Astronomy from the Stratosphere: NASA's SOFIA Mission

Why would NASA buy a used passenger airliner, cut a 10' x 10' hole in the fuselage, add a roll-back door, and install a 17-ton telescope inside?  In his lecture, open to the public, Dr. Backman will introduce you to the engineering marvel and international scientific facility called SOFIA -- the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy. This remarkable airborne telescope began scientific research flights in 2010 and is already returning exciting discoveries about the birth of stars, interstellar chemistry, the atmospheres of giant planets, the environment around supermassive black holes, and other branches of astronomy.
Dana Backman is the Director of Education and Public Outreach for the SOFIA project at NASA's Ames Research Center and an Adjunct Professor at Santa Clara University and the Stanford Continuing Studies Program.  Before joining the SOFIA team, he was professor of physics and astronomy at Franklin and Marshall College in Pennsylvania.  He is coauthor of three college-level astronomy textbooks and a frequent public speaker on astronomy and SOFIA.   His research specialty is infrared astronomy (the study of the universe by collecting heat rays) – exactly the kind of work that the SOFIA telescope is designed to do.

Speaker: Dr. Dana Backman, SETI