The successor to the Hubble Space Telescope has been delayed…
Read the text aloud.
The successor to the Hubble Space Telescope has been delayed yet again and will not now launch until "approximately May 2020". The James Webb Space Telescope is also in danger of busting the cost cap put on the project by the US Congress. Back in 2011, politicians on Capitol Hill said the observatory should not take more than $8 billion dollars to build and $800 million dollars to operate over five years in orbit.
Opens question #010481 in the RealPTE practice screen.
How to read it
The successor to the Hubble Space Telescope has been delayed yet again‖and will not now launch until "approximately May 2020".|The James Webb Space Telescope is also in danger of busting the cost cap‖put on the project by the US Congress.|Back in 2011, politicians on Capitol Hill said the observatory‖should not take more than $8 billion dollars to build|and $800 million dollars to operate over five years in orbit.
| short pause ‖ breathe
Aim for 28–34 seconds.
Words to stress correctly
| approximately | ap·PROX·i·mate·ly | /əˈprɑksəmətli/ |
| observatory | ob·SER·va·to·ry | /əbˈzɝvətɔri/ |
| politicians | pol·i·TI·cians | /pɑləˈtɪʃənz/ |
| successor | suc·CES·sor | /səkˈsɛsɚ/ |
| telescope | TEL·e·scope | /ˈtɛləskoʊp/ |
| delayed | de·LAYED | /dɪˈleɪd/ |
74 words, aim 28–34 seconds. Say 2020 as 'twenty twenty', 2011 as 'twenty eleven', $8 billion dollars as 'eight billion dollars' and $800 million dollars as 'eight hundred million dollars'. Breathe after again, cap and observatory; short pauses after 2020"., Congress. and build.
Where marks are usually lost
Stressing the first syllable of suc·CES·sor, ap·PROX·i·mate·ly or ob·SER·va·to·ry; pol·i·TI·cians takes the third. Hesitating before approximately or the dollar figures. Dropping the -ed in delayed or the -s in politicians, years.
General tip: Space Telescope appears twice; keep TEL·e·scope stressed on the first syllable both times and don't speed up on the second occurrence.
What it means: 中文 · हिन्दी · नेपाली · Tiếng Việt
中文: 哈勃太空望远镜的继任者再次推迟，现在要到"大约2020年5月"才会发射。詹姆斯·韦伯太空望远镜还有突破美国国会为该项目设定的成本上限的危险。早在2011年，国会山的政治家们就表示，这座天文台的建造费用不应超过80亿美元，在轨运行五年的费用不应超过8亿美元。
हिन्दी: हबल स्पेस टेलीस्कोप का उत्तराधिकारी फिर से विलंबित हो गया है और अब "लगभग मई 2020" तक लॉन्च नहीं होगा। जेम्स वेब स्पेस टेलीस्कोप अमेरिकी कांग्रेस द्वारा परियोजना पर लगाई गई लागत सीमा को पार करने के खतरे में भी है। 2011 में कैपिटल हिल के राजनेताओं ने कहा था कि इस वेधशाला को बनाने में 8 अरब डॉलर से और कक्षा में पाँच साल चलाने में 80 करोड़ डॉलर से अधिक नहीं लगना चाहिए।
नेपाली: हबल स्पेस टेलिस्कोपको उत्तराधिकारी फेरि ढिलो भएको छ र अब "लगभग मे 2020" सम्म प्रक्षेपण हुनेछैन। जेम्स वेब स्पेस टेलिस्कोप अमेरिकी कंग्रेसले परियोजनामा तोकेको लागत सीमा नाघ्ने खतरामा पनि छ। सन् 2011 मा क्यापिटल हिलका राजनीतिज्ञहरूले यो वेधशाला बनाउन 8 अर्ब डलर र कक्षमा पाँच वर्ष सञ्चालन गर्न 80 करोड डलरभन्दा बढी लाग्नु हुँदैन भनेका थिए।
Tiếng Việt: Kính viễn vọng kế nhiệm Hubble lại bị trì hoãn một lần nữa và giờ sẽ không phóng cho đến "khoảng tháng 5 năm 2020". Kính viễn vọng không gian James Webb cũng có nguy cơ vượt mức trần chi phí mà Quốc hội Mỹ đặt ra cho dự án. Hồi năm 2011, các chính trị gia ở Đồi Capitol nói rằng đài quan sát này không nên tốn quá 8 tỷ đô la để chế tạo và 800 triệu đô la để vận hành trong năm năm trên quỹ đạo.
More Read Aloud questions
Read Aloud format (Pearson)
| Prompt | Text up to 60 words |
|---|---|
| Preparation | 30–40 seconds |
| Time to answer | Depends on the length of the text |
| Skills assessed | Speaking |
| Scored on | Content; Pronunciation; Oral fluency |
How it is scored
- Content is scored by counting the correct words in your response.
- If you stay silent for more than 3 seconds, the recording stops.
- You can record your response only once.
Source: Pearson, PTE Academic & UKVI test format, Part 1: Speaking & Writing, checked 9 October 2026.