Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy
Scientific paper
Jan 2005
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2005esasp.577...69e&link_type=abstract
In: Proceedings of the dusty and molecular universe: a prelude to Herschel and ALMA, 27-29 October 2004, Paris, France. Ed. by A
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astronomy
1
Stratospheric Observatory, Infrared Astronomy
Scientific paper
SOFIA, the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, is a joint project of NASA in the U.S. and the DLR in Germany. It is designed to operate at altitudes from 12 to 14 km and wavelengths from 0.3 μm to 1.6 mm over a 20 year lifetime. Its 2.5 m effective diameter telescope will be diffraction limited at wavelengths beyond roughly 15 μm, for example producing a point-spread function ~8.5 arc seconds FWHM at 100 μm. SOFIA's Boeing 747SP aircraft platform will allow coverage of the entire sky and enable unique observations of ephemeral events. Nine first-generation focal plane instruments are being built, with more to be added later. These attributes assure SOFIA a vital role in future studies of the interstellar medium and the solar system, as well as in other disciplines. Topics discussed here are: scientific motivation, the observatory and its relation to other facilities, the science instruments, some science examples, status, and the planned observing program.
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