Scientists know of more than 1,000 volcanoes on the surface of Venus, Earth’s “sister” planet. A big question has been: Are they still active? The scientists say yes.

Their evidence for recent volcanic activity on Venus comes from a lava (熔岩) flow in the planet’s northern hemisphere. The flow is hotter than the rocks around, which means the lava might still be cooling off. “The flow we studied seems to be very young---it is still warm inside,” Nataliya Bondarenko said.

Venus is a difficult planet to study from Earth because it is surrounded by thick clouds. Telescopes on Earth can’t see through these clouds, so the best information about Venus comes from spacecraft orbiting it.

Bondarenko and her colleagues studied the lava flow using data from NASA’s Magellan mission. That spacecraft spent four years in orbit around Venus and used radar to make a map of 98 percent of the planet’s surface. On October 11th, 1994, the mission ended, and the spacecraft plunged (跌落) through Venus’ heavy cloud cover and crashed onto the planet below.

While in orbit, the Magellan craft sent microwaves, which can go through Venus’ clouds, to the surface. Microwaves are invisible and can be as long as three feet. These waves are a kind of energy, like light. And like light, they bounce off surfaces. The way the waves bounced off the Venus’ surface and back to the craft supplied information that the scientists used to estimate the temperature of various parts of the planet’s surface. Bondarenko’s team found that the lava flow was hotter than its surroundings---which may mean the lava flow is in the process of cooling.

The scientists say the lava flow can’t be very old because if it were, it would have cooled off enough that Magellan wouldn’t have noticed the difference in microwaves. She adds that the flow appears in a 1978 view of the surface that a craft called the Pioneer Venus Orbiter captured.

1.What happened to Magellan in the end?

A. It was floating in space forever.

B. It flew into heavy clouds.

C. It returned to the Earth.

D. It fell onto Venus.

2.How could Bondarenko judge the temperature of the Venus?

A. By looking at it with a powerful telescope.

B. By measuring the thickness of clouds over Venus.

C. By calculating the microwave bouncing off Venus’s surface.

D. By orbiting Venus for 4 years in a spacecraft.

3.The best title for the passage may be “______ ”.

A. Warm lava on Venus                 

B. More volcanic eruptions on Venus

C. Venus is just like a big active volcano           

D. Lava flows are first found on Venus

I climbed Kilimanjaro with Lava Expeditions (探险队) during the rainy season.

I flew to Nairobi in Kenya and spent several days there. At my hotel in Nairobi I met the rest of the group with whom I would spend the next week. We all travelled on the bus together for a 6-hour journey into Tanzania and then Arusha , a quiet town.

After we arrived at our hotel in Arusha , we had dinner and a few drinks. Then we were introduced to more members including Taddeus Minja, the main guide, who was very experienced — climbing Kilimanjaro runs through the generations (代) of his family.

The next day the Lava Expeditions members checked if we had the correct and enough clothing for our expedition on Kilimanjaro. Only one person needed to bring more clothes.

After that we set off, walking in the rain through the beauty of the rainforest, all the way to the first camp. I was happy the next few days as the view was so wonderful and changed every day. I suffered a little during the trip and I felt so tired. But the members of Lava Expeditions provided me with lots of encouragement, which was one of the best memories. Finally we reached the top of Kilimanjaro in bright blue skies.

I felt excited about climbing Kilimanjaro and the feeling didn’t change during my trip. Lava Expeditions looked after me so well that I was deeply thankful for their help.

1.How did the author get to Nairobi?

2.What do we know about Taddeus Minja according to the passage?

3.How did Lava Expeditions help the author while climbing Kilimanjaro?

4.What did the author think of his climbing Kilimanjaro?

5.What is the author’s purpose in writing this passage?

ERATH WEEK---A DIARY OF THE PLANET

Enduring Storms

Several more rounds of severe storms, tornadoes and flash flooding struck many parts of the American Midwest and Northeast as bad weather continued across the US for a second month.   

Monsoon Storms

A south-west monsoon has caused havoc in parts of Sri Lanka. Government meteorologists said that unexpected monsoonal winds blew directly across the country from the Southern Hemisphere at about 100km/h, producing several rounds of stormy weather. Nearly 250 houses in the capital Colombo were damaged.

Mt. Etna Erupts

   Sicily’s Mount Etna volcano erupted shortly after midnight on July 1, shooting “bombs” of lava nearly 1.5 meters in diameter on the eastern side of the mountain. The 30-minute eruption could be seen for several miles, but did not threaten any nearby villages.

Hurricane

   Hurricane Blas lost strength as it moved over cooler waters in the Pacific Ocean to the west of Mexico. Blas formed off southwest Mexico during the previous week, but squalls on the outer fringes of the storm lashed western Michoacan State, killing four people when their wood and cardboard home collapsed.

Monkey Repellent

   After years of unsuccessful attempts to keep crop-eating monkeys out of Japanese fields, a Tokyo research team believes that it may have finally found a way to prevent the damage caused by the monkeys. Animal raids on crops were successfully prevented by shooting chilli powder into the air, irritating the eyes and noses of monkeys that passed in front of carefully-placed warning sensors. “We’ve tried al kinds of preventive measures, but the monkeys are smart enough to outwit the tricks, “said Toshiaki Wada, Director of the Tokyo Forestry Experiment Station in western Tokyo.

1..

. According to the information, which of the following statements is TURE?

