听力教室

THE UNIVERSE AND MAN-MADE SATELLITES

　　When we talk about the universe, we mean the earth, the sun, the moon and the stars, and the space between them. Many of the stars cannot be seen because they are too far away.
　　The moon travels round the earth. It is our satellite. It is quite near us in space. It is only 380,000 kilometres away, and it has been visited by man already. So far, no man has traveled farther than the moon, but spaceships without people have reached other parts of the universe.
　　Man-made satellites have been sent up into space by many countries. These satellites go round the earth and help us to learn more about the earth, the weather and other things. Most countries use these satellites to send and receive messages. For example, with their help China can send its TV and radio programmes to the other side of the world. Foreign countries can send their programmes to China. We can also use satellites to help us make telephone calls to foreign countries.
　　Our knowledge of the universe is growing all the time. Our knowledge grows and the universe develops. Thanks to space satellites, the world itself is becoming a much smaller place and people from different countries now understand each other better.