Science Results Archive

Science results
Spotlight	Image
Occultation Confirms Haze in Pluto’s Atmosphere By Kassandra Bell, Arielle Moullet, and Joan Schmelz Paper: Haze in Pluto’s atmosphere: Results from SOFIA and Ground-based Observations of the 2015 June 29 Pluto Occultation M. J. Person et al., 2020, Icarus, in press.
Cold Quasars and the Evolution of Galaxies By Kevin Cooke, Allison Kirkpatrick, and Joan Schmelz Paper: Dying of the Light: An X-Ray Fading Cold Quasar at z ~ 0.405 Cooke, K. C. et al., 2020 ApJ 903 106
The Optical Depth of [CII]: the Implications for Galaxies both Near and Far By Cristian Guevara and Joan Schmelz Paper: [C II] 158 µm self-absorption and optical depth effects Guevara, C., et al., 2020/04, A&A, 636A, A16. Photodissociation Regions (PDRs) are zones of the interstellar medium in which Far-UV photons dominate the thermal balance, chemistry, structure, as well as the distribution of the gas and dust. The incident FUV field photodissociates molecules, photoionizes atoms and molecules, and heats the gas and dust.
SOFIA Detects Water on the Moon By Casey Honniball, Paul Lucey, and Joan Schmelz Paper: Molecular water detected on the sunlit Moon by SOFIA C.I. Honniball, et al., Nature Astronomy 2020. Researchers using SOFIA have made the ﬁrst-ever detection of the water molecule (H₂O) on the sunlit surface of the Moon. This discovery reﬁnes our understanding of the behavior of water and how volatile elements and compounds interact with airless bodies throughout the Solar System and beyond.
Molecular Processing in the Disks of Massive Stars By Andrew Barr, Alexander Tielens, and Joan Schmelz Paper: High-resolution Infrared Spectroscopy of Hot Molecular Gas in AFGL 2591 and AFGL 2136: Accretion in the Inner Regions of Disks around Massive Young Stellar Objects Barr, Andrew G., et al., 2020/09, ApJ, 900, 104.
A Magnetic Hourglass Detection for a Low-Mass Protostar By Elena Redaelli and Joan Schmelz Paper: Magnetic Properties of the Protostellar Core IRAS 15398-3359 E. Redaelli, et al., 2019 A&A, 631, A154.
Magnetized Filamentary Gas Flows in Serpens South By Thushara Pillai and Joan Schmelz Paper: Magnetized filamentary gas flows feeding the young embedded cluster in Serpens South Pillai, T.G., et al., 2020, Nat Astron (2020).
The Chemical Enrichment of the Universe By Kathleen Kraemer, Boston College and Gregory Sloan, Cornell University Paper: Stellar Pulsation and the Production of Dust and Molecules in Galactic Carbon Stars K. E. Kraemer, et al., 2019, ApJ, 887, 1.
SOFIA Reveals the Complex Nature of a 'Simple' Star Formation Tracer By Yoko Okada, University of Cologne Paper: First Detection of [13C II] in the Large Magellanic Cloud Y. Okada, et al., 2019, A&A, 631L, 12O.
The Role of the Magnetic Field in the Galactic Center By Joan Schmelz (USRA)
Signatures of Star Formation in the Galactic Center By Matthew Hankins Paper: SOFIA/FORCAST Galactic Center Legacy Survey: Overview Hankins et al., 2020, ApJ. SOFIA’s first completed legacy program provides researchers with a vastly improved view of warm dust in the center of the Galaxy, revealing signatures of star formation in exquisite detail.
Massive Star Formation in the Omega Nebula By Wanggi Lim and Joan Schmelz Paper: Surveying the Giant H ii Regions of the Milky Way with SOFIA. II. M17 Lim, et al., 2020, ApJ, 888, 98.