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Moonstruck. A life of an astronaut. Name : Nilfan Fernandes da Silva Júnior – 6th period Teacher : Valeska Souza Date: 07/12/10. Warm up. Why do you think man is so fascinated by space? The Moon landings have been called the greatest achievement in history. Do you agree? Why? Why not?
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Moonstruck A life of an astronaut Name: Nilfan Fernandes da Silva Júnior – 6th period Teacher: Valeska Souza Date: 07/12/10
Warmup... • Why do you think man is so fascinated by space? • The Moon landings have been called the greatest achievement in history. Do you agree? Why? Why not? • Do you think it is right to spend money on exploring space, when there are so many problems on Earth? (Look: The Apollo programme cost US$25 billion!!!!!!) • What are the benefits of exploring space? • Do you think man will ever live on another planet? • Are people the novelty of space exploration has worn off, or are people still interested in new discoveries? • What do you think about those conspiracy theories that say the man never landed on the Moon?
How do you think would be the life of an astronaut? Would they have problems like us? How would be their personal life?
Lifesupport • Charles Duke is one of nine surviving astronauts who stood on the Moon. He and his wife Dorothy describe the highs and the lows of being involved in the space programme.
Charles Duke: I remember vividly the day I volunteered for the space progamme. Dottie was very supportive. But my new job brought instant success and celebrity, and my ego swelled. Things were starting to go wrong between us, as I was so strongly focussed on my career. Being chosen for one of the latter Apollo missions is still one of the high points of my life. Our view of the Earth was the most spectacular sight I’d ever seen, and I walked in wonder on the moon. It was an incredibly still, crater-pocked, awesome environment. Everyone knows about Buzz Aldrin’s alcoholism, but I think all 12 about us who’ve been there were left with a heavy sense of , ‘What now?’ afterwards. I stayed to work on the Space Shuttle. It wasn’t the same, the buzz was gone. Money became my goal, and I was working even longer hours that before. It was a strange time, which Dorothy and I should have helped each other trough, but we ended up competing. I was more of a military drill sergeant than a father, I was always demanding perfection. Things got much worse before I could learn to be more calm and encouraging. We had a different relationship after that. I’m retired from the military now, but am active in business, and Dottie and I are involved in a Christian ministry. We’re still not perfect, but we’re best friends. I feel lucky that we found the strength to love and accept one another, because once you do that, you start to change.
Dorothy Duke: Test pilot school and the space programme never seemed that dangerous, because it was always very structured and controlled. Anyway, Charlie has always taken the typical pilot attitude of ‘Oh, it’ll never happen to me, I’m too smart’. But there was anxiety. The difficult thing was the constant separation, so it was almost a relief to finally get to Charlie’s flight (Apollo 16). I’ve never seen Charlie so excited as when he first came back. But then it was straight on to Apollo 17. I’d been hoping for a new beginning, more family time after the lunar landing, but it never came. It just seemed to get worse as Charlie struggled with the comedown. I cried a lot. Then I decided I was going to divorce him. The only thing to stop me was a nagging feeling that maybe this perfect husband I was looking for wasn’t out there. The next logical step seemed to be suicide, and I thought about that. Once, I recall telling him about these thoughts, and he rolled over and went back to sleep! The chance came one day when some people visited our church. Like a lot of Americans, I’d always gone out of habit, despite being agnostic at best, but what they said about the power of prayer really moved me. I developed the ability to forgive Charlie. Finally, the change in me affected him and now we’re very contended. The pain we went through was worthwhile. We’ve been part of each other’s journey.
Astronomy in English • Comet: is an icy small Solar System body that, when close enough to the Sun, displays a tail. • Nebula: is an interstellar cloud of dust, hydrogen gas, helium gas and other ionized gases. • Meteoroid: a solid object moving in interplanetary space, of a size considerably smaller than an asteroid • Meteor: A meteor is the visible path of a meteoroid that has entered the Earth's atmosphere. • Galaxy: is a massive, gravitationally bound system that consists of stars, gas and planets. • Gravity: Gravitation, or gravity, is a natural phenomenon in which objects with mass attract one another.
Activity: • Choose one of these people to be a crew leader in an internationally-manned expedition to Mars. Remember to justify your choice. 1. Igor Yurev: Russia’s finest cosmonaut. He is extremely fit, experienced and very knowledgeable. However, , his English is weak, and this may lead to problems in communication with the rest of the crew. 2. Mike Lehman: German. Although and experienced astronaut, he has never led a mission before and on simulation exercises, he has panicked. However, he has the best knowledge of Mars out of all the candidates. 3. Harry Hammond: American. Original choice as mission leader. He is NASA”s senior pilot and he has successfully led seven missions, all with excellent results. However, last month he blacked out during training practice. Although the doctors can find nothing wrong with him, his health is a worry. As he may black out again.
Sources: • Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Oxford University Press. 7 ed. 2005. • Moonstruck. Life support. • <www.wikipedia.com> • <www.http://www.macmillandictionary.com> Sponsors:
