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UID:Indybay-18732476
SEQUENCE:18834738
CREATED:20130221T003700Z
DESCRIPTION:As part of the 13th annual Silicon Valley Astronomy Lecture Series, 
 infrared astronomer Dana Backman, Ph.D., of the SETI Institute, will 
 discuss Astronomy from the Stratosphere: NASA's SOFIA Mission, an 
 illustrated, non-technical lecture, Wednesday, March 6, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. 
 in the Smithwick Theatre at Foothill College in Los Altos Hills. Admission 
 is free and the public is invited. Seating is on a first-come, first-served 
 basis. Arrive early to locate parking.\n\nWhy would NASA buy a used 
 passenger airliner, cut a 10' x 10' hole in the fuselage, add a roll-back 
 door, and install a 17-ton telescope inside? In his lecture, Dr. Backman 
 will introduce you to the engineering marvel and international scientific 
 facility called SOFIA -- the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared 
 Astronomy. This remarkable airborne telescope began scientific research 
 flights in 2010 and is already returning exciting discoveries about the 
 birth of stars, interstellar chemistry, the atmospheres of giant planets, 
 the environment around supermassive black holes, and other branches of 
 astronomy.\n\nDana Backman is the director of Education & Public Outreach 
 for the SOFIA project at NASA’s Ames Research Center and an adjunct 
 professor at Santa Clara University and the Stanford Continuing Studies 
 Program. Before joining the SOFIA team, he was professor of physics and 
 astronomy at Franklin and Marshall College in Pennsylvania. He is coauthor 
 of three college-level astronomy textbooks and a frequent public speaker on 
 astronomy and SOFIA. His research specialty is infrared astronomy (the 
 study of the universe by collecting heat rays) –- exactly the kind of 
 work that the SOFIA telescope is designed to do. \n\nThe free lecture 
 series is sponsored by the Foothill College Astronomy Program, NASA Ames 
 Research Center, SETI Institute and Astronomical Society of the Pacific. 
 Past lectures from the series are available online at 
 www.astrosociety.org/education/podcast/index.html.\n\nParking lots 1, 7 and 
 8 provide stair and no-stair access to the theatre. Visitors must purchase 
 a parking permit for $3 from dispensers in any student parking lot. 
 Dispensers accept one-dollar bills and quarters. Foothill College is 
 located off I-280 on El Monte Road in Los Altos Hills. For more 
 information, access www.foothill.edu or call (650) 949-7888.\n 
 https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/02/20/18732476.php
SUMMARY:"Astronomy from the Stratosphere: NASA's SOFIA Mission" Lecture
LOCATION:Foothill College Smithwick Theatre, Los Altos Hills, CA 94022
URL:https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2013/02/20/18732476.php
DTSTART:20130307T030000Z
DTEND:20130307T043000Z
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