The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) has recently concluded a set of engineering flights for Observatory performance evaluation. These in-flight opportunities are viewed as a first comprehensive assessment of the Observatory's performance and are used to guide future development activities, as well as to identify additional Observatory upgrades. Pointing stability was evaluated, including the image motion due to rigid-body and flexible-body telescope modes as well as possible aero-optical image motion. We report on recent improvements in pointing stability by using an active mass damper system installed on the telescope. Measurements and characterization of the shear layer and cavity seeing, as well as image quality evaluation as a function of wavelength have also been performed. Additional tests targeted basic Observatory capabilities and requirements, including pointing accuracy, chopper evaluation and imager sensitivity. This paper reports on the data collected during these flights and presents current SOFIA Observatory performance and characterization.

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Context. The benchmark exoplanet GJ 1214b is one of the best studied transiting planets in the transition zone between rocky Earth-sized planets and gas or ice giants. This class of super-Earth/mini-Neptune planets is unknown in our Solar System, yet is one of the most frequently detected classes of exoplanets. Understanding the transition from rocky to gaseous planets is a crucial step in the exploration of extrasolar planetary systems, in particular with regard to the potential habitability of this class of planets. Aims. GJ 1214b has already been studied in detail from various platforms at many different wavelengths. Our airborne observations with SOFIA add information in the Paschen-α cont. 1.9 µm infrared wavelength band, which is not accessible by any other current ground-or space-based instrument due to telluric absorption or limited spectral coverage. Methods. We used FLIPO and FPI+ on SOFIA to comprehensively analyse the transmission signal of the possible waterworld GJ 1214b through photometric observations during transit in three optical and one infrared channels. Results. We present four simultaneous light curves and corresponding transit depths in three optical and one infrared channel, which we compare to previous observations and state-of-the-art synthetic atmospheric models of GJ 1214b. The final precision in transit depth is between 1.5 and 2.5 times the theoretical photon noise limit, not sensitive enough to constrain the theoretical models any better than previous observations. This is the first exoplanet observation with SOFIA that uses its full set of instruments available to exoplanet spectrophotometry. Therefore we use these results to evaluate SOFIAs potential in this field and suggest future improvements.

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We report observations of a stellar occultation by Pluto on 2019 July 17. A single-chord high-speed (time resolution = 2 s) photometry dataset was obtained with a CMOS camera mounted on the Tohoku University 60 cm telescope (Haleakala, Hawaii). The occultation light curve is satisfactorily fitted to an existing Pluto's atmospheric model. We find the lowest pressure value at a reference radius of r = 1215 km among those reported after 2012, indicating a possible rapid (approximately 21 +4−5 % of the previous value) pressure drop between 2016 (the latest reported estimate) and 2019. However, this drop is detected at a 2.4σ level only and still requires confirmation from future observations. If real, this trend is opposite to the monotonic increase of Pluto's atmospheric pressure reported by previous studies. The observed decrease trend is possibly caused by ongoing N 2 condensation processes in the Sputnik Planitia glacier associated with an orbitally driven decline of solar insolation, as predicted by previous theoretical models. However, the observed amplitude of the pressure decrease is larger than the model predictions.