Pilot Tom Ryan took this self-portrait (look closely in the reflection on his visor) during a flight on NASA’s ER-2 in April 2011. The plane, which can operate at altitudes of 65,000 feet and higher, is a civilian version of the Air Force U2-S. It is kept at Dryden Flight Research Center in California and used in a variety of NASA’s Airborne Sciences field campaigns. This particular flight was to test a prototype of laser altimeter for the ICESat-2 mission, which will take key measurements of ice sheet elevation and changes. Credit: NASA/Tom Ryan
