Astronomy

英国大使馆文化教育处

Astronomy is the science of stars， planets and space. Someone whostudies astronomy is an astronomer.

Yes！ Now is a very exciting time for astronomers. In early 2017， sevenplanets were discovered around a star called TRAPPIST-1. These planetsare a similar size to our planet， Earth， and we believe that at least three ofthese planets possibly have water.

If a planet has water， it can also have life！ These planets are very similarto Earth. Its the first time weve found planets like this and its very exciting！

Erm， no. Unfortunately， thats not possible. TRAPPIST-1 is very far away.Our fastest spacecraft need over 200，000 years to get there.

Well， finding these planets around TRAPPIST-1means that there are probably other planets like Earthin space. All astronomers want to find alien life. In thepast， I thought it was impossible， but now itlooks as if we are getting close.

Activity 1 Put words a–e in the spaces to complete sentences 1–5.

a. alien b. life c. space d. spacecraft e. Earth

1. Animals and plants are examples of________.

2.________is the area outside our planet， where the stars are.

3. Something used for travelling outside our planet is a（n）________.

4. The planet we live on is called________.

5.________means it is from another planet.

Activity 2 Decide if the sentences below are true or false.

1. Astronomy is about people.

2. Nothing new is happening in astronomy at the moment.

3. The TRAPPIST-1 planets are about the same size as Earth.

4. If planets have water， it is possible that animals and plants live there.

5. Its possible to visit the TRAPPIST-1 planets.

Activity 3 Discussion.

1. Do you know what “astronomy” means？

2. Do you think that there are animals and plants on other planets？

參考答案：Activity 1 1. b; 2. c; 3. d; 4. e; 5. a

Activity 2 1. F; 2. F; 3. T; 4. T; 5. F