A. The eruption of Mt. Etna lasted thirty days.

B. Hurricane Blas was formed off the coast of Italy.

C. The American Midwest had fine weather throughout July 1998.

 The eruption of Mt. Etna did not destroy local villages.

2..

. According to the information, the monkeys in the Japanese fields ________.

A. destroy crops                  B. kill unsuspecting humans

C. spread eye diseases to humans    D. stop farmers from working

3..

. The information in the “Earth Week” diary _______.

A.       predicts future weather patterns

B.        gives advice on dealing with monsoons

C.        shows that weather can be unpredictable

D.       shows the effects that storms have on animals

The huge explosion at Krakatau was the result of two different factors. One was that the volcano had not broken out for some time and so at the very center of the volcano there was an huge plug of lava, this acted like a cork(塞子) in a bottle, stopping the pressure below from being released(释放). The second factor was that ocean water entered the very centre of the volcano as the explosions became more violent. This caused superheated steam to build up enormous pressure and this was finally released in the largest explosion of all on August 27, 1883. The sudden release of the pressure sent huge amounts of ash, rock and dust into the sky. Some of the ash rose 80km into the air and traveled around the Earth causing brightly coloured sunsets for several years.
Krakatau almost disappeared; for many years after this explosion, it remained very quiet. However, there was still activity going on under the sea and on 25 January, 1925, a small volcanic cone appeared above the surface of the water. This new volcano was named Anak Kmkatau, or Child of Krakatau. Over the following years, the size of the island grew larger, by 1959, the island was 300 metres above the surface of the sea. The volcanic activity has continued and the latest eruptions were in 1995.
There is no doubt Krakatar will continue to grow and there is also strong evidence that at some point in the future there will be another violent explosion. Krakatau is in a part of the world where the surface of the Earth is unstable and is always moving and cracking. If, in the future, another “cork” becomes fixed in the centre of the volcano, the pressure will build up. A series of a smaller explosions will allow sea-water into the centre of the volcano and once again the result will a terribly destructive explosion.
66. The latest eruptions were in_______.
A.1925           B. 1959           C. 1995          D. 1983
67. The pressure under the volcano can not be released because _______
the plug looks like a cork in a bottle
the volcano hasn’t broken out for some time
the center of the volcano is blocked(堵塞) by lava
the temperature of the steam is not high enough.
68. We can infer from the article that Krakatau volcano________
A. has broken out three times               B. never dies but continues to be active
C. will kill many people again in the future    D. is always moving and growing above sea.
69. All of the following results are caused by the explosion at Krakatau EXCEPT that_____
A. ash, rock and dust was thrown high into the air
B. others small volcanoes were soon produced.
C. The island of Kratau was destroyed
D. People saw beautiful sunsets for some years
70. The article is mainly about________
A. the cause of the Krakatau volcano      B. the danger of the Krakatau volcano
C. the history of the Krakatau volcano     D. the future of the Krakatau volcano

阅读理解

　　Enduring Storms

　　Several more rounds of severe storms, tornadoes and flash flooding struck many parts of the American Midwest and Northeast as bad weather continued across the US for a second month.

　　Monsoon Storms

　　A south-west monsoon has caused havoc in parts of SriLanka. Government meteorologists said that unexpected monsoonal winds blew directly across the country from the Southern Hemisphere at about 100 km/h, producing several rounds of stormy weather. Nearly 250 houses in the capital Colombo were damaged.

For the week ending 3 July 1998

　　Mt. Etna Erupts

　　Sicily’s Mount Etna volcano erupted shortly after midnight on July 1, shooting“bombs”of lava nearly 1.5 metres in diameter on the eastern side of the mountain. The 30-minute eruption could be seen for several miles, but did not threaten any nearby villages.

　　Hurricane

　　Hurricane Blas lost strength as it moved over cooler waters in the Pacific Ocean to the west of Mexico. Blasformed off southwest Mexico during the previous week, but squalls on the outer fringes of the storm lashed western Michoacan State, killing four people when their wood and cardboard home collapsed.

　　Monkey Repellent

　　After years of unsuccessful attempts to keep crop-eating monkeys out of Japanese fields, a Tokyo research team believes that it may have finally found a way to prevent the damage caused by the monkeys. Animal raids on crops were successfully prevented by shooting chilli powder into the air, irritating the eyes and noses of monkeys that passed in front of carefully-placed warning sensors.“We’ve tried…all kinds of preventive measures, but the monkeys are smart enough to outwit the tricks,”said Toshiaki Wada, Director of the Tokyo Forestry Experiment Station in western Tokyo.

1．The monsoon is Sri Lanka ________.

[　　]

A．was of average strength

B．destroyed more property than previous monsoons

C．was not typical for that time of the year

D．affected only the outer areas of the nation

2．What aspect of Hurricane Blas does the map show?

[　　]

3．According to the information, which of the following statements is TRUE?

[　　]

A．The eruption of Mt. Etna lasted thirty days.

B．Hurricane Blas was formed off the coast of Italy.

C．The American Midwest had fine weather throughout July 1998.

D．The eruption of Mt. Etna did not destroy local villages.

4．According to the information, the monkeys in the Japanese fields ________.

[　　]

A．destroy crops

B．kill unsuspecting humans

C．spread eye diseases to humans

D．stop farmers from working

5．Toshiaki Wada, Director of the Tokyo Forestry Experiment Station, would describe the monkeys as ________.

[　　]