Young Will Oversee B747SP Observatory
Erick Young, a widely recognized authority on infrared
astronomy, has been appointed science mission operations director
for NASA's Stratospheric Observatory For Infrared Astronomy, or
SOFIA. The airborne observatory is currently under development at
NASA's Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility in Palmdale, CA.
Young's appointment marks a major milestone for the airborne
observatory, a highly modified Boeing 747SP aircraft fitted with a
2.5-meter/98-inch diameter infrared telescope. SOFIA is slated to
begin its "first light" observations in early winter 2009-2010 as
part of the airborne telescope's 20-year celestial observation
program.
Young, who specializes in designing science instruments, has
participated in virtually all of NASA's space infrared astronomy
missions to date. Most recently, Young was responsible for
developing the Spitzer Space Telescope's Multiband Imaging
Photometer 3 detector array that provides both imaging and
spectroscopic data at far-infrared wavelengths.
As SOFIA science mission operations director, Young will direct,
supervise, and provide technical and management guidance for the
combined Universities Space Research Association and Deutsches
SOFIA Institute staff. He also will manage the airborne
observatory's equipment, instruments, support facilities, and
infrastructure to maximize its science productivity. Young will
oversee planning and execution of the program's early science
milestones in support of the SOFIA Science Center for initial
scientific observations, as well as the continued development of
the observatory. SOFIA is expected to achieve its full science
operating capability by 2014.
Young is a member of NASA's science oversight committee for the
Wide Field Camera 3, scheduled for installation on the Hubble Space
Telescope during space shuttle Atlantis' 11-day flight targeted for
launch May 12 from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The
camera will be Hubble's most technologically advanced instrument.
In addition, Young is directing construction of the infrared
detector arrays for the James Webb Space Telescope's Near Infrared
Camera.
Young is the recipient of the George Van Biesbroeck Prize,
awarded annually by the American Astronomical Society for long-term
achievement in astronomy, as well as five NASA Group Achievement
Awards.
SOFIA is a joint program between NASA and the German Space
Agency, Deutsches Zentrum fur Luft- und Raumfahrt, Bonn, Germany.
The SOFIA program is managed by NASA's Dryden Flight Research
Center, Edwards, CA; the aircraft is based at the Dryden Aircraft
Operations Facility, Palmdale, CA; NASA's Ames Research Center,
Moffett Field, CA, manages the SOFIA science and mission operations
in cooperation with the Universities Space Research Association,
Columbia, MD, and the Deutsches SOFIA Institute, Stuttgart,
Germany.