Space Studies Board Annual Report 2007 (2008)

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3 Ad Hoc Study Committees: Activities and Membership When a sponsor requests that the Space Studies Board conduct a study, an ad hoc committee is established for that purpose. The committee terminates when the study is completed. These study committees are subject to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), Section 15, because they provide advice and recommendations to the federal government. The SSB and/or one of its standing committees provide oversight for ad hoc study committee activities. Eleven ad hoc committees were organized, met, or released studies during 2007. (Activities and member- ship are summarized below.) In addition, two ad hoc committees that produced reports in 2006 were formally disbanded in 2007: ­Committee for the Review of the Next Decade Mars Architecture and the Committee on the Review of the NASA Science M ­ ission Directorate Science Plan. Their reports were summarized in the 2006 annual report. An ad hoc Committee on Critical Issues in U.S. Civil Space Policy is being organized, in collaboration with the Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board, to conduct a study to advise the nation on key goals and critical issues in 21st-century U.S. civil space policy. The committee is expected to begin its work in early 2008 and to complete a report early in the second quarter of 2009. ASSESSMENT OF SOLAR SYSTEM EXPLORATION The ad hoc Committee to Assess Solar System Exploration was formed to evaluate NASA’s plans and progress to date against the recommendations established in the 2003 solar system exploration decadal survey, New Frontiers in Solar System Exploration. The committee held its first two meetings at the National Academies’ Keck Center on February 22-24, and March 26-28. The committee’s third and final meeting was held on May 7-9, at the Arnold and Mabel Beckman Center in Irvine, CA. At these meetings the committee heard presentations from NASA, former members of the solar system exploration decadal survey and other representatives of the science community. Several members of the committee made site visits to the Applied Physics Laboratory, Goddard Space Flight Center, Ames Research Center, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The committee wrote its report during June-August and delivered its final report, Grading NASA’s Solar System Exploration Program: A Midterm Report, in unedited prepublication format, to NASA November 20, 2007, and to the public on November 28, 2007.  The Executive Summary is reprinted in Chapter 5; the full report is available at <http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=12070>. The final, edited text will be published in early 2008. Membership Wesley T. Huntress, Jr., Carnegie Institution of Washington (co-chair) Norine E. Noonan, College of Charleston (co-chair) 25 

26 Space Studies Board Annual Report—2007 Sushil K. Atreya, University of Michigan Carrine Blank, University of Montana William V. Boynton, University of Arizona Bernard F. Burke, Massachusetts Institute of Technology William D. Cochran, University of Texas at Austin Larry W. Esposito, University of Colorado at Boulder Mr. G. Scott Hubbard, Stanford University William M. Jackson, University of California, Davis Margaret G. Kivelson, NAS University of California, Los Angeles Ralph McNutt, Johns Hopkins University, Applied Physics Laboratory William B. Moore, University of California, Los Angeles Janet L. Siefert, Rice University Spencer R. Titley, University of Arizona Dwayne A. Day, Senior Program Associate, Space Studies Board (study director) Celeste A. Naylor, Senior Program Assistant, Space Studies Board ASTROBIOLOGY STRATEGY FOR THE EXPLORATION OF MARS The ad hoc Committee on the Astrobiology Strategy for the Exploration of Mars (Mars Astrobiology) com- pleted all of its meetings in 2006. The committee’s report, An Astrobiology Strategy for the Exploration of Mars, was released as a prepublication report on May 29. The final, edited report was delivered to NASA headquarters on July 5. The Executive Summary is reprinted in Chapter 5; the full report is available at <http://books.nap.edu/­ catalog.php?record_id=11937>. The Associate Administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate was briefed on the report’s conclusions and recommendations on June 25. As part of the dissemination activities for this report and other recent NRC reports, and, in part, to support NASA’s activities related to the martian component of the Vision for Space Exploration, the Space Studies Board convened for NASA a one-day scientific forum, “The Colloquium on Astrobiology and Mars Exploration” on July 8 to discuss selected aspects of the future robotic and human exploration of Mars. Dissemination activities for the Astrobiology Strategy continued at the 7th International Mars Conference on July 9-13 in Pasadena, California, and (under aegis of the Committee on the Origins and Evolution of Life) at the July 16-20 Bioastronomy 2007 Conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Membership Bruce M. Jakosky, University of Colorado, Boulder (chair) Jan P. Amend, Washington University in St. Louis William M. Berelson, University of Southern California Ruth Blake, Yale University Susan L. Brantley, Pennsylvania State University Michael H. Carr, U.S. Geological Survey (retired) James K. Fredrickson, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Anthony D. Keefe, Archemix Corporation Martin Keller, Oak Ridge National Laboratory Harry Y. McSween, Jr., University of Tennessee, Knoxville Kenneth H. Nealson, University of Southern California Barbara Sherwood-Lollar, University of Toronto Andrew Steele, Carnegie Institution of Washington Roger E. Summons, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Meenakshi Wadhwa, Arizona State University 

Ad Hoc Study Committees 27 David H. Smith, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board (study director) Robert L. Riemer, Senior Program Officer, Board on Physics and Astronomy Rodney N. Howard, Senior Program Assistant, Space Studies Board ASTRONOMY SCIENCE CENTERS: AN ASSESSMENT OF BEST PRACTICES AND GUIDING PRINCIPLES FOR THE FUTURE The ad hoc Committee on Astronomy Science Centers was formed to review lessons learned from experience with NASA’s ensemble of space astronomy science centers in order to recommend a set of guiding principles and best practices for consideration in making decisions about approaches to meeting the needs of the astronomy com- munity with future science centers. The committee released its report, Portals to the Universe: The NASA Astronomy Science Centers, in June 2007 and briefed NASA on the contents shortly thereafter. The report’s Summary is reprinted in Chapter 5; the full report is available at <http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11909>. Membership Steven R. Bohlen, Joint Oceanographic Institutions (chair) Roger G. Barry, University of Colorado, Boulder Stephen S. Holt, Olin College Richard A. McCray, University of Colorado, JILA Alexander S. Szalay, Johns Hopkins University Paula Szkody, University of Washington Paul Vanden Bout, National Radio Astronomy Observatory Brian D. Dewhurst, Senior Program Associate, Board on Physics and Astronomy (study director after January 2007) Pamela L. Whitney, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board (study director through January 2007) Carmela J. Chamberlain, Program Associate, Space Studies Board BEYOND EINSTEIN PROGRAM ASSESSMENT The ad hoc Beyond Einstein Program Assessment Committee was formed to assess the five proposed Beyond Einstein missions (Constellation X-ray Observatory, Laser Interferometer Space Antenna, Joint Dark Energy ­Mission, Inflation Probe, and Black Hole Finder probe) based on their potential scientific impact and preliminary technology, management plans and cost estimates, and to recommend one mission for first development and launch. The committee met in Newport Beach, California, on January 30-February 1 to hear detailed technical briefings from each mission proposal team. The committee discussed strategies for developing report conclusions, set writing assignments, and began drafting the report. During this period the committee also held three Town Hall meetings in various locations across the country (Newport Beach, California, Boston, Massachusetts, and Baltimore, Maryland) to gather input on Beyond Einstein opportunities from the scientific community. The committee held its final town hall meeting in Chicago, Illinois, on April 4-7, and then proceeded to discuss the interplay between ground and space observations in addressing the dark energy question. The committee met again at the National Academies’ Keck Center in Washington, D.C. on June 6-8 to discuss its draft report. The prepublication version of the committee’s report, NASA’s Beyond Einstein Program: An Architecture for Implementation, was delivered to NASA and DOE sponsors on August 31 and released to the public on September 5. The report’s Executive Summary is reprinted in Chapter 5; the full report is available at <http://books.nap.edu/catalog. php?record_id=12006>. The committee briefed the agency sponsors (NASA and DOE) on September 4, and also briefed OSTP, OMB, and interested congressional staff. The committee also held a well-attended public briefing on the results of the study at the National Academies’ Keck Center on September 6. An additional briefing for sponsors was held on November 6 which focused on the methodologies used for the report’s cost and technical assessments. A final town hall meeting will be held on January 9, 2008, during the AAS 211th meeting in Austin, Texas, to discuss the report findings with the astronomy and astrophysics community. 

28 Space Studies Board Annual Report—2007 Membership Charles F. Kennel, University of California, San Diego (co-chair) Joseph H. Rothenberg, Universal Space Network (co-chair) Eric G. Adelberger, University of Washington William B. Adkins, Adkins Strategies, LLC Thomas Appelquist, Yale University James S. Barrowman, Independent Consultant David A. Bearden, The Aerospace Corporation Mark Devlin, University of Pennsylvania Joseph Fuller, Jr., Futron Corporation Karl Gebhardt, University of Texas, Austin William C. Gibson, Southwest Research Institute Fiona A. Harrison, California Institute of Technology Andrew J. Lankford, University of California, Irvine Dennis McCarthy, Independent Consultant Stephan S. Meyer, University of Chicago Joel R. Primack, University of California, Santa Cruz Lisa J. Randall, Harvard University Craig L. Sarazin, University of Virginia James S. Ulvestad, National Radio Astronomy Observatory Clifford M. Will, Washington University Michael S. Witherell, University of California, Santa Barbara Edward L. Wright, University of California, Los Angeles Brian D. Dewhurst, Senior Program Associate, Board on Physics and Astronomy (co-study director) Sandra J. Graham, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board (co-study director after January 2007) Pamela L. Whitney, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board (co-study director through January 2007) Victoria Swisher, Research Associate, Space Studies Board Carmela J. Chamberlain, Program Associate, Space Studies Board Celeste A. Naylor, Senior Program Assistant, Space Studies Board EARTH SCIENCE AND APPLICATIONS FROM SPACE: A COMMUNITY ASSESSMENT AND STRATEGY FOR THE FUTURE The ad hoc Committee on Earth Science and Applications from Space: A Community Assessment and ­Strategy for the Future (ESAS) was formed to conduct a decadal survey to generate consensus recommendations from the Earth and environmental science and applications communities regarding a systems approach to space-based and a ­ ncillary observations that encompasses the research programs of NASA; the related operational programs of NOAA; and associated programs such as Landsat, a joint initiative of USGS and NASA. The survey committee oversaw and synthesized the work of seven thematically organized study panels. A pre-publication version of Earth Science and Applications from Space: National Imperatives for the Next Decade and Beyond was delivered to the study sponsors (NASA, NOAA, and the USGS) on January 5. Public release of the report and a press conference occurred on January 15 in conjunction with a special session at the annual meeting of the American Meteorological Society held in San Antonio, Texas. The report received extensive coverage by the print media, including major national newspapers. The report was also the subject of editorials in the New York Times, Washington Post, Miami Herald, and other newspapers. Drs. Anthes and Moore and the study director, Art Charo, briefed the report to NASA, NOAA, the Office of Sci- ence and Technology Policy (OSTP), the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and staff of the House ­Science and Tech­nology Committee and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Space, and Transportation. Together or indi- vidually the co-chairs also testified about the report’s findings at hearings before the House Science and Technology Committee; the Senate Committee on Commerce, Space, and Transportation; and the Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Space, and Transportation (see Chapter 6). 

Ad Hoc Study Committees 29 During the second quarter of 2007, the decadal survey continued to be an item of keen interest in the Congress and at OMB and OSTP. Richard Anthes, co-chair of decadal survey steering committee, and Eric Barron, chair of the survey’s Panel on Climate Variability and Change, testified at a June 28, 2007, House Science Committee hear- ing, “NASA’s Earth Science and Applications Programs: Fiscal Year 2008 Budget Request and Issues” (reprinted in Chapter 6). The final, edited version of the decadal survey report was delivered to the study sponsors (NASA, NOAA, and the USGS) on October 3, 2007. The Executive Summary is reprinted in Chapter 5; the full report is available at <http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11820>. A popularization of the report is also being prepared; it will be published in 2008. ESAS Executive Committee Membership Richard A. Anthes, University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (co-chair) Berrien Moore III, University of New Hampshire (co-chair) James G. Anderson, Harvard University Susan K. Avery, University of Colorado, Boulder Eric J. Barron, University of Texas, Austin Susan L. Cutter, University of South Carolina Ruth DeFries, University of Maryland William B. Gail, Microsoft Virtual Earth Bradford H. Hager, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Anthony Hollingsworth,* European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (retired) Anthony C. Janetos, Joint Global Change Research Institute, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory/University of Maryland Kathryn A. Kelly, University of Washington Neal F. Lane, Rice University Dennis P. Lettenmaier, University of Washington Bruce D. Marcus, TRW Inc. (retired) Warren M. Washington, National Center for Atmospheric Research Mark L. Wilson, University of Michigan Mary Lou Zoback, Risk Management Solutions Stacey W. Boland, Jet Propulsion Laboratory (consultant) Arthur A. Charo, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board (study director) Theresa M. Fisher, Program Associate, Space Studies Board ____________________ *The committee notes with deep regret Anthony Hollingsworth’s death on July 29, 2007. ESAS Panel on Earth Science Applications and Societal Benefits Membership Anthony C. Janetos, Joint Global Change Research Institute, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory/University of Maryland (chair) Roberta Balstad, Columbia University (vice chair) Jay Apt, Carnegie Mellon University Philip E. Ardanuy, Raytheon Information Solutions Randall Friedl, Jet Propulsion Laboratory Michael F. Goodchild, University of California, Santa Barbara Molly K. Macauley, Resources for the Future, Inc. Gordon McBean, University of Western Ontario David L. Skole, Michigan State University Leigh Welling, Crown of the Continent Learning Center 

30 Space Studies Board Annual Report—2007 Thomas J. Wilbanks, Oak Ridge National Laboratory Gary W. Yohe, Wesleyan University Arthur A. Charo, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board (study director) Theresa M. Fisher, Program Associate, Space Studies Board ESAS Panel on Land-use Change, Ecosystem Dynamics, and Biodiversity Membership Ruth S. Defries, University of Maryland (chair) Otis B. Brown, Jr., University of Miami (vice chair) Mark R. Abbott, Oregon State University Christopher B. Field, Carnegie Institution of Washington Inez Y. Fung, University of California, Berkeley Marc Levy, Center for International Earth Sciences Information Network James J. McCarthy, Harvard University Jerry M. Melillo, Marine Biological Laboratory David S. Schimel, University Corporation for Atmospheric Research Arthur Charo, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board (study director) Dan Walker, Senior Program Officer, Ocean Studies Board Sandra J. Graham, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board Carmela J. Chamberlain, Program Associate, Space Studies Board ESAS Panel on Weather Science and Applications Membership Susan K. Avery, University of Colorado, Boulder (chair) Thomas H. Vonder Haar, Colorado State University (vice chair) Edward V. Browell, NASA Langley Research Center William B. Cade III, Air Force Weather Agency Bradley R. Colman, National Weather Service Eugenia Kalnay, University of Maryland, College Park Christopher Ruf, University of Michigan Carl F. Schueler, Raytheon Company Jeremy Usher, Weathernews Americas, Inc. Christopher S. Velden, University of Wisconsin-Madison Robert A. Weller, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Arthur A. Charo, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board (study director) Curtis Marshall, Program Officer, Board on Atmospheric Sciences and Climate Theresa M. Fisher, Senior Program Assistant, Space Studies Board ESAS Panel on Climate Variability and Change Membership Eric J. Barron, University of Texas, Austin (chair) Joyce E. Penner, University of Michigan (vice chair) Gregory Carbone, University of South Carolina James A. Coakley, Jr., Oregon State University Sarah T. Gille, Scripps Institution of Oceanography Kenneth C. Jezek, Ohio State University Judith L. Lean, Naval Research Laboratory Gudrun Magnusdottir, University of California, Irvine Paola Malanotte-Rizzoli, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Michael Oppenheimer, Princeton University 

