China’s Shenzhou XIII crewed spacecraft docked(对接)with the Tiangong space station on Saturday morning, with astronauts ready to enter the station to start a six-month journey.

The craft docked with the station’s core module(核心舱), named Tianhe, or Harmony of Heavens, at 6:56 am, about six and a half hours after a rendezvous(会合) process by their spacecraft, the China Manned Space Agency said in a brief statement, adding that the whole rendezvous and docking operations were controlled by computers.

The three-member crew — mission commander Major General Zhai Zhigang, Senior Colonel Wang Yaping and Senior Colonel Ye Guangfu — will then float into the core module, which is the first and also central section of the permanent space station — Tiangong, or Heavenly Palace. They will install equipment and verify(验证) technologies and plans for the next steps in the Tiangong space station program, the agency noted said.

Their Shenzhou XIII spacecraft was lifted by a Long March 2F carrier rocket that blasted off at 12:23 am at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China’s Gobi Desert. Shenzhou XIII is the fourth spacecraft to visit the Tiangong station and the second crewed ship to transport astronauts to the orbiting outpost.

The mission is expected to become the longest crewed spaceflight by China, doubling the time spent in the Shenzhou XII mission. It will also see the first spacewalk by a Chinese woman.

One of China’s most challenging and sophisticated space projects, Tiangong will finally consist of three main components—the Tianhe core module attached to two large space labs—with a combined weight of nearly 70 metric tons. The whole station is set to operate for about 15 years in a low-Earth orbit about 400 kilometers above the planet.

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1.What can we learn from the passage?

A Astronauts will spend half a year in the space station.

B The station’s core module was named after an astronaut.

C The rendezvous process took about six hours.

D The mission commander operated the docking during the trip.

解析：选A。A 细节理解题。根据第一段可知，中国神舟十三号载人飞船与天宫空间站对接，宇航员准备进入空间站，开始为期六个月的旅程。故选A。

2.Which belongs to the three crew’s mission?

A Setting up equipment.

B Testing supporting technologies.

C Checking plans for the next steps.

D All of the above.

解析：选D。D 细节理解题。根据第三段They will install equipment and verify (验证) technologies and plans for the next steps in the Tiangong space station program, the agency noted said.可知，宇航员们将安装设备，验证技术和在天宫空间站的下一步行动计划。故选D。

3.According to Paragraph 4, we can know that______.

A Shenzhou XIII is the newest spacecraft in China now

B Shenzhou XII once carried two astronauts into space

C it is suitable for carrier rockets to be launched in the morning

D three spacecraft have visited the Tiangong space station before Shenzhou XIII

解析：选D。D 推理判断题。根据第四段Shenzhou XIII is the fourth spacecraft to visit the Tiangong station and the second crewed ship to transport astronauts to the orbiting outpost.可知, 神舟十三号是第四艘访问天宫空间站的飞船，也是第二艘将宇航员运送到轨道前哨站的载人飞船。由此说明在此之前，已有三艘飞船探访过天宫空间站。故选D。

4.The passage is most probably taken from_______.

A a guidebook

B an advertisement

C a newspaper report

D a scientific research

解析：选C。C 推理判断题。根据全文内容可知，本文属于新闻类稿件，故最有可能出现在新闻报道中。故选C。