6 Into space

Chapter 6 Into space I wonder how far this one will go... Of course, planes, balloons and helicopters aren't the only way to fly. Thousands of years before any of them were invented, people in China were launching rockets.

第6章进入太空我想知道这个能飞多远…… 当然，飞机、气球和直升机并不是唯一的飞行方式。 在它们被发明之前的几千年，中国人就已经在发射火箭了。

But, as there are no written records, no one knows how well they flew. Then, about two hundred years ago, armies began to use rockets in battle. By the time the Second World War broke out in 1939, rockets were more powerful.

但是，由于没有书面记录，没有人知道他们飞得有多好。 然后，大约200年前，军队开始在战斗中使用火箭。 到1939年第二次世界大战爆发时，火箭的威力更大了。

Scientists realized they could use the power of rockets to reach space. On October 4, 1957, the first space machine was launched by the Russians. It was tiny and named Sputnik 1. Just four years later, the Russians launched Vostock 1. Its pilot, Yuri Gagarin, became the first man to fly into space.

科学家们意识到他们可以利用火箭的力量到达太空。 1957年10月4日，俄国人发射了第一台太空机器。 它很小，被命名为斯普特尼克1号。 仅仅四年后，俄罗斯发射了东方一号。 它的飞行员尤里·加加林（Yuri Gagarin）成为第一个飞入太空的人。

The Americans decided to join in. A race began to see who would be first to send a man to the Moon. American scientists built Saturn V, the biggest rocket in the world. In July 1969, it blasted into space. Soon after that, Neil Armstrong became the first man to step onto the Moon's rocky surface.

美国人决定加入进来。 一场比赛开始了，看谁能第一个把人送上月球。 美国科学家建造了世界上最大的火箭土星五号。 1969年7月，它被送入太空。 不久之后，尼尔·阿姆斯特朗成为第一个踏上月球岩石表面的人。

Most of Saturn V was made up of booster engines. It needed vast amounts of power to blast itself into space. The astronauts were squashed into the tiny Command Module at the rocket's tip. The booster engines fell away as the rocket flew higher. The Command Module was the only part to return to Earth.

土星5号的大部分是由助推器发动机组成的。 它需要巨大的能量才能将自己送入太空。 宇航员们被挤进了火箭尖端的小指令舱。 随着火箭飞得更高，助推器的发动机脱落了。 指令舱是唯一返回地球的部分。

Until 1980, all space flights were made with rockets. But, as they could only be used once, they weren't very practical. So, American scientists invented the space shuttle. The shuttle is launched like a rocket, but then the booster engine and fuel tanks drop off. The shuttle's engines take over and it flies... just like a plane.

直到1980年，所有的太空飞行都是用火箭完成的。 但是，由于它们只能使用一次，所以不是很实用。 所以，美国科学家发明了航天飞机。 航天飞机像火箭一样发射，但随后助推器引擎和燃料箱脱落。 航天飞机的引擎起了作用，它飞起来了…… 就像飞机一样。