Consensus
The NASA Science Mission Directorate/Earth Science Division's (SMD/ESD's) Earth Venture (EV) is a program element within the Earth System Science Pathfinder Program. At the request of NASA, this report examines the Earth Venture Instrument (EV-I) and Earth Venture Mission (EV-M) elements of Earth Ventures and explores lessons learned in the more than 10 years since selection of the first EV mission, including a review of the foundational principles and approaches underlying the program.
74 pages
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ISBN Paperback: 0-309-29504-1
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-29505-X
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/26499
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Lessons Learned in the Implementation of NASA's Earth Venture Class. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Consensus
Fostering diverse and inclusive teams that are highly skilled, innovative, and productive is critical for maintaining U.S. leadership in space exploration. In recent years, NASA has taken steps to advance diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) in their workforce by releasing its equity action plan, emphasizing how diverse and inclusive teams help maximize scientific returns, and requiring DEIA plans as part of announcements of opportunities. To further its efforts to advance DEIA, the Agency requested the National Academies undertake a study to evaluate ways NASA can address the lack of diversity in space mission leadership.
Advancing Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in the Leadership of Competed Space Missions outlines near and long-term actions NASA can take to make opportunities for leadership and involvement in competed space missions more accessible, inclusive, and equitable. Report recommendations range from changes to the mission proposal process to investments in STEM education and career pathways. This report makes 15 recommendations for advancing DEIA within NASA's Science Mission Directorate divisions that support competed space mission programs. However, many of the report's recommendations could also be applied broadly to research at NASA and other federal agencies and institutions, leading to a more diverse research workforce.
174 pages
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ISBN Paperback: 0-309-27317-X
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-27320-X
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/26385
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Advancing Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in the Leadership of Competed Space Missions. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Consensus
Since the 1980s, national and international planetary protection policies have sought to avoid contamination by terrestrial organisms that could compromise future investigations regarding the origin or presence of Martian life. Over the last decade, the number of national space agencies planning, participating in, and undertaking missions to Mars has increased, and private-sector enterprises are engaged in activities designed to enable commercial missions to Mars. The nature of missions to Mars is also evolving to feature more diversity in purposes and technologies. As missions to Mars increase and diversify, national and international processes for developing planetary protection measures recognize the need to consider the interests of scientific discovery, commercial activity, and human exploration. The implications of these changes for planetary protection should be considered in the context of how much science has learned about Mars, and about terrestrial life, in recent years.
At the request of NASA, this report identifies criteria for determining locations on Mars potentially suitable for landed robotic missions that satisfy less stringent bioburden requirements, which are intended to manage the risk of forward contamination.
88 pages
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ISBN Paperback: 0-309-27069-3
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-26765-X
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/26336
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2021. Report Series: Committee on Planetary Protection: Evaluation of Bioburden Requirements for Mars Missions. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Workshop
After several decades since the last human visit, NASA is planning to return to the Moon, this time not only to visit but also to carry out extensive scientific experiments, establish a habitat occupied by astronauts, and learn lessons that will help in preparations for the eventual establishment of a human presence on Mars. The Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, overseen by NASA, will provide transport to the Moon for scientists who want to carry out research on the lunar surface or in orbit around the Moon.
Recognizing the need to introduce and explain the CLPS program to researchers, the Committee on Biological and Physical Sciences in Space of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine held a workshop on March 24-25, 2021 entitled "Using Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) to Achieve Lunar Biological and Physical Science Objectives". The organization of the workshop was guided by the following question: Looking at the period of time prior to the release of the next decadal survey, how can this community support and utilize CLPS to address areas of research? This workshop proceedings summarizes the presentations and discussions from the workshop sessions.
56 pages
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ISBN Ebook: 0-309-27210-6
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/26378
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2021. Report Series: Committee on Biological and Physical Sciences in Space: Using Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) to Achieve Lunar Biological and Physical Science Objectives: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Consensus
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and other U.S. science research agencies operate a fleet of research aircraft and other airborne platforms that offer diverse capabilities. To inform NASA's future investments in airborne platforms, this study examines whether a large aircraft that would replace the current NASA DC-8 is needed to address Earth system science questions, and the role of other airborne platforms for achieving future Earth system science research goals.
