As we know, it is not easy to build a satellite. Building a traditional satellite normally takes years. The costs can be as high

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问题    As we know, it is not easy to build a satellite. Building a traditional satellite normally takes years. The costs can be as high as $ 250 million or more. Most members of the design teams have worked in the field for a long time. They hold advanced degrees in math, science, or engineering.
   But things are changing. High costs, unusual educational requirements and long start-up times are no longer an obstacle to space exploration. The scientists at Stanford University have developed a new type of tiny, inexpensive earth-orbiting satellites that go from ideas to launch in a year.
   So far, college students have built and launched several cube-shaped satellites, or CubeSats. At least 15 more are ready to go. Those already in orbit take pictures, collect information and send it back to the earth, just as regular satellites do.
   But you might not even have to wait until you get to college to start designing and building your own satellite. A new program called KatySat aims to get teenagers to take part. Once kids understand what satellites can do, says Ben Yuan, an engineer at Lockheed Martin in Menlo Park, Calif., the kind of applications they’ll come up with may be countless.
   "We’d like to put this technology in your hands," he tells kids. "We’re going to teach you how to operate a satellite. Then we want to turn it over to you as a sandbox for you to play in. We want you to take the technology into new directions that we haven’t thought of yet."
   Education isn’t the only goal of CubeSats. Because these tiny, technology-filled boxes are relatively inexpensive to build and can be put together quickly, they’re perfect for testing new technologies might one day be used on major tasks.
   The biggest challenge now is to find ways to bring the satellites back to the earth after a year or two. Otherwise, major highways of space junk could gradually increase as CubeSats become more common.
   Nowadays, college and high school students are getting a chance to learn what it takes to explore in space. Someday--perhaps a lot sooner than you imagine--you might get to design, build and launch your own satellite. If you do, you’re sure to have fun. And you might also get crazy about science for life.

选项 A、need long start-up times
B、are low-cost and small-sized
C、are very hard to operate
D、collect more information in orbit

答案B

解析 从第六段的这句话“Because these tiny,technology-filled boxes are relatively inexpensive to build”(因为这些小小的有技术含量的盒子相对来说建造起来不贵),可以看出答案为B。
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