Designing a Cold Source to be Integrated with the Existing Telescope Assembly Alignment Simulator

References After comparing several different cooling methods and studying the equipment currently available on the TAAS, I decided to focus on a design centered around a thermoelectric cooler. The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) is a modified Boeing 747-SP with a 2.5m telescope mounted inside. SOFIA flies at an altitude of 45,000 feet, above 99% of the water vapor in the atmosphere, allowing transmission of most infrared radiation. SOFIA has seven different science instruments (SI) that can be used to collect astronomical data, enabling scientists to look at many different wavelengths of infrared and visible radiation. TAAS The telescope assembly alignment simulator (TAAS) is used to perform fit checks of SOFIA Science Instruments with the Telescope Assembly (TA) Flange Assembly and permits adjustment, checkout, test, and characterization of SIs prior to installation and