[meteorite-list] Report Identifies Priority Missions for Planetary Science in the Next Decade

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Tue, 8 Mar 2011 17:06:25 -0800 (PST)
Message-ID: <201103090106.p2916Ptg024178_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

March 7, 2011

Contacts:
Molly Galvin / Luwam Yiebio
Media Relations Officer / Media Relations Assistant
Office of News and Public Information
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REPORT IDENTIFIES PRIORITY MISSIONS
FOR PLANETARY SCIENCE IN THE NEXT DECADE

A new report from the National Research Council 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. However, if NASA's budget over that decade cannot
support all of these missions, the agency should preserve smaller
scale missions in its New Frontiers and Discovery programs first and
delay some or all of the recommended large-scale missions, the report
says.

Research priorities were selected through a rigorous review that
included input from five expert panels. The committee also sought
extensive input from the planetary sciences community through town
hall meetings and white papers. Recommendations are informed by NASA's
own FY 2011 projected budget scenarios for 2013-2022. In addition, the
committee hired a contractor to provide independent cost and technical
analyses of select mission proposals.

"Our recommendations are science-driven, and they offer a balanced mix
of missions -- large, medium, and small -- that have the potential to
greatly expand our knowledge of the solar system," said Steven W.
Squyres, professor of astronomy at the Center for Radiophysics and
Space Research, Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y., and chair of the
committee that wrote the report. "However, in these tough economic
times, some difficult choices may have to be made. With that in mind,
our priority missions were carefully selected based on their potential
to yield the most scientific benefit per dollar spent."

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,
should be NASA's highest priority large mission, the report says. This
mission will be the first step in a multipart effort to eventually
return samples from the planet. The report stresses, however, that the
mission should be conducted only if the cost to NASA is approximately
$2.5 billion -- $1 billion less than the independent estimates
provided to the committee. NASA and the European Space Agency, which
would run the mission jointly, should work together to reduce the
scope of the mission and ensure that both agencies still benefit.

A mission to Jupiter's icy moon Europa and its subsurface ocean -- one
of the most promising environments in the solar system for supporting
life -- should be the second priority for NASA's large-scale planetary
science missions. However, NASA should fly the Jupiter Europa Orbiter
(JEO) only if NASA's budget for planetary science is increased, the
report says, and JEO's mission scope is made more affordable. The
independent estimate put the price tag at $4.7 billion. The committee
concluded that unless costs could be brought down, conducting JEO
would preclude too many other important missions.

The third priority for large missions would be the Uranus Orbiter and
Probe mission to investigate that planet's interior structure,
atmosphere, and composition. The report says that this mission should
be initiated between 2013 and 2022, but it should be subjected to
rigorous, independent cost verification throughout its development and
reduced or cancelled if costs grow significantly above its assessed
$2.7 billion price tag.

For medium-size missions, the report 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.
Since its inception in 2003, the program has initiated two missions
and is in the process of selecting a third. The committee recommends
that NASA also select a fourth and fifth mission in the 2013-2023 time
frame and identifies several candidates from which NASA could choose,
but does not prioritize them. Instead, selection should be based on
competitive peer review.

Although the report does not make specific recommendations for small
missions, it notes that NASA's Discovery Program of low-cost, highly
focused planetary science investigations has made important
contributions to science and should be continued at its current level
of funding with adjustments for inflation. NASA should ensure a
regular, balanced schedule of such missions. The committee also
endorses the Mars Trace Gas Orbiter, a small mission outside of the
Discovery program due to launch in 2016, as long as current plans for
dividing responsibilities and costs between NASA and the European
Space Agency remain.

The National Science Foundation, which supports nearly all areas of
planetary science except space missions, should expand its funding for
existing laboratories and establish new facilities as needed, the
report says. It also urges NSF to complete the Large Synoptic Survey
Telescope, which could provide important contributions to planetary
science.

The study was sponsored by NASA and NSF. The National Academy of
Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine, and
National Research Council make up the National Academies. They are
private, nonprofit institutions that provide science, technology, and
health policy advice under a congressional charter. The Research
Council is the principal operating agency of the National Academy of
Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering. For more
information, visit http://national-academies.org.

                           # # #

Pre-publication copies of Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science in
the Decade 2013-2022 are available from the National Academies Press;
+1 202-334-3313 or 1-800-624-6242 or on the Internet at
http://www.nap.edu. Reporters may obtain a copy from the Office of
News and Public Information (contacts listed above).
Received on Tue 08 Mar 2011 08:06:25 PM PST