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205.The space shuttle
第205課 航天飛機
There was an engineer who specialized in designing spacecraft. It was his job to meet specifications specified by NASA. He was involved in the design of the space shuttle, a spaceship specifically designed to be spared and reused. One of the requirements was that the space shuttle was to be spacious enough to do experiments inside, yet material was to be used sparingly so as not to weigh it down. One of the experiments to be performed was that of the spawning of a bird in the weightlessness of space. The specimen used the first time was that of a sparrow. In the future, NASA would specify what species other than birds would follow.
有個專業設計宇宙飛行器的工程師。他的工作是按照美國航空航天局指定的規格進行設計。他參與設計了航天飛機，這是一架專門被設計以便回收再用的宇宙飛船。其中一項要求是，航天飛機要足夠寬敞，可以在內部做實驗，但為了不讓航天飛機負重過大，使用的材料要節省。所進行的一項實驗是鳥在失重的太空中產卵的情況。首次使用的樣本是一只麻雀。將來，美國航空航天局還會指定使用除了鳥之外的其它種群的動物。
On the day of the lift-off, many spectators gathered to watch the spectacle. As the engineer stood there and saw the great span of the space shuttle, his heart was filled with pride. As the flag was being raised, the band started playing the Star Spangled Banner, the national anthem. Then a spark came from the bottom of the rocket boosters, and a great explosion of flames emitted. The scene was spectacular. The shuttle lifted off the launch pad and headed for the sky. All the while, the engineer was choking with tears. The crowd watched the shuttle ascend until it was just a speck. One of the onlookers said, "Spanking good show." The engineer continued watching the heavens as the crowd became sparse. When everyone had gone, he went home, too.
發射的那天，聚集了許多觀眾，都來觀看這個場面。當工程師站在那里，看到航天飛機翼展寬闊，心里充滿自豪。隨著國旗的升起，樂隊開始演奏國歌《星條旗》。隨后，火箭助推器底部崩出火花，噴出一團巨大的火焰。場景壯觀。航天飛機飛離發射臺，直沖云霄。工程師始終眼含淚水，哽咽著。眾人看著航天飛機升空，直到變成一個斑點。其中一位旁觀者說道：“場面太棒了。”當人群變得稀疏，工程師仍繼續望著天空。當人們散盡之時，他方踏上歸途。
