Orion mid-IR image (detail)
Orion mid-IR image (detail)
SOFIA, the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, is a joint project of the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA. The project is being carried out under the auspices of DLR, with funds provided by the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Technologie; BMWi) under a resolution passed by the German Parliament, and with funding from the State of Baden-Württemberg and the University of Stuttgart. On the German side, the scientific operations are coordinated by the German SOFIA Institute (Deutsches SOFIA Institut; DSI) at University of Stuttgart, and on the American side by the Universities Space Research Association (USRA). The development of the German instruments is being financed by the Max-Planck Society (Max-Planck-Gesellschaft; MPG) and the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft; DFG).