228 pages
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7 x 10
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ISBN Paperback: 0-309-30603-5
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-30611-6
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/26079
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2021. Airborne Platforms to Advance NASA Earth System Science Priorities: Assessing the Future Need for a Large Aircraft. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Workshop
In response to a request from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration - and with the support of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the National Science Foundation - the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine conducted a two-part virtual workshop, "Space Weather Operations and Research Infrastructure," on June 16-17 and September 9-11, 2020. The overall goals of the workshop were to review present space weather monitoring and forecasting capabilities, to consider future observational infrastructure and research needs, and to consider options toward the further development of an effective, resilient, and achievable national space weather program. This publication summarizes the presentation and discussion of the workshop.
124 pages
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ISBN Paperback: 0-309-45433-6
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-45441-7
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/26128
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2021. Planning the Future Space Weather Operations and Research Infrastructure: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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The Space Studies Board (SSB) is a unit of the Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. SSB provides an independent, authoritative forum for information and advice on all aspects of space science and applications and serves as the focal point within the National Academies for activities on space research.
Space Studies Board Annual Report 2019 describes the projects and activities of SSB; explains the SSB's collaboration with other National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine units; and assures the quality of the SSB reports.
116 pages
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ISBN Ebook: 0-309-29392-8
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/26073
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2021. Space Studies Board Annual Report 2019. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Consensus
Under U.S. policy and international treaty, the goals of planetary protection are to avoid both adverse changes in Earth's environment caused by introducing extraterrestrial matter and harmful contamination of solar system bodies in order to protect their biological integrity for scientific study. The United States has long cooperated with other countries and relevant scientific communities through the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) of the International Council for Science in developing planetary protection guidance for different categories of space missions. In the past, achieving planetary protection objectives through science-based, international-consensus guidelines proved relatively straightforward because a small number of spacefaring nations explored the solar system, predominantly through government-led and scientifically focused robotic missions.
However, interest in, and the capabilities to undertake, exploration and uses of outer space are evolving and expanding. More countries are engaging in space activities. Private-sector involvement is increasing. Planning is under way for human as well as robotic missions. As recent advisory reports have highlighted, the changes in the nature of space activities create unprecedented challenges for planetary protection.
This publication responds to NASA's request for "a short report on the impact of human activities on lunar polar volatiles (e.g., water, carbon dioxide, and methane) and the scientific value of protecting the surface and subsurface regions of the Earth's Moon from organic and biological contamination." It provides an overview of the current scientific understanding, value, and potential threat of organic and biological contamination of permanently shadowed regions (PSRs), lunar research relevant to understanding prebiotic evolution and the origin of life, and the likelihood that spacecraft landing on the lunar surface will transfer volatiles to polar cold traps. It also assesses how much and which regions of the Moon's surface and subsurface warrant protection from organic and biological contamination because of their scientific value.
62 pages
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ISBN Ebook: 0-309-16191-6
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/26029
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2020. Report Series: Committee on Planetary Protection: Planetary Protection for the Study of Lunar Volatiles. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Consensus
The Committee on Astrobiology and Planetary Sciences of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine is tasked with monitoring the progress in implementation of the recommendations of the most recent planetary science decadal survey, Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022. Planetary science decadal surveys evaluate the state of the field, identify the most important scientific questions and themes, and prioritize missions and activities for the decade in question based on scientific merit, technical feasibility, and anticipated cost. The need for careful monitoring is underscored by the fact that some of the decadal survey's recommendations are triggered at specific programmatic decision points. Options for the Fifth New Frontiers Announcement of Opportunity addresses one such decision point.
For each of the following four New Frontiers targets: Ocean Worlds, Trojan Tour and Rendezvous, Io Observer and Lunar Geophysical, this report summarizes changes in scientific understanding or external factors since the release of Vision and Voyages or its midterm review and considers whether those changes have been sufficiently substantial to warrant reconsideration of the four targets for inclusion in the New Frontiers 5 announcement of opportunity, scheduled for release in early 2022.
30 pages
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ISBN Ebook: 0-309-68050-6
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/25868
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2020. Report Series: Committee on Astrobiology and Planetary Science: Options for the Fifth New Frontiers Announcement of Opportunity. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Consensus
The goal of planetary protection is to control, to the degree possible, the biological cross-contamination of planetary bodies. Guidelines developed by the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) are used by all spacefaring nations to guide their preparations for encounters with solar system bodies. NASA's Science Mission Directorate has convened the Planetary Protection Independent Review Board (PPIRB) to consider updating the COSPAR guidelines given the growing interest from commercial and private groups in exploration and utilization of Mars and other bodies in space.
