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[drum roll] Narrator: 
It's not exactly ancient.

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But it certainly isn't new.

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This is NASA's C-130 Hercules,
outfitted as a flying laboratory

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for the 2016 North Atlantic 
Aerosols and Marine

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Ecosystems Study—NAAMES for short.

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Informally, the flight
crew and science teams

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have a different name for the airplane:

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50 Shades. Every time a
science team needs to attach

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an instrument here or make a modification
there, it gets another slap

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of gray paint. Fifty shades of gray.

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But make no mistake: when it comes to
serious science, this bird sings.

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It can fly for ten hours at a stretch,
filled with sophisticated

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hardware designed to look at aerosols,
clouds, ocean color,

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and atmospheric chemistry.

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From the flight deck, the crew
gets a spectacular panoramic view.

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It’s durable…and reliable…
and while it will never be mistaken

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as luxurious, it’s as much a
part of the team as everyone on board.

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[music]