Lear Jet 24B is used as a high altitude observation platform carrying a 12' telescope with a special hatch on the starboard side.

Lear Jet 24B (NASA-705) in flight along California coast is used primarily as a high altitude observation platform carrying a 12' telescope with a special hatch on the starboard side for upward viewing. The hatch has a maximum circular clear aperture of 37.6 cm and can contain a 30 cm aperture open-port gyro-stabilized telescope designed especially for infrared astronomical research.