SOFIA
Description In this long-exposure image, the 2.5-meter infrared telescope peers out at a starry sky from its cavity in the rear fuselage of NASA's highly modified Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) Boeing 747SP during nighttime line operations testing. The line operations tests at the Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility in Palmdale, Calif., enable the SOFIA aircraft, telescope, and FORCAST teams to prepare for the flying observatory's upcoming 'first light' science flights.
Credit: NASA
Image Number: ED10-0115-18
Date: May 20, 2010
SOFIA
Description In this long-exposure image, the 2.5-meter infrared telescope peers out at a starry sky from its cavity in the rear fuselage of NASA's highly modified Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) Boeing 747SP during nighttime line operations testing. The line operations tests at the Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility in Palmdale, Calif., enable the SOFIA aircraft, telescope, and FORCAST teams to prepare for the flying observatory's upcoming 'first light' science flights.
Credit: NASA
Image Number: ED10-0115-18
Date: May 20, 2010