Ad Hoc Study Committees 31 Claire L. Parkinson, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Michael J. Prather, University of California, Irvine Mark R. Schoeberl, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Byron D. Tapley, University of Texas, Austin Arthur A. Charo, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board (study director) Celeste A. Naylor, Senior Program Assistant, Space Studies Board ESAS Panel on Water Resources and the Global Hydrologic Cycle Membership Dennis P. Lettenmaier, University of Washington (chair) Anne W. Nolin, Oregon State University (vice chair) Wilfried H. Brutsaert, Cornell University Anny Cazenave, Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales Carol Anne Clayson, Florida State University Jeff Dozier, University of California, Santa Barbara Dara Entekhabi, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Richard Forster, University of Utah Charles D.D. Howard, Independent Consultant Christian D. Kummerow, Colorado State University Steven W. Running, University of Montana Charles J. Vorosmarty, University of New Hampshire Arthur A. Charo, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board (study director) William Logan, Senior Program Officer, Water Science and Technology Board Theresa M. Fisher, Program Associate, Space Studies Board ESAS Panel on Human Health and Security Membership Mark L. Wilson, University of Michigan (chair) Rita R. Colwell, University of Maryland, College Park (vice chair) Daniel G. Brown, University of Michigan Walter F. Dabberdt, Vaisala, Inc. William F. Davenhall, ESRI John R. Delaney, University of Washington Gregory Glass, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Daniel J. Jacob, Harvard University James H. Maguire, University of Maryland School of Medicine Paul M. Maughan, MyoSite Diagnostics, Inc. Joan B. Rose, Michigan State University Ronald B. Smith, Yale University Patricia Ann Tester, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Arthur A. Charo, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board (study director) Raymond Wassel, Senior Program Officer, Board on Environmental Studies and Toxicology Theresa M. Fisher, Program Associate, Space Studies Board ESAS Panel on Solid-Earth Hazards, Natural Resources, and Dynamics Membership Bradford H. Hager, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (chair) Susan L. Brantley, Pennsylvania State University (vice chair) Jeremy Bloxham, Harvard University Richard K. Eisner, State of California, Governor’s Office of Emergency Services 

32 Space Studies Board Annual Report—2007 Alexander F.H. Goetz, University of Colorado, Boulder Christian J. Johannsen, Purdue University James W. Kirchner, University of California, Berkeley William I. Rose, Michigan Technological University Haresh C. Shah, Stanford University Dirk Smit, Shell Exploration and Production Technology Company Howard A. Zebker, Stanford University Maria T. Zuber, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Arthur A. Charo, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board (study director) Dan Walker, Senior Program Officer, Ocean Studies Board Sandra J. Graham, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board Carmela J. Chamberlain, Program Associate, Space Studies Board MEETING THE WORKFORCE NEEDS FOR THE NATIONAL VISION FOR SPACE EXPLORATION The Committee on Meeting the Workforce Needs for the National Vision for Space Exploration, under the auspices of SSB and the Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board, was organized to assess the current and future supply of personnel for a qualified U.S. aerospace workforce to meet the needs of NASA and the larger aerospace science and engineering community in the context of the nation’s long-term space exploration vision.   The committee’s report, Building a Better NASA Workforce: Meeting the Workforce Needs of the National Vision for Space Exploration, was delivered to NASA in April. The Executive Summary is reprinted in Chapter 5; the full report is available at <http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11916>. Committee chairs Daniel Hastings and David Black testified before the House Science and Technology Com- mittee on May 15 in Washington, D.C. (reprinted in Chapter 6). Following the testimony, the chairs briefed OMB and OSTP. Membership David C. Black, Universities Space Research Association (co-chair) Daniel E. Hastings, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (co-chair) Burt S. Barnow, Johns Hopkins University John W. Douglass, Aerospace Industries Association of America, Inc. Ray M. Haynes, Northrop Grumman Space Technology Margaret G. Kivelson, University of California, Los Angeles William Pomerantz, X PRIZE Foundation Joseph H. Rothenberg, Universal Space Network Kathryn C. Thornton, University of Virginia Dwayne A. Day, Senior Program Associate, Space Studies Board (study director) Victoria Swisher, Research Associate, Space Studies Board Celeste A. Naylor, Senior Program Assistant, Space Studies Board NASA ASTROPHYSICS PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT The ad hoc Committee on NASA Astrophysics Performance Assessment was tasked with assessing NASA’s performance in achieving the goals laid out by the 2000 NRC astronomy and astrophysics decadal survey, Astronomy and Astrophysics in the New Millennium, as well as in the 2003 NRC report Connecting Quarks with the Cosmos. A pre-publication version of its report, A Performance Assessment of NASA’s Astrophysics Program, was re- leased on January 23. The committee began briefing the sponsor and others in April. The final, edited version of its report was published in May. The Summary is reprinted in Chapter 5; the full report is available at < http://books. nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11828>. 

