SOFIAThis close-up of the German-built telescope assembly seen through the open telescope cavity door in the side of NASA's SOFIA...The rear fuselage of the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy's 747SP is illuminated during telescope testing operations in preparation for...Several NASA aircraft, including the SOFIA observatory in the foreground, the DC-8 airborne laboratory, an ER-2 high-altitude science aircraft and...The German-built 100-inch telescope that is the heart of NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy is nestled in the SOFIA...NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy 747SP lands at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, Calif., following a test flight...SOFIA's primary mirror assembly rests in its transportation cradle prior to reinstallation in NASA's airborne laboratory on Oct. 8, 2008.NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy 747SP reached a milestone Dec. 18, 2009, when the doors covering the aircraft's German-built...With the sliding door over its 17-ton infrared telescope wide open, NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy – or SOFIA...On a hazy day over Edwards Air Force Base flight test range, A NASA F/A-18 mission support aircraft maintains tight...NASA's SOFIA flying observatory makes a low pass over NASA Ames Research Center prior to landing at Moffett Field for...After a brief visit to NASA Ames Research Center at Moffett Field near San Jose, Calif., NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for...NASA's highly modified Boeing 747SP SOFIA observatory banks low over the Texas countryside as it heads for landing at Waco...Thousands of NASA Ames employees and their families toured NASA's SOFIA flying observatory during its first visit to NASA Ames...The High-speed Imaging Photometer for Occultation, or HIPO, instrument was installed on the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy telescope Nov....Several NASA science aircraft, including (from bottom) the SOFIA observatory, the DC-8 airborne laboratory and an ER-2 high-altitude aircraft, along...The main mirror for NASA's new airborne eye on the universe is now ready for installation after being transformed from...Ground crewmen shove the more than two-ton SOFIA primary mirror assembly in its transport crate into a C-17's cavernous cargo...An F/A-18 mission support aircraft shadows NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy 747SP during a functional check flight Dec. 9,...An F/A-18 mission support aircraft shadows NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy 747SP during a functional check flight Dec. 9,...SOFIA's primary mirror assembly is cradled on its dolly as technicians prepare to move it into a "clean room" at...A NASA Technician directs loading of the crated SOFIA primary mirror assembly into a C-17 for shipment to NASA Ames...The cavernous expanse of the Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility in Palmdale, Calif., now houses NASA's DC-8 science laboratory and SOFIA...The high-tech German-built infrared telescope and its associated lower flexible telescope cavity door are rotated upward to their maximum 58-degree...Technicians carefully maneuver a spreader bar into place before removing the telescope aperture assembly from NASA's SOFIA infrared observatory Boeing...NASA's new SOFIA observatory shared the ramp with its predecessor, the now-retired Kuiper Airborne Observatory, during open house at NASA...NASA's SOFIA observatory with a NASA F/A-18 trailing in chase soars over California City in the desert north of Edwards...Technicians position the transport cradle as a crane lowers SOFIA's primary mirror assembly into place prior to finish coating of...A crane is used to lift SOFIA's newly coated primary mirror assembly from the floor of NASA's Dryden Aircraft Operations...SOFIA's primary mirror assembly is lifted above wing level prior to its reinstallation in the telescope cavity of NASA's 747...Technicians lift SOFIA's primary mirror assembly above NASA's 747SP airborne astronomy aircraft just prior to installation in the telescope cavity.Over a blanket of snow covering California's southern Sierra Nevada mountains, NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) conducts a...With a protective sun cover over its primary mirror, the high-tech German-built infrared telescope is nested in its framework inside...With a NASA F/A-18 flying safety chase nearby, NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy – or SOFIA – flies a...News media representatives are briefed on capabilities of the SOFIA's German-built infrared telescope embedded in the flying observatory's rear fuselage...With the sliding door that covers the SOFIA's telescope behind him open, USRA's SOFIA science missions operations director Erick Young...NASA's newly painted Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy 747SP is pushed back from L-3 Communications' Integrated Systems hangar in Waco,...NASA's SOFIA airborne observatory taxis past Hangar 1, the 1930s-era dirigible hangar at Moffett Field, during its first visit to...Edwards Air Force Base, Calif - NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, or SOFIA, has passed a significant mission milestone.NASA's SOFIA observatory with a NASA F/A-18 trailing in chase soars over California City in the desert north of Edwards...Faint specks of starlight are reflected by the 100-inch (2.5 meter) primary mirror on NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy...
