At the request of the Chief of Naval Operations, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine--under the auspices of the Naval Studies Board--will convene an ad hoc committee to conduct a 12-month, classified study to explore ways to defend forward-deployed U.S. Navy platforms from potential enemy missile and rocket attacks. Specifically, the terms of reference for the study are as follows:

(1) Review current and projected missile and rocket threats to forward-deployed U.S. Navy platforms over the next 15 years.

(2) Assess the Department of the Navy’s capabilities and concepts aimed at defending forward-deployed U.S. platforms vis-a-vis the kinetic threats reviewed in (1), accounting for any kinetic and non-kinetic efforts also being pursued by the other Services and defense agencies.

(3) Evaluate the Department of the Navy’s current technology investment strategy in defending forward-deployed U.S. Navy platforms vis-a-vis the kinetic threats reviewed in (1), accounting for any kinetic and non-kinetic technology investments also being made by the other Services, defense agencies, and defense community at-large (e.g., laboratories industrial base, and academia).
(4) Recommend any novel kinetic and non-kinetic ways (e.g., future capabilities, concepts, and technologies) to defend forward-deployed U.S. Navy platforms from potential enemy missile and rocket attacks over the next 15 years.

This 12-month study will produce two reports: (1) an interim report that provides initial observations and insights into each of the four tasks above; and (2) a comprehensive (final) report that addresses the tasks in greater depth.