A Strategy for Ground-Based Optical and Infrared Astronomy

The charge to the Panel on Ground-Based Optical and Infrared Astronomy was as follows:

1. Assess the context in which optical and infrared astronomy will be pursued in the coming decade, including existing and planned instruments worldwide, NASA missions, and likely technological developments. This examination must consider the appropriate mission for the National Optical Astronomy Observatories (NOAO); the most effective use of National Science Foundation (NSF) funds for support of facilities, instrument development, and research; and how best to structure our efforts to meet the challenges of the next decade.

2. Within this context, evaluate the mission of the NOAO and define its optimal role (including both nighttime and solar activities) relative to that of other government facilities and optical and infrared astronomy (OIR) university observatories and research departments. This evaluation will take into account both the research and educational roles of the organizations.

3. Suggest and evaluate alternative strategies designed to optimize progress in the field, taking into account the funding available from various federal and nonfederal sources and projections for the future. Give advice for strategies and priorities within OIR astronomy in light of the expectation that the NSF resources available for these programs will be severely constrained in the coming decade.

The OIR Panel was concerned about the reference to solar activities at NOAO in item 2 of the charge. Since the National Solar Observatories (NSO) at NOAO constitute a major part of the national infrastructure for solar physics, the panel was concerned that recommendations regarding NSO might have a major impact on the national strategy for solar research. The OIR Panel did not have the expertise or resources to evaluate this impact properly. Therefore, the chairs of the Committee on Astronomy and Astrophysics and the OIR Panel discussed this issue with Hugh Van Horn of the NSF and reached the understanding that the OIR Panel was expected not to make major recommendations regarding solar facilities, but only to point out the potential impact on solar physics that its recommendations for NOAO might have.

The strategy recommended is intended generally to follow the recommendations of the 1991 NRC report of the Astronomy and Astrophysics Survey Committee, The Decade of Discovery in Astronomy and Astrophysics (hereafter, the AASC report; National Academy Press, Washington, D.C.), taking into account developments that have occurred since that report was written.

The goal of the recommended strategy must be to achieve the best science from the NSF investment in OIR astronomy. The total U.S. investment in astronomy includes the capital investment and operating funds from federal, state, and private sources that support the NOAO and many independent observatories as well as the pool of talented astronomers who use these facilities. These astronomers, most of whom teach at colleges and universities, not only advance our knowledge of the universe and the frontiers of technology required to gain this knowledge, but also impart their knowledge and skills to a much greater number of students and to the public.

As the panel describes in Sections II and III, the infrastructure of OIR astronomy is complex and the scientific opportunities are enormous. The major share of NSF funding of OIR astronomy goes to the support of the NOAO, and the greatest current federal capital investment in OIR astronomy is the U.S. share (50%) of the international Gemini telescopes currently under construction. Therefore, strategic advice for NOAO and for NOAO's role in the international Gemini 8-M Telescopes Project (IGP) is a vital element of a national strategy for OIR astronomy. These issues are addressed in Section IV.

Astronomy enjoys a unique place among the physical sciences in that most of the OIR telescopes in the United States, including the largest ones, were built and are operated with private and state funds (see Section II). Thus, to optimize the scientific return of the NSF investment in OIR astronomy, it is necessary to consider a strategy to provide instrumentation for the independent observatories that own these telescopes. A recommended strategy, which includes a provision for national access to these facilities, is presented in Section V.

The panel interpreted the reference to severely constrained resources in item 3 of the charge as a mandate to consider a scenario in which the NSF annual funding of OIR astronomy would have zero growth for the remainder of the decade (in constant 1994 dollars). In this scenario, options would be very limited, and drastic cuts would be necessary.

However, in view of the major capital investment in astronomy from both federal and private sources, and substantial growth in the number of astronomers, the panel considered scenarios in which the NSF base budget for OIR astronomy would be increased during the coming decade by an amount comparable to that required to support Gemini operations. Such an increase would enable the United States to realize fully the enormous scientific potential of the nation's telescopes.

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