Janet had never felt more excited in her life. Today was the day that the space shuttle Blue Night would finally launch to Mars, and she was in charge of the mission. She fastened on her space helmet and glanced at her team of astronauts who would be taking orders from her. Janet felt more like a queen or goddess than a leader as she addressed her fellow space scientists.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” she began. “I want to lay down some ground rules before launch time.”
Janet cleared her throat and unfolded a piece of paper from her pocket. The paper had 25 rules written on it that she read out loud. When Janet was finished, she put the rules back in her pocket and turned to her assistant, Marge.
“Commander, I don’t believe the space shuttle is ready to launch,” Marge said nervously as Janet frowned.
“What on Earth are you talking about?” Janet demanded as she rolled her eyes toward outer space.
“I think there’s a problem with the main engines that could be a disaster if we don’t fix it. We should have one of the mechanical engineers look at it first.”
Janet tapped her toes impatiently.
“The engine is fine, Marge. Let’s not miss our launch time. The whole world is watching!” Janet smiled proudly as she thought of all the reporters who were covering the story and how her face would be on television in nearly every country.
“Commander, I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Marge said quietly as Janet ignored her and sat down at the control center.
Marge disappeared around the bend in search of one of the mechanical engineers. Maybe the engineer could convince Janet! A few minutes later, Marge and Dr. Borgenson joined Janet at the control center.
Dr. Borgenson said, “Commander, I have checked the main engines and I believe Marge is right. We need to make a few tweaks to the space shuttle before you and your crew can safely take off.”
Janet shook her head and laughed at the engineer. No one was going to stop her from launching her dream mission on time in front of the world.
But, as she started up the shuttles’ main engines, her dreams were instantly crushed. The engines failed to ignite and the spacecraft stood still. Janet began to sweat as she raced to find the engineer and ask for his help.
“Dr. Borgenson, you were right!” she admitted. “Could you help us—please?”
The engineer made the repair as the commander realized that she wasn’t the only one in charge.
Questions
Which details from the text show that Janet is very eager? Select all that apply.
“When Janet was finished, she put the rules back in her pocket and tested the shuttle with her assistant, Marge.”
“The engine is fine, Marge. Let’s not miss our launch time. The whole world is watching!”
“No one was going to stop her from launching her dream mission on time in front of the world.”
“The engineer made the repair as the commander realized that she wasn’t the only one in charge.”
- “The engine is fine, Marge. Let’s not miss our launch time. The whole world is watching!”
- “No one was going to stop her from launching her dream mission on time in front of the world.”