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NASA Meatball SOFIA Photo Collection banner
 
SOFIA

Technicians guide removal of the upper rigid door assembly that covers the telescope cavity on NASA's SOFIA 747SP in preparation for primary mirror removal.

 
Photo Number: ED08-0041-100
Photo Date: February 20, 2008
 
Formats: 640x556 JPEG Image (263 KBytes)
1280x1111 JPEG Image (876 KBytes)
3000x2604 JPEG Image (4368 KBytes)
 
Photo
Description:
Technicians guide removal of the upper rigid door assembly that covers the telescope cavity on NASA's SOFIA 747SP in preparation for primary mirror removal.
 
Project
Description:
NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) is being developed as a world-class observatory complementing the Hubble Space Telescope. The observatory, which features a German-built 98.4-inch (2.5 meter) diameter infrared telescope weighing 20 metric tons mounted in a highly-modified Boeing 747SP aircraft, has begun its flight test phase in a joint program by NASA and DLR Deutsches Zentrum fur Luft und Raumfahrt (German Aerospace Center). Major aircraft modifications and installation of the telescope was performed by L-3 Communications Integrated Systems facility at Waco, Texas. Systems integration and flight test operations are being conducted at NASA's Dryden Flight Resarch Center at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. SOFIA's science and mission operations are managed jointly by the Universities Space Research Association (USRA) and the Deutsches SOFIA Institut (DSI), and are based at NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field near San Jose, Calif. Once operational in the 2009-2010 period, SOFIA will be the world's primary infrared observatory during a mission lasting up to 20 years, as well as an outstanding laboratory for developing and testing instrumentation and detector technology.
 
NASA Photo by: Tony Landis
 
Keywords: SOFIA, Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, aperture mounting assembly, upper rigid door assembly, cavity doors, removal, Ames Research Center, Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility, Palmdale, Site 9, Clipper Lindbergh, German-built 100-inch (2.5 meter) diameter infrared telescope, 20 tons, highly-modified Boeing 747SP aircraft, DLR Deutsches Zentrum fuer Luft- und Raumfahrt (German Aerospace Center), L-3 Communications Integrated Systems, Universities Space Research Association, USRA, Deutsches SOFIA Institut, DSI
 


Last Modified: March 5, 2008
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