1On 20th July 1969, astronaut Neil Armstrong became the first human being to set foot on the Moon. As he stepped onto the lunar surface, he spoke the words that would be heard around the world: "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." The Apollo 11 mission represented the pinnacle of human ambition and technological achievement.
2The journey to reach that moment had not been straightforward. The Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union drove both nations to invest enormous resources into space exploration. The Soviet Union had already launched the first satellite, Sputnik, in 1957, and sent the first human into space when Yuri Gagarin orbited the Earth in 1961.
3Since those early milestones, space exploration has transformed our understanding of the universe. Robotic spacecraft have visited every planet in our Solar System. The Hubble Space Telescope, launched in 1990, has captured breathtaking images of galaxies billions of light years away. Scientists have even detected gravitational waves and confirmed the existence of black holes.
4Space exploration also has practical benefits here on Earth. Satellites orbiting our planet make it possible to forecast weather, navigate by GPS and communicate globally. Many technologies developed for space programmes, such as memory foam and water purification systems, are now used in everyday life.
5Looking ahead, ambitious plans are being developed to send humans back to the Moon and eventually to Mars. Private companies are now competing with national space agencies to develop the rockets and spacecraft that will carry the next generation of explorers into the cosmos.
Match each word to its correct meaning.
spacecraft have visited every planet in our Solar System. The Hubble telescope has captured images of far away. Satellites make it possible to navigate using . Future missions may send humans to .