Ⅱ. Grammar and Vocabulary (20 分)
Section A (10 分)
Directions: After reading the passage below, fill in the blanks to make the passage coherent and grammatically correct. For the blanks with a given word, fill in each blank with the proper form of the given word, for the other blanks, use one word that best fits each blank.
阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。
Since astronomers confirmed the presence of planets beyond our solar system, called exoplanets, humans _________1_________ (wonder) how many could harbor life.
Now, we're one step closer to ______2______(find) an answer. According to the Kepler space telescope, about half the stars similar in temperature ______3______our Sun could have a rocky planet capable of supporting liquid water on its surface.
Our galaxy holds at least an ______4______(estimate) 300 million of these potentially habitable worlds, based on even the most conservative interpretation of the results in a new study to be published in The Astronomical Journal.
This research helps us understand the potential for these planets ______5______(support) life. This is an essential part of astrobiology, the study of life's origins and future in our universe.
The study is authored by NASA scientists ______6______worked on the Kepler mission alongside collaborators from around the world. NASA retired the space telescope in 2018 after it ran out of fuel. Nine years of the telescope's observations revealed that there are billions of planets in our galaxy - more planets than stars.
______7______ this result is far from a final value, it’s extremely exciting that we calculated that these worlds are this common with such high confidence.
That's a wide range of different stars, each with ______8______own particular properties impacting whether the rocky planets in its orbit are capable of supporting liquid water. These complexities are partly why it is so difficult to calculate how many potentially habitable planets are out there, especially when even our ______9______(powerful) telescopes can just barely detect these small planets. That's _______10_______ the research team took a new approach.
【答案】1. have wondered
2. finding 3. to
4. estimation
5. are supporting
6. who 7. Although
8. its 9. powerful
10. why