Ad Hoc Study Committees 33 Membership Kenneth H. Keller, University of Minnesota at Minneapolis (chair) Martha P. Haynes, Cornell University (vice chair) Steven J. Battel, Battel Engineering Charles L. Bennett, Johns Hopkins University Catherine Cesarsky, European Southern Observatory Megan Donahue, Michigan State University Rolf-Peter Kudritzki, University of Hawaii at Manoa Stephen S. Murray, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics Robert Palmer, Independent Consultant Joseph H. Taylor, Jr., Princeton University Michael S. Turner, University of Chicago Rainer Weiss, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Charles E. Woodward, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis Brian D. Dewhurst, Senior Program Associate, Board on Physics and Astronomy (study director) David B. Lang, Research Associate, Board on Physics and Astronomy Celeste A. Naylor, Senior Program Assistant, Space Studies Board REVIEW NEW OPPORTUNITIES IN SOLAR SYSTEM EXPLORATION The ad hoc Committee to Review New Opportunities in Solar System Exploration was formed to conduct an analysis of a number of issues that relate to NASA’s next New Frontiers Announcement of Opportunity (AO) and provide criteria and guiding principles for determining the list of candidate missions. At the request of the sponsor, NASA’s Science Mission Directorate (SMD), the study’s statement of task was revised to reflect SMD’s new inter- est in possibly including Mars in the New Frontiers program. In addition to its original requirements, the study will make recommendations about whether or not Mars mission proposals should be considered in the New Frontiers AO, or remain separate, as has been true historically. In 2007, the committee met on August 6-8 in Washington, D.C., October 1-3 in Irvine, California, and Novem- ber 14-16 at the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston, Texas. The committee’s report is expected to be delivered to NASA by March 2008. Membership Reta F. Beebe, New Mexico State University (co-chair) Warren W. Buck, University of Washington (co-chair) Douglas P. Blanchard, NASA Johnson Space Center (retired) Robert Braun, Georgia Institute of Technology Bernard F. Burke, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Alan Delamere, Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corporation (retired) Rosaly M. Lopes-Gautier, Jet Propulsion Laboratory Stephen Mackwell, Lunar and Planetary Institute Timothy J. McCoy, Smithsonian Institution Ralph McNutt, Johns Hopkins University, Applied Physics Laboratory Sandra Pizzarello, Arizona State University Gerald Schubert, University of California, Los Angeles Donna L. Shirley, Science Fiction Museum John Spencer, Southwest Research Institute Elizabeth P. Turtle, Johns Hopkins University, Applied Physics Laboratory Dwayne A. Day, Senior Program Associate, Space Studies Board (study director) Celeste A. Naylor, Senior Program Assistant, Space Studies Board 

34 Space Studies Board Annual Report—2007 REVIEW THE NASA ASTROBIOLOGY INSTITUTE The ad hoc Committee to Review the NASA Astrobiology Institute was formed to conduct a review to evaluate the progress made by the NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI) in developing the field of astrobiology, both from the perspective of NAI members and that of the larger community of NASA-supported scientists, both within the NASA Astrobiology Program and outside of it. The committee held a preliminary conference call on July 13 and held the following meetings in 2007: July 25-27, Sunnyvale, California; August 16-18, Washington, D.C.; August 31- September 2, Costa Mesa, California. An unedited prepublication version of the committee’s report, Assessment of the NASA Astrobiology Institute, was sent to NASA on November 28 and released to the public on December 10. The final, edited text will be pub- lished in the first quarter of 2008. The Executive Summary is reprinted in Chapter 5; the full report is available at <http:\\books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id= 12071>. Membership John M. Klineberg, Loral Space and Communications, Ltd. (chair) Luann Becker, University of California, Santa Barbara Yvonne C. Brill, Independent Consultant Jack D. Farmer, Arizona State University Monika E. Kress, San Jose State University David W. Latham, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics Antonio Lazcano, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico Cindy L. Van Dover, Duke University David H. Smith, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board (study director) Rodney N. Howard, Senior Program Assistant, Space Studies Board SCIENTIFIC CONTEXT FOR THE EXPLORATION OF THE MOON The ad hoc Committee on the Scientific Context for the Exploration of the Moon completed its work in 2007. Earlier in the year, members of the committee conducted outreach activities to engage the lunar science community, including a presentation by Carlé Pieters at the NASA Advisory Council Workshop on Science Associated with the Lunar Exploration Architecture in Tempe, Arizona, on February 27-March 2, 2007 (about a third of the committee was present for the workshop). The prepublication version of the committee’s report, The Scientific Context for Exploration of the Moon, was released in early June, and the final, edited version was published in July 2007. The Executive Summary is reprinted in Chapter 5; the full report is available at <http:\\books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11954>. Membership George A. Paulikas, The Aerospace Corporation (retired) (chair) Carlé M. Pieters, Brown University (vice chair) William B. Banerdt, Jet Propulsion Laboratory James L. Burch, Southwest Research Institute Andrew Chaikin, Science Journalist, Arlington, Vermont Barbara A. Cohen, University of New Mexico Michael Duke,* Colorado School of Mines Harald Hiesinger, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität, Münster, Germany Noel W. Hinners, University of Colorado Ayanna M. Howard, Georgia Institute of Technology David J. Lawrence, Los Alamos National Laboratory Daniel F. Lester, McDonald Observatory Paul G. Lucey, University of Hawaii 

Ad Hoc Study Committees 35 Stefanie Tompkins, Science Applications International Corporation Francisco P.J. Valero, Scripps Institution of Oceanography John W. Valley, University of Wisconsin-Madison Charles D.Walker, Independent Consultant, Annandale, Virginia Neville J. Woolf, University of Arizona Robert L. Riemer, Senior Program Officer, Board on Physics and Astronomy (study director) David H. Smith, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board Rodney N. Howard, Senior Project Assistant, Space Studies Board ____________________ *During committee deliberations, Dr. Duke recused himself from discussion of the finding and recommendation related to the South Pole-Aitken Basin. STRATEGY TO MITIGATE THE IMPACT OF SENSOR DESCOPES AND DEMANIFESTS ON THE NPOESS AND GOES-R SPACECRAFT The ad hoc Committee on A Strategy to Mitigate the Impact of Sensor Descopes and De-manifests on the NPOESS and GOES-R Spacecraft was formed shortly before the SSB held a workshop on Options to Ensure the Climate Record from the NPOESS and GOES-R Spacecraft (summary of the workshop proceedings is available at <http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=12033>). NASA and NOAA requested that the NRC form this ad hoc committee to carry out a fast turn-around follow-on study that would (1) prioritize capabilities, especially those related to climate research that were lost or placed at risk following recent changes to NPOESS and the GOES-R series of polar and geostationary environmental monitoring satellites and (2) present strategies to recover these capabilities. Antonio Busalacchi, chair of both the ad hoc committee and the workshop planning committee, testified on July 11 at a U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation hearing, “U.S. Weather and Envi- ronmental Satellites: Ready for the 21st Century?” (his testimony is reprinted in Chapter 6). A short report from the committee is expected in February 2008. Membership Antonio J. Busalacchi, Jr., University of Maryland, College Park (chair) Philip E. Ardanuy, Raytheon Information Solutions Judith A. Curry, Georgia Institute of Technology Craig J. Donlon, Meteorological Office Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research Judith L. Lean, Naval Research Laboratory Berrien Moore III, University of New Hampshire R. Steven Nerem, University of Colorado at Boulder Anne W. Nolin, Oregon State University Jay S. Pearlman, The Boeing Company Joyce E. Penner, University of Michigan James F.W. Purdom, Colorado State University Carl F. Schueler, Raytheon Company (retired) Graeme L. Stephens, Colorado State University Christopher S. Velden, University of Wisconsin-Madison Robert A. Weller, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Frank J. Wentz, Remote Sensing Systems Arthur A. Charo, Senior Program Officer, Space Studies Board (study director) Theresa M. Fisher, Senior Program Assistant, Space Studies Board