DECADAL SCIENCE STRATEGY SURVEYS
REPORT OF A WORKSHOP
Jack D. Fellows, Rapporteur
Joseph K. Alexander, Editor
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, D.C.
www.nap.edu
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NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.
This study was supported by Contract NASW-01001 between the National Academy of Sciences and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Contract DG133R04C00009 between the National Academy of Sciences and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and private funding from the National Research Council. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the agencies that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-10664-1
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-10664-8
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Other Reports of the Space Studies Board
Earth Science and Applications from Space: National Imperatives for the Next Decade and Beyond (2007)
Exploring Organic Environments in the Solar System (Space Studies Board [SSB] with the Board on Chemical Sciences and Technology, 2007)
A Performance Assessment of NASA’s Astrophysics Program (SSB with the Board on Physics and Astronomy, 2007)
An Assessment of Balance in NASA’s Science Programs (2006)
Assessment of NASA’s Mars Architecture 2007-2016 (2006)
Assessment of Planetary Protection Requirements for Venus Missions: Letter Report (2006)
Distributed Arrays of Small Instruments for Solar-Terrestrial Research: Report of a Workshop (2006)
Issues Affecting the Future of the U.S. Space Science and Engineering Workforce (SSB with the Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board [ASEB], 2006)
Review of NASA’s 2006 Draft Science Plan: Letter Report (2006)
The Scientific Context for Exploration of the Moon—Interim Report (2006)
Space Radiation Hazards and the Vision for Space Exploration (2006)
The Astrophysical Context of Life (SSB with the Board on Life Sciences, 2005)
Earth Science and Applications from Space: Urgent Needs and Opportunities to Serve the Nation (2005)
Extending the Effective Lifetimes of Earth Observing Research Missions (2005)
Preventing the Forward Contamination of Mars (2005)
Principal-Investigator-Led Missions in the Space Sciences (2005)
Priorities in Space Science Enabled by Nuclear Power and Propulsion (SSB with ASEB, 2005)
Review of Goals and Plans for NASA’s Space and Earth Sciences (2005)
Review of NASA Plans for the International Space Station (2005)
Science in NASA’s Vision for Space Exploration (2005)
Limited copies of these reports are available free of charge from
Space Studies Board
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(202) 334-3477/ssb@nas.edu
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NOTE: Listed according to year of approval for release, which in some cases precedes the year of publication.
PLANNING COMMITTEE FOR THE DECADAL SCIENCE STRATEGY SURVEYS WORKSHOP
LENNARD A. FISK,
University of Michigan,
Chair
CHARLES L. BENNETT,
Johns Hopkins University
BERRIEN MOORE III,
University of New Hampshire
SUZANNE OPARIL,
University of Alabama, Birmingham
JOSEPH F. VEVERKA,
Cornell University
WARREN M. WASHINGTON,
National Center for Atmospheric Research
A. THOMAS YOUNG,
Lockheed Martin Corporation (retired)
Staff
JOSEPH K. ALEXANDER, Study Director
CLAUDETTE K. BAYLOR-FLEMING, Administrative Assistant
CATHERINE A. GRUBER, Assistant Editor
SPACE STUDIES BOARD
LENNARD A. FISK,
University of Michigan,
Chair
A. THOMAS YOUNG,
Lockheed Martin Corporation (retired),
Vice Chair
SPIRO K. ANTIOCHOS,
Naval Research Laboratory
DANIEL N. BAKER,
University of Colorado
STEVEN J. BATTEL,
Battel Engineering
CHARLES L. BENNETT,
Johns Hopkins University
JUDITH A. CURRY,
Georgia Institute of Technology
JACK D. FARMER,
Arizona State University
JACK D. FELLOWS,
University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
JACQUELINE N. HEWITT,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
TAMARA E. JERNIGAN,
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
KLAUS KEIL,
University of Hawaii
BERRIEN MOORE III,
University of New Hampshire
KENNETH H. NEALSON,
University of Southern California
NORMAN P. NEUREITER,
American Association for the Advancement of Science
SUZANNE OPARIL,
University of Alabama
JAMES PAWELCZYK,
Pennsylvania State University
RONALD PROBSTEIN,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (emeritus)
HARVEY D. TANANBAUM,
Harvard-Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory
RICHARD H. TRULY,
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (retired)
JOSEPH F. VEVERKA,
Cornell University
WARREN M. WASHINGTON,
National Center for Atmospheric Research
GARY P. ZANK,
University of California at Riverside
MARCIA S. SMITH, Director
Preface
National Research Council (NRC) decadal science strategy surveys provide decade-long retrospective and forward-looking assessments of the status of and outlook for a research field, and they provide broadly based recommendations for explicit scientific and programmatic priorities for future investments in the field. While these surveys have been widely successful, implementation problems have been encountered as the relevant government agencies and the scientific community try to follow the advice contained in them. These problems, which have been due to a combination of fiscal, technical, programmatic, and policy factors, suggest that the approach to future decadal surveys needs to be carefully examined and possibly modified or improved.
Consequently, the Space Studies Board concluded that it would be timely and important to bring members of the research community and representatives of relevant government offices together to discuss the use of NRC decadal surveys for developing and implementing scientific priorities, to review and discuss lessons learned from the most recent surveys, and to identify approaches that could enhance the realism, utility, and endurance of future surveys.
A public workshop was conducted on November 14-16, 2006, at the National Academies’ Beckman Center in Irvine, California, to address these issues. A workshop planning committee, whose members were drawn from the membership of the Space Studies Board, developed an agenda for the workshop and selected and invited workshop participants. The workshop featured presentations, panel discussions, and general discussions on the use of NRC decadal surveys for developing and implementing scientific priorities in astronomy and astrophysics, planetary science, solar and space physics, and Earth science. The workshop
agenda is presented in Appendix A, and short biographies of the approximately 60 participants from academia, industry, government, and the NRC are presented in Appendix B.
This workshop report, prepared by the workshop rapporteur, Jack D. Fellows, with the assistance of NRC staff member Joseph Alexander, is intended to be a summary of what occurred at the workshop. The Space Studies Board intends for the report to stimulate discussion about future decadal surveys all across the scientific community, the relevant federal agencies, and Congress and to be useful to the NRC as the next rounds of decadal surveys are planned and organized.
Acknowledgment of Reviewers
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 National Research Council’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:
Steven Battel, Battel Engineering,
Wesley Huntress, Carnegie Institute of Washington,
Joseph Taylor, Princeton University, and
Megan Urry, Yale University.
Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the statements presented in the report nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release. The review of this report was overseen by William W. Hoover, independent consultant (U.S. Air Force, retired). 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 authors and the institution.