SAT OwlQuestion bank / Form, Structure, and Sense
The James Webb Space Telescope was launched on December 25, 2021. About a month later, it ______ its destination, a point in space roughly 1.5 million kilometers from Earth.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
reaches
reached
will reach
has reached
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B
The text describes a sequence of past events: the launch in 2021 and the arrival a month later. The simple past "reached" matches "was launched" and fits a completed event at a specific past time.
Choice D uses the present perfect, which doesn't work with a specific past time like "about a month later."
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