THEY came to clip its wings, but a NASA review committee has instead refused to rule out that the agency鈥檚 airborne infrared telescope may one day fly.
The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) is a Boeing 747 aircraft fitted with a 23-tonne, 2.5-metre infrared telescope. The plane can fly at an altitude of 13 kilometres (over 42,600 feet) 鈥� above 99 per cent of the water vapour in the Earth鈥檚 atmosphere, which absorbs infrared radiation. Unlike a permanent space telescope, SOFIA would only fly about three times a week, but it could be easily repaired and upgraded.
The project is now four years behind schedule and its cost has risen from $185 million to $330 million. The German-built telescope has been installed in the aircraft, but mission managers estimate it would cost another $80 million for it to complete flight tests and begin regular science flights by 2008.
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鈥淭he telescope could fly at 13 kilometres, above infrared-blocking water vapour鈥�
NASA says the programme faces 鈥渘o insurmountable technical or programmatic challenges鈥�, but the cost remains an issue. 鈥淚t is not yet clear whether SOFIA represents the best investment of space science funding,鈥� says Rex Geveden, chair of NASA鈥檚 Program Management Council. 鈥淲e will need to consider funding options and sources before we decide to continue the mission.
