Home > Information for Researchers > eNewsletter for Scientists

SOFIA eNewsletter for Scientists

v15 August 11, 2006

This fifteenth SOFIA Electronic Newsletter to the astronomical community describes recent programmatic developments and significant progress on the aircraft system. Please email comments and/or inquiries to sofia@sofia.usra.edu.

Regards and best wishes,

PROGRAMMATIC DEVELOPMENTS

The President's proposed budget for 2007 which was published in February showed no funding for SOFIA in FY07 and beyond. To examine possible program alternatives, NASA's Science Mission Directorate (SMD) then formed a SOFIA Options Review Team (SORT), headed by former NASA Dryden Flight Research Center (DFRC) Director Ken Szalai. The SORT included two astronomers, three representatives of the German Aerospace Center (DLR), and a number of people with extensive aircraft and project management experience. It met in Waco, Texas where SOFIA is being completed, on March 20-24, and reported its results to the SMD at the end of April.

NASA's Program Management Council, chaired by NASA Associate Administrator Rex Geveden, considered the SMD recommendations on June 15. A NASA press release reporting the results can be found at http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2006/jun/HQ_06240_SOFIA_update.html. Excerpts: "...there were no insurmountable technical or programmatic challenges to the continued development. The agency has developed a technically viable plan to proceed with the development of the aircraft, subject to the identification of appropriate funding offsets." On July 6, Dr. Michael Griffin, the NASA Administrator, announced that SOFIA should proceed to development completion, with "...the potential for 'Great Observatory' science over its 20-year design life." His remarks are posted at http://www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/speeches/index.html.

PROGRESS ON THE FLIGHT SYSTEM

Recent efforts on SOFIA have focused on completion of the aircraft system. Since our January newsletter, significant schedule milestones necessary for first flight have been reached: Aircraft structural modifications are complete. Refurbished, higher thrust engines which will enable observing durations an hour longer than the requirement, were purchased with German funding from the DLR and the Deutches SOFIA Institut. The installation of these engines on the plane is complete. See Figure 1. Cables rerouted through the telescope cavity to operate the tail control surfaces have been installed and limit-load tested. Functional checks of flight control systems (slats, flaps, ailerons, etc) have been completed. Operation of the landing gear has been demonstrated. The majority of flight-test instrumentation has been installed. See Figure 2.

The Ground Vibration Test (GVT) of the airframe (with the telescope activated) was completed in June. The GVT measures the structural response of the plane to known excitations produced by mechanical actuators. Preliminary analyses of the results are confirming that the modified airframe has the strength and stiffness of the unmodified B747SP, a basic requirement of the modification. Verifying the predictions of the engineering design with the GVT results is a critical milestone in certifying that SOFIA is safe for flight.

Initial fuel-tank checks in July found only a few minor problems. Engine run-ups are planned later this month. The principal remaining tasks for the aircraft system prior to flight testing are: completion of GVT analyses and airworthiness documentation, painting of the aircraft, avionics verification, installation of some safety monitoring systems, and flight readiness reviews. Depending on funding availability, the first closed-door flight is expected early in FY07; the first open-door flights are expected about a year later.

SCIENCE PROGRAM INFORMATION

Please contact Dana Backman (dbackman@sofia.usra.edu) if your institution would like a scientific colloquium - including information on SOFIA's capabilities and future observing opportunities - by a member of SOFIA's science staff. A brief program summary for astronomers is available at http://www.sofia.usra.edu/Science/SOFIA_ProgramSummary/04EricksonDustyConf.pdf

Click here to view newsletter images

top of page

Page Last Updated: August 11, 2006