箭的）助推器；运载火箭
catastrophic
adj. terrible, causing great suffering or many deaths
clarify
v. to make sure about the facts
chatter
n. friendly informal conversation
check in with sb.
向某人核实
clatter
v. ～ out: to come out quickly and noisily (said of the typewritten message)
closeup
n. (infml) photo taken very near 特写镜头
coherent
adj. (of speeches, thought, ideas, etc.) being naturally and reasonably presented in their proper order 连贯的
commentator
n. a person who gives opinions or descriptions during an event on radio or television
confirm
v. to show or find out sth. is definitely true; to make certain 确定；确认
corkscrew
v. 螺旋式坠落
countdown
n. 倒计时
crackling
adj. making a repeated short sharp sound like sth. burning in a fire
crew
n. all the people working on a ship, plane, or spacecraft
debris
n. all the pieces that are left after sth. has been destroyed in an accident or explosion
dictate
v. to say words for sb. else to write down 口述
drafty
adj. with currents of air blowing through it 通风的；有穿堂风的
enormity
n. extreme seriousness
excess
adj. additional and not wanted or needed because there is already enough of sth.
exhaust
n. the gas or steam produced when an engine is working
external
adj. of the outside; coming from outside
fatal
adj. extremely serious, often resulting in sb.'s death
file
v. to keep papers with information on them in a particular place (on the computer in this case) so that you can find it easily
flame
n. hot and bright burning gas
flare
v. to suddenly begin to burn with a bright flame
flaw
n. a very important weakness that makes sth. certain to fail
fleeting
adj. (of time or periods) short; passing quickly
fuel
v. to put in fuel
futile
adj. having no effect; useless; having no chance of being successful
gallon
n. 加仑（液量单位）
header
n. the top of a page, esp. on a computer
heater
n. a machine for making air or water hotter
heartbeat
n. the action of your heart as it pumps the blood through your body
hydrogen
n. 氢
ignite
v. to cause or start to burn
incredible
adj. too strange to be believed; unbelievable
indicate
v. to suggest; to show
journalist
n. a news reporter; sb. who writes for newspapers, magazines, TV or radio
keyboard
n. 键盘
liftoff
n. the start of the flight of a space vehicle 升空
lull
n. a short period of time in which there is less activity or noise than usual
majestically
adv. beautifully and impressively
minus
prep. 减去
momentary
adj. lasting a very short time
monitor
v. to listen, to keep track of, to check 监听；监测
