SAFIR

SAFIR (for Single Aperture Far-Infrared Observatory) was a circa 2000-2005 NASA plan for a far infrared space telescope. Its aperture (diameter) would be in the range of 5 to 10 meters, and it would be cryogenically cooled to 5 kelvins. The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) had been in years of development when this was proposed, and the proposal borrowed some of JWST's technological ideas. It was one of a number of far-infrared space-telescope ideas, that would essentially improve on, and carry on the work of SOFIA, and the smaller infrared space telescope, Spitzer. Other such far-infrared space-telescope proposals have been FIRSST, SALTUS, SPICA (JAXA), as well as SPICE and SPIRIT (space interferometers). SAFIR instrument ideas were to include an imager along with spectrometers at three resolution levels.

Safir is also the name of an Iranian launching rocket, and Saphir is the name of a French launching rocket.