SOFIA stands for Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy and is a Boing 747 with a German telescope. Cruising 12km above Earth, it is able to capture photographically and study 80% of infrared light that is normally studied by telescopes orbiting in space. Even though the development of this project cost $1 billion dollars, it is thought to reduce maintenance cost in the long run since space telescopes are a lot more expensive to upgrade or repair. There we have another interesting achievement of science & technology, costing the tax payer hard-earned money. Hopefully it serves mankind well.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment