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Question REVIEW
1. When did the two sides of the Chunnel meet?
a. January 1, 1980 b. December 1, 1990 c. May 6, 1990 d. December 10, 1990 a. It was too expensive to build. b. They did not have enough tools. c. The tunnel kept collapsing. d. They ran out of workers. a. Albert Mathieu b. Phillippe Cozette c. Graham Fagg d. John Smith
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2. Why did an English company try to build the tunnel in the late 1800s but gave up?
3. Who had the idea of building a tunnel between England and France in 1802?
4. What is the name of the body of water separating England and France?
5. Why do you think the tunnel is called The Chunnel?
6. Why did the tunnel keep collapsing in the 1800s and not when they built it in 1988?
A CLOSE-UP LOOK AT A TUNNEL BORING MACHINE
Building tunnels for cars and trains takes a special machine created just for tunnels. A tunnel boring machine (TBM) is a huge machine that drills through rock and soil to create a tunnel. This is a picture of a TBM.
Are the following statements true or false? If the statement is false, explain why.
Concrete panels: After digging the tunnel, the machine lines the walls with concrete panels to support the tunnel.
The conveyor belt: The conveyor belt carries the rock or soil away from the cutting head. The conveyor gets longer as the machine continues digging and carries the dirt out of the tunnel.
The cutting head: This is the front of the machine that cuts through the rock or soil to create the tunnel. The tunnel shield: This is the main part of the machine that surrounds the cutting head and has room for workers. It keeps the soil or rock from collapsing after being cut.
1. Some tunnel-boring machines have restrooms in the tunnel shield.
2. The conveyor belt gets longer as the machine continues digging.
3. The tunnel walls are made of steel.
4. TBMs are used to make tunnels for trains and cars.
Did you know?
• The USSR was the largest country in the world, at over 13 million square miles.
• In 1957, the USSR became the first country to send a satellite, Sputnik 1, to space.
