way2go! 5. Practice Pack, Arbeitsheft

58 Unit 11 Good job! Read the text about working on the International Space Station, then choose the correct answer (A, B, C or D) for questions 1–6. Put a cross (  ) in the correct box. The first one (0) has been done for you. READING 1 a Unit 11 | Good job! A room with a view If you look up into the night sky, you may see a light passing overhead. It could well be the ISS (International Space Station), which is the largest artificial satellite currently orbiting Earth and is visible to the naked eye. For many young people, working as an astronaut would be a dream job, but what is the reality of life in space? The ISS is constantly occupied by an inter- national crew with a maximum of six astronauts. The crew of the space station works on a wide variety of research projects and carries out necessary repairs aboard the station. So whilst there’s some free time to play around in the microgravity of the space station, working as a scientist or technician on board of the ISS is a serious business. Before they can get started with their scientific work, astronauts need to learn to handle their new environment. Daily routines which we take for granted can be much more difficult in space. We all know that astronauts need special ‘space food’ which is packed so that it can be consumed without it floating away. However, even simple activities such as sprinkling salt on food can present difficulties. Ordinary salt and pepper would float around and could cause problems either for the air systems on the space station or get into the astronauts’ airways causing them to choke. For this reason, salt and pepper are stored as liquids. We are also familiar with the fact that astronauts cannot use a normal toilet: they have a type of ‘vacuum cleaner’. And even sleeping in space can be tricky. Whilst it makes no difference which way up an astronaut sleeps – seeing as there’s no up or down in space – they do need to fix themselves onto a surface in their small cabin. They have special sleeping bags so they don’t float away! The ISS is used to learn more about living and working in space. These lessons will make it possible to send humans farther across the universe than ever before. However, many medical and technical innovations on Earth are the result of work done on the ISS too. For example, the ISS has systems designed to purify and recycle the water on a daily basis as they only have a limited supply. This technology has been used to help provide clean water for people in areas where there is not enough drinking water. Also, the robotic arms on the station have been adapted to create surgical robotic arms which can remove tumours. One of the advantages of the ISS being in a relatively low orbit over the Earth is that astronauts are able to make observations of geographical features, such as mountains and glaciers. They can even monitor endangered coral reefs. It is possible to check the effects of global warming and pollution by measuring the size of glaciers and reefs to see if they are shrinking. This information can be sent back to scientists on Earth. Working as an astronaut is certainly exciting, but it may not be as glamorous – or even as well- paid – as it seems. Compared to many top-level jobs in business the pay is modest, and spending months eating ‘space food’ is not everyone’s idea of luxury. However, the rewards in terms of contributing towards ground-breaking technical and medical developments mean it surely must remain a dream job for many. The view from the office window isn’t bad either! Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv