TY - BOOK AU - National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine TI - Review of the Restructured Research and Analysis Programs of NASA's Planetary Science Division SN - DO - 10.17226/24759 PY - 2017 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/24759/review-of-the-restructured-research-and-analysis-programs-of-nasas-planetary-science-division PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics AB - The Research and Analysis (R&A) program managed by NASA's Planetary Science Division (PSD), supports a broad range of planetary science activities, including the analysis of data from past and current spacecraft; laboratory research; theoretical, modeling, and computational studies; geological and astrobiological fieldwork in planetary analog environments on Earth; geological mapping of planetary bodies; analysis of data from Earth- and space-based telescopes; and development of flight instruments and technology needed for future planetary science missions. The primary role of the PSD R&A program is to address NASA's strategic objective for planetary science and PSD's science goals. Recently, PSD reorganized the R&A program to provide better alignment with the strategic goals for planetary sciences. The major changes in the R&A program involved consolidating a number of prior program elements, many of which were organized by subdiscipline, into a smaller number of thematic core research program elements. Despite numerous efforts by PSD to communicate the rationale for the reorganization and articulate clearly the new processes, there has been significant resistance from the planetary science community and concerns in some sectors regarding the major realignment of funding priorities. Review of NASA's Planetary Science Division's Restructured Research and Analysis Programs examines the new R&A program and determines if it appropriately aligns with the agency's strategic goals, supports existing flight programs, and enables future missions. This report explores whether any specific research areas or subdisciplinary groups that are critical to NASA's strategic objectives for planetary science and PSD's science goals are not supported appropriately in the current program or have been inadvertently disenfranchised through the reorganization. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Grading NASA's Solar System Exploration Program: A Midterm Report SN - DO - 10.17226/12070 PY - 2008 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/12070/grading-nasas-solar-system-exploration-program-a-midterm-report PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics AB - The NASA Authorization Act of 2005 directed the agency to ask the NRC to assess the performance of each division in the NASA Science directorate at five-year intervals. In this connection, NASA requested the NRC to review the progress the Planetary Exploration Division has made in implementing recommendations from previous, relevant NRC studies. This book provides an assessment of NASA's progress in fulfilling those recommendations including an evaluation how well it is doing and of current trends. The book covers key science questions, flight missions, Mars exploration, research and analysis, and enabling technologies. Recommendations are provided for those areas in particular need of improvement. ER - TY - BOOK TI - On the NASA/SDIO Clementine Moon/Asteroid Mission: Letter Report DO - 10.17226/12316 PY - 1992 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/12316/on-the-nasasdio-clementine-moonasteroid-mission-letter-report PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Assessment of the Usefulness and Availability of NASA's Earth and Space Science Mission Data DO - 10.17226/10363 PY - 2002 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/10363/assessment-of-the-usefulness-and-availability-of-nasas-earth-and-space-science-mission-data PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Preserving Scientific Data on Our Physical Universe: A New Strategy for Archiving the Nation's Scientific Information Resources SN - DO - 10.17226/4871 PY - 1995 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/4871/preserving-scientific-data-on-our-physical-universe-a-new-strategy PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Computers and Information Technology KW - Earth Sciences AB - This book advises the National Archives and Records Administration and federal R&D agencies on the long-term retention of scientific and technical data, particularly in electronic formats. It proposes the creation of a National Scientific Information Resource Federation, which would apply a strategic data life-cycle management plan to better link the government's existing scientific data holdings and improve public access to those holdings. The book is expected to draw attention to data management concerns in the context of the current government emphasis on promoting a National Information Infrastructure and to make a significant contribution to improving the inadequate situation regarding our nation's valuable scientific data and information resources. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine TI - Finding Hazardous Asteroids Using Infrared and Visible Wavelength Telescopes SN - DO - 10.17226/25476 PY - 2019 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/25476/finding-hazardous-asteroids-using-infrared-and-visible-wavelength-telescopes PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics AB - 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. