SOFIA, NASA’s imposing aircraft with a built-in telescope, “successfully” concluded its mission in Chile this Thursdaywhere he observed and captured unique images of two galaxies close to the Milky Way.
“We have to say that the mission has been successfully completed. We have recorded unique images that will allow us to have a better idea regarding these bodies” he told Eph Ed Harmon, the NASA researcher in charge of coordinating the expedition.
Is regarding Large Magellanic Cloud and Small Magellanic Cloud observationstwo sets of stars gravitationally linked to the Milky Way that, according to the US space agency, might merge with our galaxy within several billion years.
About 20 people, including scientists and crew, were part of the mission which started on March 18 and lasted for two weeks.
Although the plane usually makes regular missions from New Zealand to explore the southern hemisphere, due to restrictions imposed by the pandemic and the long New Zealand quarantines, NASA chose ChileHarmon explained.
“Here we have very clear and accessible skiesin addition to a latitude that facilitates our observations,” said the astronomer, which is why NASA plans another mission in June that might depart from Chile once more.
“It will be a big decision to choose between Chile or New Zealand. Back in the United States we will observe the parameters and decide between the two countries. It will be a high-level discussion,” said the researcher.
UNPUBLISHED IMAGES
SOFIA is a modified Boeing 747P-class aircraft that carries a 2.7-meter reflecting telescope, detailed to Eph Ezequiel Treister, astronomer at the Catholic University and collaborator of the mission.
The telescope, he added, has a “key” instrument: the Far Infrared Field Imaging Line Spectrometeralso known as FIFI-LS, which allows to appreciate the Large Magellanic Cloud, which contains regarding 30 billion stars.
“SOFIA is a unique instrument that reaches a wide range of the electromagnetic spectrum. The images it offers might only be obtained from a telescope in space.“, he pointed.
According to the institution, the observations will allow the development of an unprecedented study on these galaxies and their future projectionsand might be combined with NASA’s upcoming ULDB Galactic/Extragalactic Terahertz Spectroscopic Observatory.
The unpublished images will also be available in a few months to observe through the free access platform of the US agency.
