SOFIAMembers of the 747 SOFIA infrared observatory support team gather around Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin.In the darkened interior of NASA's SOFIA flying observatory, NASA and German scientists study the results of system tests on...The SOFIA observatory 747 drew lots of visitors following the dedication ceremonies at the Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility in Palmdale,...Several NASA science aircraft, including (from bottom) the SOFIA observatory, the DC-8 airborne laboratory and an ER-2 high-altitude aircraft, along...Technicians carefully attached a spreader T-bar to the framework of SOFIA's primary mirror assembly prior to lifting it from the...Technicians with ropes guide SOFIA's primary mirror assembly suspended from a crane toward its transport dolly after the mirror's removal...Nestled in its cradle on a transport dolly, SOFIA's primary mirror assembly awaits transfer to a "clean room" at the...The primary mirror of SOFIA’s telescope being coated in a vacuum chamber at NASA’s Ames Research Center, in Silicon Valley...Two large science aircraft, a DC-8 flying laboratory and the SOFIA 747SP, are based at NASA's Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility...Technicians at NASA Ames Research Center are reflected in the coated SOFIA telescope main mirror suspended above them. The main...Members of the SOFIA crew are greeted by NASA Dryden Flight Research Center Director Kevin Petersen and Deputy Director Steven...SOFIA’s 9-foot mirror is lowered into the cavity and attached to a structure sitting on a thin layer of oil...Engineers and technicians from NASA, the German Space Agency and the Deutsches SOFIA Institut recently reinstalled the German-built primary mirror...The cavernous expanse of the Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility in Palmdale, Calif., now houses NASA's DC-8 science laboratory and SOFIA...NASA'S SOFIA infrared observatory 747SP (front) and DC-8 flying laboratory (rear) are now housed at the Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility...NASA's SOFIA flying observatory undergoes nighttime characterization testing of its infrared telescope at the Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility in Palmdale,...Technicians guide the dolly carrying SOFIA's primary mirror into a clean room at the Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility prior to...SOFIA 747 being towed into Hangar 703 at the Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility in Palmdale, CA. Photo courtesy John Torres.A ground crewman signals the flight crew of NASA's SOFIA flying observatory to stop as other crewmen head to their...Ground crewmen shove the more than two-ton SOFIA primary mirror assembly in its transport crate into a C-17's cavernous cargo...A NASA technician directs loading of the crated SOFIA primary mirror assembly into a C-17 for shipment to NASA Ames...Members of the SOFIA crew disembark from the aircraft at its new home inside of Hangar 703 at the Dryden...A ground crewman signals the flight crew of NASA's SOFIA flying observatory to stop as other crewmen head to their...Technicians installing the tertiary mirror onto the SOFIA telescope.The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) makes a low pass over NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in celebration of...NASA research pilot Gordon Fullerton flew the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy 747SP to NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center in...