At the request of NASA, this publication reviews the findings of the PPIRB and comments on their consistency with the recommendations of the recent National Academies report Review and Assessment of the Planetary Protection Policy Development Processes.
88 pages
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ISBN Paperback: 0-309-67649-5
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-67650-9
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/25773
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2020. Assessment of the Report of NASA's Planetary Protection Independent Review Board. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Consensus
The 2013 report Solar and Space Physics; A Science for a Technological Society outlined a program of basic and applied research for the period 2013-2022. This publication describes the most significant scientific discoveries, technical advances, and relevant programmatic changes in solar and space physics since the publication of that decadal survey. Progress Toward Implementation of the 2013 Decadal Survey for Solar and Space Physics assesses the degree to which the programs of the National Science Foundation and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration address the strategies, goals, and priorities outlined in the 2013 decadal survey, and the progress that has been made in meeting those goals. This report additionally considers steps to enhance career opportunities in solar and space physics and recommends actions that should be undertaken to prepare for the next decadal survey.
188 pages
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ISBN Paperback: 0-309-67127-2
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-67128-0
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/25668
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2020. Progress Toward Implementation of the 2013 Decadal Survey for Solar and Space Physics: A Midterm Assessment. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Consensus
Report Series: Committee on Solar and Space Physics: Agile Responses to Short-Notice Rideshare Opportunities for the NASA Heliophysics Division explores the kinds of solar and space science that would be enabled by an agile response to rideshare opportunities. This report then explores the types of payloads that are suited to these opportunities and the development and implementation of a new program that would allow agile responses to future short-notice rideshare opportunities.
42 pages
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ISBN Ebook: 0-309-67453-0
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/25726
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2020. Report Series: Committee on Solar and Space Physics: Agile Responses to Short-Notice Rideshare Opportunities for the NASA Heliophysics Division. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Consensus
NASA's Science Mission Directorate (SMD) ties together diverse researchers, sponsors, and resources to develop the science community's understanding of the universe. Within scientific organizations like NASA, it is important to establish clear strategies and goals to guide research and foster new discoveries across varying missions. SMD created a draft for their 2019 Science Plan, and a review of this draft is necessary to ensure that the plan establishes clear, attainable, relevant, and ambitious goals.
Review of the Draft 2019 Science Mission Directorate Science Plan provides comments on and recommendations for SMD's draft. Comments in this report focus on the level of ambition of the specified strategies in light of current and emerging opportunities to advance Earth and space science over the next 5 years, the ability of SMD to meet the science objectives in the most recent decadal surveys through implementation of specified strategies, additional strategies for SMD's considerations, and the general readability and clarity of the draft. Recommendations in this report identify important improvements for the 2019 Science Plan.
38 pages
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ISBN Ebook: 0-309-49836-8
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/25587
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Review of the Draft 2019 Science Mission Directorate Science Plan. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Workshop
On November 29-30, 2018, in Washington, D.C., the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine held the Workshop on the Continuous Improvement of NASA's Innovation Ecosystem. The workshop was requested by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Office of the Chief Technologist with the goal of identifying actionable and implementable initiatives that could build on NASA's current innovation culture to reach a future state that will ensure the agency's continued success in the evolving aerospace environment. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussions from the workshop.
98 pages
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ISBN Paperback: 0-309-49507-5
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-49508-3
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/25505
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Continuous Improvement of NASA's Innovation Ecosystem: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Consensus
Near Earth objects (NEOs) have the potential to cause significant damage on Earth. In December 2018, an asteroid exploded in the upper atmosphere over the Bering Sea (western Pacific Ocean) with the explosive force of nearly 10 times that of the Hiroshima bomb. While the frequency of NEO impacts rises in inverse proportion to their sizes, it is still critical to monitor NEO activity in order to prepare defenses for these rare but dangerous threats.
Currently, NASA funds a network of ground-based telescopes and a single, soon-to-expire space-based asset to detect and track large asteroids that could cause major damage if they struck Earth. This asset is crucial to NEO tracking as thermal-infrared detection and tracking of asteroids can only be accomplished on a space-based platform.
Finding Hazardous Asteroids Using Infrared and Visible Wavelength Telescopes explores the advantages and disadvantages of infrared (IR) technology and visible wavelength observations of NEOs. This report reviews the techniques that could be used to obtain NEO sizes from an infrared spectrum and delineate the associated errors in determining the size. It also evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of these techniques and recommends the most valid techniques that give reproducible results with quantifiable errors.
74 pages
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ISBN Paperback: 0-309-49398-6
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-49399-4
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/25476
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Finding Hazardous Asteroids Using Infrared and Visible Wavelength Telescopes. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Consensus
An international consensus policy to prevent the biological cross-contamination of planetary bodies exists and is maintained by the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) of the International Council for Science, which is consultative to the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. Currently, COSPAR's planetary protection policy does not specify the status of sample-return missions from Phobos or Deimos, the moons of Mars. Although the moons themselves are not considered potential habitats for life or of intrinsic relevance to prebiotic chemical evolution, recent studies indicate that a significant amount of material recently ejected from Mars could be present on the surface of Phobos and, to a lesser extent, Deimos.
This report reviews recent theoretical, experimental, and modeling research on the environments and physical conditions encountered by Mars ejecta during certain processes. It recommends whether missions returning samples from Phobos and/or Deimos should be classified as "restricted" or "unrestricted" Earth return in the framework of the planetary protection policy maintained by COSPAR. This report also considers the specific ways the classification of sample return from Deimos is a different case than sample return from Phobos.
74 pages
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ISBN Paperback: 0-309-48859-1
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-48860-5
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/25357
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Planetary Protection Classification of Sample Return Missions from the Martian Moons. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Summary
We live on a dynamic Earth shaped by both natural processes and the impacts of humans on their environment. It is in our collective interest to observe and understand our planet, and to predict future behavior to the extent possible, in order to effectively manage resources, successfully respond to threats from natural and human-induced environmental change, and capitalize on the opportunities – social, economic, security, and more – that such knowledge can bring.
By continuously monitoring and exploring Earth, developing a deep understanding of its evolving behavior, and characterizing the processes that shape and reshape the environment in which we live, we not only advance knowledge and basic discovery about our planet, but we further develop the foundation upon which benefits to society are built. Thriving on Our Changing Planet: A Decadal Strategy for Earth Observation from Space (National Academies Press, 2018) provides detailed guidance on how relevant federal agencies can ensure that the United States receives the maximum benefit from its investments in Earth observations from space, while operating within realistic cost constraints. This short booklet, designed to be accessible to the general public, provides a summary of the key ideas and recommendations from the full decadal survey report.
28 pages
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ISBN Ebook: 0-309-49230-0
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/25437
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Thriving on Our Changing Planet: A Decadal Strategy for Earth Observation from Space: An Overview for Decision Makers and the Public. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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Consensus
The United States possesses a treasure-trove of extraterrestrial samples that were returned to Earth via space missions over the past four decades. Analyses of these previously returned samples have led to major breakthroughs in the understanding of the age, composition, and origin of the solar system. Having the instrumentation, facilities and qualified personnel to undertake analyses of returned samples, especially from missions that take up to a decade or longer from launch to return, is thus of paramount importance if the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is to capitalize fully on the investment made in these missions, and to achieve the full scientific impact afforded by these extraordinary samples. Planetary science may be entering a new golden era of extraterrestrial sample return; now is the time to assess how prepared the scientific community is to take advantage of these opportunities.
Strategic Investments in Instrumentation and Facilities for Extraterrestrial Sample Curation and Analysis assesses the current capabilities within the planetary science community for sample return analyses and curation, and what capabilities are currently missing that will be needed for future sample return missions. This report evaluates whether current laboratory support infrastructure and NASA's investment strategy is adequate to meet these analytical challenges and advises how the community can keep abreast of evolving and new techniques in order to stay at the forefront of extraterrestrial sample analysis.
138 pages
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ISBN Paperback: 0-309-48669-6
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-48670-X
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17226/25312
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Strategic Investments in Instrumentation and Facilities for Extraterrestrial Sample Curation and Analysis. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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