Advisers to the Nation on Science, Engineering, and Medicine

The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences.

The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Wm. A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering.

The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg is president of the Institute of Medicine.

The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. Wm. A. Wulf are chair and vice chair, respectively, of the National Research Council.

www.national-academies.org

The Department of the Navy strives to maintain, through its Office of Naval Research (ONR), a vigorous science and technology (S&T) program in those areas considered critically important to U.S. naval superiority in the maritime environment, including littoral waters and shore regions. In pursuing its S&T investments in such areas, ONR must ensure that (1) a robust U.S. research capability to work on long-term S&T problems in areas of interest to the Department of the Navy and the Department of Defense (DOD) is sustained, (2) an adequate supply of new scientists and engineers in these areas is maintained, and (3) S&T products and processes necessary to assure future superiority in naval warfare are provided.

One of the areas critical for the Department of the Navy is precision time and time interval (PTTI) science and technology. At the request of ONR, the National Research Council (NRC) established a committee, the Committee for an Assessment of Precision Time and Time Interval Science and Technology, under the auspices of the Naval Studies Board, to assess the S&T in this area. The terms of reference of the study called for the committee to review and assess the health of the existing Department of the Navy programs that contribute to PTTI, evaluate the Navy’s research effort to develop capabilities needed for future clocks, identify non-Navy-sponsored research and development efforts that might facilitate progress in developing such advanced clocks, and recommend how the Navy’s research program should be focused so as to meet future needs. The committee was asked to determine whether this task area meets the criteria for a National Naval Responsibility by assessing the following:

• Maturity of and challenges in key technology areas (including cost drivers),

• Interaction with related technology areas,

• Program funding and funding trends,

• Scope of naval responsibility,

• Scope, degree, and stability of non-Navy activities in key technology areas,

• Performer base (academia, government, industry, foreign),

• Infrastructure (leadership in the area),

• Knowledge-base pipeline (graduate, postdoctoral, and career delineation),

• Facilities and equipment, and

• Integration with and/or transition to higher budget category programs.

Two key questions for the committee were, What technology developments are needed to meet the Navy’s long-term objectives? To what extent do these technology developments depend on Navy-sponsored R&D?

The committee was composed of individuals from a variety of backgrounds and organizations who are active in PTTI or related fields (see Appendix A). At its initial meeting, the committee received extensive briefings on the aims and accomplishments of the ONR research directed at PTTI, which is housed primarily in the Physical Sciences Division Code 331. This information was supplemented by additional information obtained through individual discussions with researchers and experts in the field. The committee’s subsequent discussions of the existing program and its adequacy were based on information provided in those briefings and on the committee members’ own experience.

The study began in December 2001 and lasted approximately 7 months. During that time, the committee held five meetings:

• December 17-18, 2001, in Washington, D.C. Organizational meeting with briefings provided by ONR, the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), the U.S. Naval Observatory (USNO), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the Institute for Defense Analyses, and Datum.

• January 23-24, 2002, in Washington, D.C. Briefings were provided by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), the office of the DOD Director of Defense Research and Engineering, the National Reconnaissance Office, and researchers from Pennsylvania State University and the University of Washington.

• February 26-27, 2002, in Irvine, California. Briefings were provided by NIST, JPL, the Global Positioning System (GPS) Joint Program Office, the Department of the Navy’s Space and Naval Warfare Systems Center (SPAWAR), and a researcher from the University of Colorado.

• March 26-27, 2002, in Washington, D.C. Briefings were provided by the Department of the Navy (OPNAV N70T/N60T), Frequency Electronics, Inc., and the Air Force Emerging Military Navigation and Timing Technology panel. (A scheduled briefing by Kernco was cancelled at the speaker’s request.)

• April 17-18, 2002, in El Segundo, California. Committee deliberations and report drafting.

The resulting report, prepared in the ensuing several months, represents the committee’s consensus view on the issues raised and questions posed in the terms of reference.

This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the NRC’s Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their review of this report:

Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations, nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release. The review of this report was overseen by H. Gregory Tornatore, Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University. Appointed by the National Research Council, he was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring committee and the institution.