December 2016 In this issue: Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX. Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center

1NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston has existed for over 50 years. It has led the world on a continuing adventure of human exploration, discovery, and achievement. The center has played an important role in bringing the United States into the 21st century through technological inventions and scientific discoveries. The people who work at JSC have made advances in science, technology, engineering, and medicine. This has helped people explore our world and outer space and gain endless knowledge from that exploration.
2The Johnson Space Center was established in 1961 as the Manned Spaceflight Center. It was the home and Mission Control Center for the U. S. human spaceflight program. In 1973, it was renamed in honor of the late President, and Texas native, Lyndon B. Johnson. The Johnson Center's complex occupies 1,620 acres of land southeast of downtown Houston. JSC presently serves as the home of mission control, lead for NASA's International Space Station operations and missions, home to the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, and base for many other advanced human exploration projects.
3The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center holds several artifacts that are worth a visit. For example, several historic space capsules are on display at the space center. They include the Faith 7 Mercury capsule flown by Gordon Cooper; Gemini 5, flown by Gordon Cooper and Pete Conrad; and the Apollo 17 Command Module, flown to the Moon and back by Gene Cernan, Ronald Evans, and Harrison Schmitt. NASA's latest-generation space capsule, Orion, is also on display.
4Along with the space capsules, the JSC holds the famous Lunar Module; it hangs from the ceiling. This spacecraft, named LTA-8, served as a test unit for astronaut training. The spacecraft from which six astronauts descended to the surface of the Moon had the same design as LTA-8. Their Lunar Modules acted as their base while on the Moon. Later, it helped them return to the Lunar Orbit when their stay was over. The Apollo 13 Lunar Module acted as a lifeboat after that flight's Service Module was damaged. It helped the crew return safely to Earth.
5NASA's robots called Robonauts are also designed at the Johnson Space Center. One such robot is currently at the International Space Station. The Space Vehicle Mockup Facility in Building 9 at the space center is a good place to see the Robonauts. Some tours let people see the inside of the building from above. Other special tours take people across the building floor for a close-up look at Robonauts and other wonders at the space center.
6The Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center is a wondrous place that displays the history of space exploration and the technology of the future, all under one roof.
Did You Know?

According to NASA's website, the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center contains the Space Food Systems Laboratory, where chemists prepare special meals for astronauts and figure out space-friendly packaging and preparation methods.

Passage 2

The Apollo Space Program

1Apollo's Moon mission was one of the biggest challenges that the government had undertaken. Over 34,000 NASA employees and 375,000 outside contractors took part in the Apollo program to make the dream of walking on the Moon come true. The Apollo program began as a "space race" between the United States and the Soviet Union (present-day Russia). However, President Kennedy surprised the world by suggesting that the two countries would work together to fulfill the world's dream of exploring the Moon.

2NASA had planned a total of 17 Apollo missions. At the beginning, most Apollo missions focused on successfully orbiting the Earth. However, many of those missions failed. On October 11, 1968, following several unmanned Earth-orbit flights, Apollo 7 successfully orbited the Earth 163 times. Apollo 7 carried a full crew of three astronauts. Later, Apollo 8 took the the first step toward manned lunar exploration. Apollo 9 carried out a long mission around Earth's orbit to check if the Lunar
Select the correct answer.
The descriptive structure that both authors use helps the reader understand that—
A.
space travel had a lot of problems in its early stages and scientists have only recently been able to resolve them
B.
space travel is a challenging mission and people have worked on its development for several decades to make it a possibility
C.
the history of space travel was far grander and richer than it is today because there were many more manned explorations
D.
robots are slowly replacing human astronauts and beginning to travel to distant parts of the universe and study it