NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Airborne Science

NASA Dryden operates several unique aircraft on Earth Science missions around the globe in support of the sub-orbital flight requirements of NASA's Science Mission Directorate. A highly modified DC-8 jetliner flies a variety of missions including research of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, sensor development, and satellite sensor verification. NASA's two high-altitude ER-2 aircraft carry instruments that gather data about Earth resources, celestial observations, oceanic processes, and atmospheric chemistry. The aircraft are also used for electronic sensor research and development, satellite calibration, and satellite data validation. Scientific disciplines that employ these aircraft include earth resources, astronomy, atmospheric chemistry, climatology, oceanography, archeology, ecology, forestry, geography, geology, hydrology, meteorology, volcanology and biology.