From finding organic molecules in distant stars to discovering water on the sunlit surface of the Moon, NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) is at the forefront of scientific research — especially when it comes to the potential for life either developing or being sustained on bodies other than Earth.
The latest studies from SOFIA, both announced this month, confirm the presence of organics and water in protoplanetary discs around young, planet-forming stars as well as the detection of water molecules on the Sun-lit surface of the Moon — indicating that water may be distributed across the lunar surface and not limited to cold, shadowed places.