Winged Telescope Detects Martian Atomic Oxygen

Finding atomic oxygen in the Martian atmosphere is very difficult to do, which explains why it's been 40 years since it was last detected. In the 1970's, NASA's Viking and Mariner missions detected Martian atmospheric oxygen, and now, the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) has detected atomic oxygen in the upper portion of the Martian atmosphere called the mesosphere. SOFIA is a specially modified Boeing 747 aircraft which carries a 100 inch telescope. It flies at altitudes...