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Lessons Learned from the Clementine Mission DO - 10.17226/5815 PY - 1997 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/5815/lessons-learned-from-the-clementine-mission PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Solving the Global Change Puzzle: A U.S. Strategy for Managing Data and Information. DO - 10.17226/18584 PY - 1991 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/18584/solving-the-global-change-puzzle-a-us-strategy-for-managing PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - KW - Earth Sciences ER - TY - BOOK TI - Critical Issues in NASA Information Systems: Final Report to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration DO - 10.17226/10447 PY - 1987 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/10447/critical-issues-in-nasa-information-systems-final-report-to-the PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - ER - TY - BOOK TI - The Role of Small Missions in Planetary and Lunar Exploration DO - 10.17226/12285 PY - 1995 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/12285/the-role-of-small-missions-in-planetary-and-lunar-exploration PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022 SN - DO - 10.17226/13117 PY - 2011 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/13117/vision-and-voyages-for-planetary-science-in-the-decade-2013-2022 PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics AB - In recent years, planetary science has seen a tremendous growth in new knowledge. Deposits of water ice exist at the Moon's poles. Discoveries on the surface of Mars point to an early warm wet climate, and perhaps conditions under which life could have emerged. Liquid methane rain falls on Saturn's moon Titan, creating rivers, lakes, and geologic landscapes with uncanny resemblances to Earth's. Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022 surveys the current state of knowledge of the solar system and recommends a suite of planetary science flagship missions for the decade 2013-2022 that could provide a steady stream of important new discoveries about the solar system. Research priorities defined in the report were selected through a rigorous review that included input from five expert panels. NASA's highest priority large mission should be the Mars Astrobiology Explorer Cacher (MAX-C), a mission to Mars that could help determine whether the planet ever supported life and could also help answer questions about its geologic and climatic history. Other projects should include a mission to Jupiter's icy moon Europa and its subsurface ocean, and the Uranus Orbiter and Probe mission to investigate that planet's interior structure, atmosphere, and composition. For medium-size missions, Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022 recommends that NASA select two new missions to be included in its New Frontiers program, which explores the solar system with frequent, mid-size spacecraft missions. If NASA cannot stay within budget for any of these proposed flagship projects, it should focus on smaller, less expensive missions first. Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022 suggests that the National Science Foundation expand its funding for existing laboratories and establish new facilities as needed. It also recommends that the program enlist the participation of international partners. This report is a vital resource for government agencies supporting space science, the planetary science community, and the public. ER - TY - BOOK TI - Archiving Microgravity Flight Data and Samples DO - 10.17226/12276 PY - 1996 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/12276/archiving-microgravity-flight-data-and-samples PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Space Technology for the New Century SN - DO - 10.17226/6068 PY - 1998 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/6068/space-technology-for-the-new-century PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Priorities in Space Science Enabled by Nuclear Power and Propulsion SN - DO - 10.17226/11432 PY - 2006 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/11432/priorities-in-space-science-enabled-by-nuclear-power-and-propulsion PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics AB - In 2003, NASA began an R&D effort to develop nuclear power and propulsion systems for solar system exploration. This activity, renamed Project Prometheus in 2004, was initiated because of the inherent limitations in photovoltaic and chemical propulsion systems in reaching many solar system objectives. To help determine appropriate missions for a nuclear power and propulsion capability, NASA asked the NRC for an independent assessment of potentially highly meritorious missions that may be enabled if space nuclear systems became operational. This report provides a series of space science objectives and missions that could be so enabled in the period beyond 2015 in the areas of astronomy and astrophysics, solar system exploration, and solar and space physics. It is based on but does not reprioritize the findings of previous NRC decadal surveys in those three areas. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Working Papers: Astronomy and Astrophysics Panel Reports SN - DO - 10.17226/1635 PY - 1991 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/1635/working-papers-astronomy-and-astrophysics-panel-reports PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics AB - This volume contains working papers on astronomy and astrophysics prepared by 15 non-National Research Council panels in areas ranging from radio astronomy to the status of the profession. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council TI - Fundamental Physics and Chemistry: Space Science in the Twenty-First Century -- Imperatives for the Decades 1995 to 2015 SN - DO - 10.17226/751 PY - 1988 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/751/fundamental-physics-and-chemistry-space-science-in-the-twenty-first PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Math, Chemistry, and Physics ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine TI - Planetary Protection Considerations for Missions to Solar System Small Bodies: Report Series—Committee on Planetary Protection SN - DO - 10.17226/26714 PY - 2023 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/26714/planetary-protection-considerations-for-missions-to-solar-system-small-bodies PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics AB - The ultimate goal of planetary protection for outbound missions is to prevent harmful contamination that would inhibit future measurements designed to search for evidence of the existence or evolution of extraterrestrial life. Preventing harmful contamination is achieved by following specific guidelines based on existing scientific knowledge about the destination and the type of mission. This report responds to NASA's request for a study on planetary protection categorization of missions to small bodies, including whether there are particular populations of small bodies for which contamination of one object in the population would not be likely to have a tangible effect on the opportunities for scientific investigation using other objects in the population. In addressing NASA's request, the authoring committee considered surface composition of target bodies and their importance for prebiotic chemistry, along with size of the small-body populations, the current state of knowledge on the types of objects, the likelihood of a future scientific mission returning to any specific object, active object surface processes, and the size. ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine TI - Visions into Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022: A Midterm Review SN - DO - 10.17226/25186 PY - 2018 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/25186/visions-into-voyages-for-planetary-science-in-the-decade-2013-2022 PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics AB - In spring 2011 the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine produced a report outlining the next decade in planetary sciences. That report, titled Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022, and popularly referred to as the "decadal survey," has provided high-level prioritization and guidance for NASA's Planetary Science Division. Other considerations, such as budget realities, congressional language in authorization and appropriations bills, administration requirements, and cross-division and cross-directorate requirements (notably in retiring risk or providing needed information for the human program) are also necessary inputs to how NASA develops its planetary science program. In 2016 NASA asked the National Academies to undertake a study assessing NASA's progress at meeting the objectives of the decadal survey. After the study was underway, Congress passed the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Transition Authorization Act of 2017 which called for NASA to engage the National Academies in a review of NASA's Mars Exploration Program. NASA and the Academies agreed to incorporate that review into the midterm study. That study has produced this report, which serves as a midterm assessment and provides guidance on achieving the goals in the remaining years covered by the decadal survey as well as preparing for the next decadal survey, currently scheduled to begin in 2020. ER - TY - BOOK TI - Assessment of Solar System Exploration Programs--1991 DO - 10.17226/12323 PY - 1991 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/12323/assessment-of-solar-system-exploration-programs-1991 PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Space and Aeronautics ER - TY - BOOK AU - National Research Council A2 - Maureen Mellody TI - Big Data in Materials Research and Development: Summary of a Workshop SN - DO - 10.17226/18760 PY - 2014 UR - https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/18760/big-data-in-materials-research-and-development-summary-of-a PB - The National Academies Press CY - Washington, DC LA - English KW - Engineering and Technology AB - Big Data in Materials Research and Development is the summary of a workshop convened by the National Research Council Standing Committee on Defense Materials Manufacturing and Infrastructure in February 2014 to discuss the impact of big data on materials and manufacturing. The materials science community would benefit from appropriate access to data and metadata for materials development, processing, application development, and application life cycles. Currently, that access does not appear to be sufficiently widespread, and many workshop participants captured the constraints and identified potential improvements to enable broader access to materials and manufacturing data and metadata. This report discusses issues in defense materials, manufacturing and infrastructure, including data ownership and access; collaboration and exploitation of big data's capabilities; and maintenance of data. ER -