VOA慢速英语:Project Mercury: Alan Shepard Becomes the First American in Space

短语讲解：

1. Thousands of scientists, engineers, technicians and other workers were needed. And money was needed -- thousands of millions of dollars.

thousands of 成千上万,几千
例句：A computer consists of thousands of components. 
电脑由成千上万个部件组成。 

2. The final test flight was made at the end of January, nineteen sixty-one.

at the end of 在...的尽头
例句：At the end of the wood, the path diverges to the left. 
在树林的尽头,小路向左拐去。 

3. The spacecraft filled with water and sank. Grissom escaped.

fill with 充满
例句：His mind began to fill with dreadful thoughts, 
他心里逐渐充满种种可怕的念头。 

4. The results of the two short flights made space officials believe the Mercury program was ready for its first orbital flight.

be ready for 为...做好准备
例句：He is ready for the trip. 
他已准备好去旅行。 

5. But it was postponed for almost a month because of weather and mechanical problems.

because of 因为
例句：Because of the storm he didn't go there.
因为暴风雨他没有去那儿。

6. Glenn solved the problem by turning off the automatic system.

turn off 关掉
例句：Turn off the light before you leave.
离开前请把灯关掉。