NASA will test a modified Boeing 747 meant for observing the cosmos in flight, officials said on Friday.

For this purpose, the plane has arrived at NASA's flight research center at Edwards Air Force Base in California.

The plane will have mission systems installed and undergo testing over the next three years, NASA officials said.

The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy, or SOFIA, was ferried to NASA's Dryden center on Thursday from Waco, Texas, where a German-built 2.5-meter infrared telescope was installed and other major modifications made over the past several years, according to NASA.

The heavily modified Boeing 747SP's time at the Edwards base is expected to lead to a full operational capability for astronomy missions in about 2010, the space agency said.

During its expected 20-year lifetime, the plane will be capable of "Great Observatory" class astronomical science, providing astronomers with access to the visible, infrared and sub-millimeter spectrum with optimized performance in the mid-infrared to sub-millimeter range, NASA said.

Source: Xinhua