Space Shuttle Program Nears an End Or download MP3 (Right-click
or option-click and save link) This is SCIENCE IN THE NEWS, in
VOA Special English. I’m Christopher Cruise. And I’m Bob
Doughty. Today, we will tell about American plans for space
exploration after the space shuttle program. We tell how more
and more Americans are using the Internet to gather information
about their health. And we tell about a study that linked eating
apples to a longer life. The end is near. The American space
shuttle Discovery returned to earth on March ninth after
visiting the International Space Station. Now there are only two
shuttle flights left. The shuttle Endeavor is set for launch in
the middle of April. Near the end of June, the shuttle Atlantis
will return to space. Then, after thirty years and one hundred
thirty-five flights, the shuttle program ends. So, what is next
for NASA, the American space agency? The answer is…many things.
But for a while, NASA will not be sending any humans into space.
Using astronauts is co