SOFIA's telescope is a delicate gadget, so getting the door closed again is critical. The SOFIA education and outreach program is designed to help enhance science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education in U.S. and German communities. The modified Boeing 747 flew over the Pacific Ocean and pointed its nearly 9-foot telescope at Pluto during an occultation, an eclipse-like event in which Pluto cast a faint shadow on Earth’s surface as it passed in front of a … SOFIA made its first official science flight on Nov. 30, 2010. Sofía es la capital y la ciudad más grande de la República de Bulgaria.Con una población de 1 269 384 habitantes en 2018, se trata de la 14.ª mayor ciudad de la Unión Europea, donde ingresó en enero del 2007, y alrededor de 1.380.406 en su área metropolitana, la Provincia Capital. This is a redirection page In case the javascript redirection does not work, please click on the link below: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/SOFIA/index.html SOFIA captures images of space at an altitude of 38,000–45,000 feet. SOFIA, when cruising at around 40,000 – 45,0000 feet, flies above this vapor, allowing for crisp, clear images of space as seen in the infrared spectrum. We use ads to keep our content free. It looks out of … But unlike a space telescope, SOFIA can easily come back down to Earth for repairs. SOFIA features a German-built far-infrared telescope with an effective diameter of 100-inches (2.5 meters). SOFIA, the U.S. space agency’s telescope-equipped jumbo jet, took its first in-flight photos May 26, capturing multicolored infrared images of Jupiter and the galaxy M82. April 2012 Also in the pressurized section, and in the mid-section of the aircraft, is the main mission control and science operations area. Just like Kuiper did, SOFIA has been created to undertake infrared astronomy in flight, something which is near on impossible to do from the ground due to the water vapor in the atmosphere. Follow these easy steps to disable AdBlock, Follow these easy steps to disable AdBlock Plus, Follow these easy steps to disable uBlock Origin, Follow these easy steps to disable uBlock, How Recently Rebranded Airlink Became Africa’s Second Biggest Airline, Pakistan Fines Turkish Airlines Over COVID-19 Requirements, Emirates Slashes Services To Australia For Operational Reasons, Alaska’s January Load Factor Could Be As Low As 35%, Delta Air Lines Receives $3bn In Additional Government Support. Sign up to our daily aviation news digest. (This statement applies only to telescopes that use visible light and make images or photographs.) A modified Boeing 747 aircraft opens a hatch during flight to reveal a large, 2.7-meter reflecting telescope. NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) is the world's largest airborne astronomical observatory, complementing NASA's space telescopes as well as major Earth-based telescopes. Photo: NASA/Jim Ross via Wikimedia Commons The SOFIA telescope is a joint project between NASA and the German Aerospace Center (DLR), an 80-20% partnership. Raytheon began work on the adaptation of SOFIA back in 1998. "First light," the first time the telescope collected astronomical data, was achieved on May 25, 2010. Training is also provided for undergraduate and graduate-level scientists, engineers and technologists by enabling their participation in the design and development of instruments, as well as the execution and analysis of astronomical observations made using the SOFIA telescope.Development Status Although the aircraft may sometimes experience turbulence, the telescope has been designed to not be affected by this, as its mountings allow it to ‘float’ and avoid the bumps on board. Once validated, the technologies developed will also be useful in future space missions. NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif., manages the SOFIA science and mission operations in cooperation with the Universities Space Research Association in Columbia, Md., and the Deutsches SOFIA Institut in Stuttgart, Germany. It arrived with NASA in October 1997, and has even had its original name restored to its fuselage – Clipper Lindbergh. The SOFIA is a joint program of NASA and the German Aerospace Center (DLR - Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt). Please Support us by turning off your adblocker. One of the major modifications carried out to the SP was the installation of a 5.5m tall, 4.1m wide sliding door in the aircraft’s fuselage. It looks out of a large door in the port side of the aircraft near the tail. During this short-lived event, the planet crossed in front of the star. SOFIA is not a new aircraft. (NASA/SOFIA/USRA/FORCAST Team) ⺠View Larger Image Flying at altitudes of between 39,000 to 45,000 feet (12 â 14 kilometers) and above 99 percent of the water vapor in the atmosphere, SOFIA facilitates observations that are unobtainable from telescopes on the ground. The SOFIA FORCAST mosaic (color) is superimposed on a star field image from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Get the latest updates on NASA missions, watch NASA TV live, and learn about our quest to reveal the unknown and benefit all humankind. Let us know in the comments. Now you can print your own 3D model of SOFIA, the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy. Recent test results indicate that the SOFIA telescope optics are of better quality than the initial requirement 3 , but image motion at first light is expected to be approximately 2 arcsec rms 4. His work led to the development of NASA's Kuiper Airborne Observatory, a modified C-141 aircraft incorporating a 36-inch reflecting telescope that flew from 1974 to 1995. Editor - Joanna has worked in publishing for more than a decade and is fast becoming a go-to source for commercial aviation analysis. Further forward, the aircraft houses an education and public outreach area. The Boeing 747 is an iconic aircraft, and the 747SP holds a special place in many an avgeek’s heart. SOFIA also has observed the occultation of a star by the dwarf planet Pluto. The aircraft has been flying since 2010 and is planned to be operational until the early 2030s. Meet SOFIA – a jetliner specially fitted with a mega-telescope! Although some might have royalty on board, no other 747SP on Earth has a 17-ton infrared telescope mounted in its fuselage. SOFIA had to fly thousands of miles to catch this very rare event at an otherwise empty spot over the eastern Pacific. The FORCAST instrument collected data on a number of celestial targets including Comet Hartley, the star-forming nebulae Messier 42 in the Orion constellation and massive clouds of interstellar gas and dust in which hundreds of stars are forming such as W3 IRS5 and Sharpless 140. By then, this grand old 747SP will be well over half a century old. Photo: The green light on the control panel shows the pilots that SOFIA's door is still open. Sofía Suescun ha vuelto a compartir con sus seguidores unas imágenes de lo más sexys…. 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