SOFIAThe SOFIA telescope team collected baseline operational measurements during several nights of characterization testing in March 2008.NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy 747SP shows off its new blue-and-white livery at L-3 Communications' Integrated Systems in Waco,...NASA's SOFIA observatory with a NASA F/A-18 trailing in chase soars over California City in the desert north of Edwards...NASA's newly painted Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy 747SP is pushed back from L-3 Communications' Integrated Systems hangar in Waco,...NASA's new SOFIA observatory shared the ramp with its predecessor, the now-retired Kuiper Airborne Observatory, during open house at NASA...Technicians carefully maneuver a spreader bar into place before removing the telescope aperture assembly from NASA's SOFIA infrared observatory Boeing...With the large door over its 2.5-meter German-built telescope wide open, NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy 747SP aircraft soars...Erik Lindbergh, grandson of famed aviator Charles Lindbergh, yanks the bunting to reveal the Clipper Lindbergh name on NASA's SOFIA...The flight crew of NASA's SOFIA airborne observatory includes (from left), flight engineer Marty Trout and pilots Bill Brockett and...With the doors to the high-tech telescope nestled in its rear fuselage open, NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, or...With the doors to the high-tech telescope nestled in its rear fuselage open, NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, or...The high-tech German-built infrared telescope and its associated lower flexible telescope cavity door are rotated upward to their maximum 58-degree...A NASA F/A-18 mission support aircraft flies close beside NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy 747SP during a high-altitude test...Cornell University's Faint Object Infrared Camera for the SOFIA Telescope, or FORCAST, is shown attached to the SOFIA telescope.With the sliding door covering its 2.5-meter infrared telescope open, NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) 747SP rolls down...Engineers and technicians prepare SOFIA's German-built primary mirror assembly for reinstallation into NASA's 747SP airborne observatory.NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) touches down at Moffett Field, Calif., for its first visit to NASA Ames...Several NASA science aircraft, including (from bottom) the SOFIA observatory, the DC-8 airborne laboratory and an ER-2 high-altitude aircraft, along...Technicians position the transport cradle as a crane lowers SOFIA's primary mirror assembly into place prior to finish coating of...The SOFIA primary mirror assembly is cautiously lifted from its cavity in the modified 747 by a crane in preparation...A large mobile crane and hi-lift are maneuvered into place for removal of the aperture assembly and cavity doors from...The SOFIA flight crew descends the stairs after ferrying the 747SP airborne observatory from Waco, Texas, to NASA's Dryden Flight...NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) Boeing 747SP flares for landing at Edwards AFB after a ferry flight from...Technicians carefully disassemble portions of the aperture mounting assembly from NASA's SOFIA aircraft in preparation for removal of the telescope.NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) Boeing 747SP flies over NASA DFRC after a ferry flight from Waco, Texas.NASA'S SOFIA infrared observatory 747SP (front) and DC-8 flying laboratory (rear) are now housed at the Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility...The Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility in Palmdale, Calif., is now home to two large science aircraft, NASA's SOFIA observatory and...An F/A-18 mission support aircraft shadows NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy 747SP during a functional check flight on Dec....With landing gear extended, the NASA/DLR Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) 747SP cruises over central Texas on its first...Two NASA F/A-18s flown by NASA Dryden research pilots Jim Smolka and Nils Larson cruise over the Texas landscape after...An aircraft tug tows NASA's SOFIA infrared observatory 747SP into Hangar 703 upon arrival at its base, the Dryden Aircraft...Darlene Mendoza of United Space Research Association's SOFIA Education and Public Outreach office at NASA's Ames Research Center demonstrates infrared...NASA Dryden Flight Research Center's two T-38A Talon mission support aircraft flew together for the first time on Sept. 26,...An F/A-18 mission support aircraft shadows NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy 747SP during a functional check flight in restricted...The first of NASA's two ER-2 high-altitude Earth science aircraft was maneuvered into place beside NASA's DC-8 flying laboratory and...NASA's SOFIA infrared observatory 747SP is shadowed by a NASA F-18 during a flyby at its new home, the Dryden...A technician examines the instrument mounting structure and bulkhead of the German-built infrared telescope installed in NASA's SOFIA airborne observatory.A NASA F/A-18 trails NASA's SOFIA 747SP during a test of the flying observatory's telescope cavity door opening mechanism.SOFIA Flight CrewNASA's SOFIA flying infrared observatory banks over the Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility in Palmdale, CA upon arrival at its new...