NASA, here we come! Two members of Liberty Science Center’s STEM team are about to board an upcoming flight on the NASA SOFIA Observatory.

Stratospheric Observatory For Infrared Astronomy – or SOFIA, for short – is a 2.5 M (110 inch) infrared telescope that is mounted in a modified Boeing 747SP. Since water vapor in the Earth’s atmosphere blocks most of the infrared light from astronomical objects, it can be very difficult (or impossible) to detect using telescopes located on the ground. The SOFIA can fly at a maximum altitude of 45,000 feet (13.7 km), which puts the telescope above 99.8 percent of the Earth’s atmospheric water vapor.

Now, LSC’s VP of STEM Education Patrick McQuillan and STEM Educator Gloria Villalobos are going to spend the night on the flying observatory.

A typical astronomical data-collecting mission lasts from sunset until sunrise to take advantage of the maximum observing time. During McQuillan and Villalobos’ flight, they will travel over 4,000 miles, above 11 states from California to Colorado to Mississippi while collecting data for three different astronomical projects.

“But sadly we won’t get any frequent flyer miles as we take off and land at the same airport,” McQuillan says.

Infrared light can be used to map planet forming regions in warm dust clouds, and the location of oxygen and calcium in interstellar medium in the Milky Way Galaxy (among other things).

Best of luck to our fearless STEM team – we can’t wait to see the results from your trip when you return!