Kuiper Airborne Observatory (KAO)

A 0.915-metre (36-inch) Cassegrain reflecting telescope mounted in a Lockheed C141 Starlifter jet transport aircraft, which was operated between 1975 and 1996 by NASA as a national facility in the USA. It was based at NASA's Ames Research Center, Mountain View, California. Important discoveries made with the observatory include the ring system around the planet Uranus. Its replacement, SOFIA, is due to begin operations in 2001.