Proposed Science Themes for NASA's Fifth New Frontiers Mission (2025)
Chapter: Front Matter
Consensus Study Report
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This study is based on work supported by Contract NNH17CB02B/NNH17CB01T with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any agency or organization that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-72795-2
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-72795-2
Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.17226/27998
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Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Proposed Science Themes for NASA’s Fifth New Frontiers Mission. Washington, DC: National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/27998.
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COMMITTEE ON PROPOSED SCIENCE THEMES FOR NASA’S FIFTH NEW FRONTIERS MISSION
MARTHA S. GILMORE, Wesleyan University, Co-Chair
KARYN L. ROGERS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Co-Chair
WILLIAM F. BOTTKE, Southwest Research Institute
CAROLYN A. CROW, University of Colorado Boulder
ORLANDO FIGUEROA, Orlando Leadership Enterprise, LLC
ABIGAIL A. FRAEMAN, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology
TIMOTHY L. GROVE (NAS), Massachusetts Institute of Technology
BRANDON C. JOHNSON, Purdue University
MELISSA A. MCGRATH, SETI Institute
JOSEPH G. O’ROURKE, Arizona State University
EDGARD G. RIVERA-VALENTÍN, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
ORENTHAL J. TUCKER, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
ROBIN D. WORDSWORTH, Harvard University
Staff
DANIEL NAGASAWA, Program Officer, Space Studies Board, Study Director
MEGAN CHAMBERLAIN, Senior Program Assistant, Space Studies Board (through June 2024)
SAM MYSZKOWSKI, Senior Program Assistant, Space Studies Board (from June 2024)
COLLEEN N. HARTMAN, Senior Board Director, Space Studies Board, Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board, and Board on Physics and Astronomy
COMMITTEE ON ASTROBIOLOGY AND PLANETARY SCIENCES
MARTHA S. GILMORE, Wesleyan University, Co-Chair
KARYN L. ROGERS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Co-Chair
WILLIAM F. BOTTKE, Southwest Research Institute
CAROLYN A. CROW, University of Colorado Boulder
ORLANDO FIGUEROA, Orlando Leadership Enterprise, LLC
ABIGAIL FRAEMAN, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology
TIMOTHY L. GROVE, (NAS), Massachusetts Institute of Technology
BRANDON JOHNSON, Purdue University
EMILY S. MARTIN, Smithsonian Institution
MELISSA A. MCGRATH, SETI Institute
JOSEPH G. O’ROURKE, Arizona State University
EDGARD G. RIVERA-VALENTIN, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
ORENTHAL J. TUCKER, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
AMY J. WILLIAMS, University of Florida
ROBIN D. WORDSWORTH, Harvard University
Staff
DANIEL NAGASAWA, Program Officer, Space Studies Board, Study Director
MEGAN CHAMBERLAIN, Senior Program Assistant, Space Studies Board (through June 2024)
SAM MYSZKOWSKI, Senior Program Assistant, Space Studies Board (from June 2024)
COLLEEN N. HARTMAN, Senior Board Director, Space Studies Board, Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board, and Board on Physics and Astronomy
SPACE STUDIES BOARD
MARGARET G. KIVELSON (NAS), University of California, Los Angeles, Chair
JAMES H. CROCKER (NAE), Lockheed Martin (retired), Vice Chair
DANIELA CALZETTI (NAS), University of Massachusetts Amherst
ROBIN M. CANUP (NAS), Southwest Research Institute
DEEPTO CHAKRABARTY, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
JEFF DOZIER, University of California, Santa Barbara
MELINDA D. DYAR, Mount Holyoke College
ANTONIO L. ELIAS (NAE), Orbital ATK, Inc.
STEPHEN J. MACKWELL, National Science Foundation
PETER I. MESZAROS (NAE), The Pennsylvania State University, University Park
RICHARD M. OBERMANN, U.S. House of Representatives (retired)
NELSON PEDREIRO (NAE), Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company
CHRISTA D. PETERS-LIDARD (NAE), National Aeronautics and Space Administration
MARK SAUNDERS, Independent Consultant
HOWARD SINGER, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
KEIVAN G. STASSUN, Vanderbilt University
ERIKA WAGNER, Blue Origin
PAUL WOOSTER, Space Exploration Technologies
ENDAWOKE YIZENGAW, The Aerospace Corporation
GARY P. ZANK (NAS), University of Alabama in Huntsville
Staff
TANJA PILZAK, Manager, Program Operations
AHMED ZAKI QASIM, Financial Officer (December 2023–April 2024)
ARZOO TYYEB, Financial Officer (from April 2024)
COLLEEN N. HARTMAN, Senior Board Director, Space Studies Board, Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board, and Board on Physics and Astronomy
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Reviewers
This Consensus Study Report was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published report as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, 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 thank the following individuals for their review of this report:
Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations of this report nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this report was overseen by MICHAEL MANGA (NAS), University of California, Berkeley, and ROGER D. BLANDFORD (NAS), Stanford University. They were responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with the standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the authoring committee and the National Academies.
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Preface
The Space Studies Board (SSB) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine has been involved in shaping U.S. space science policy for 60 years. Through those years, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has sponsored studies through the SSB, seeking independent, scientific advice on how to craft its planetary science program through both the planetary science decadal surveys and individual reports by ad hoc committees.
At the request of NASA and under the auspices of the SSB, the National Academies appointed an ad hoc committee with the purpose of serving as an independent forum for identifying and discussing issues in astrobiology and planetary science between the research community, the federal government, and the interested public. As a result of this charge, the Committee on Astrobiology and Planetary Sciences (CAPS) was organized.
This report was completed in response to a request from NASA Planetary Science Division (PSD) to draft a report evaluating scientific and technical progress since the last planetary science decadal survey and how that may impact selection of the next New Frontiers class mission.
To gather information on this issue, CAPS held three open session meetings in 2024 to address this topic: February 13, February 20, and May 20. The Committee on Proposed Science Themes for NASA’s Fifth New Frontiers Mission discussed these issues in closed session.
The committee would like to thank Lori Glaze (NASA-PSD), Curt Niebur (NASA-PSD), Robin Canup (Southwest Research Institute), Philip Christensen (Arizona State University), Lori Feaga (University of Maryland), Ben Greenhagen (Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory), Amanda Hendrix (Planetary Science Institute), and Noam Izenberg (Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory) for their presentations and discussions with CAPS during its open sessions.
