Reusable Booster System: Review and Assessment 

This study will review and assess the SMC/AFRL concept for a Reusable Booster System (RBS) for the U.S. Air Force.

Evaluating NASA's Strategic Direction

This study is being led by the Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences.

Assessment of the U.S. Air Force's Astrodynamic Standards

An ad hoc committee will assess the astrodynamic standards established by Air Force Space Command (AFSPC) and their effectiveness in meeting mission performance needs, as well as possible alternatives. 

Committee on Human Spaceflight Crew Operations

The National Research Council’s Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board will establish an ad hoc committee to study the activities of NASA’s Flight Crew Operations Directorate. In writing its report the committee will address the following questions: (1) How should the role and size of the activities which are managed by the Flight Crew Operations Directorate change following space shuttle retirement and completion of the assembly of the International Space Station (ISS)? (2) What are the requirements of crew-related ground facilities after the space shuttle program ends? (3) Is the astronaut corps’ fleet of training aircraft a cost-effective means of preparing astronauts for the requirements of NASA’s human spaceflight program? Are there more cost-effective means of meeting these training requirements?

NASA Technology Roadmap

ASEB has been asked by NASA¹sOffice of the Chief Technologist (OCT) to review 14 draft roadmaps that it has prepared as a point of departure for future investments in space technology. The study committee will also provide recommendations that identify and prioritize key technologies.  

Aeronautics Research and Technology Roundtable

The Aeronautics Research and Technology Roundtable (ARTR) convenes senior-most representatives from industry, universities and NASA to define and explore critical issues related to NASA’s aeronautics research agenda that are of shared interest; to frame systems-level research issues; and to explore options for public-private partnerships that could support rapid, high-confidence knowledge transfer. This forum will be designed to facilitate candid dialogue among participants, to foster greater partnership among the NASA-related aeronautics community, and, where appropriate, carry awareness of consequences to the wider public.

Committee to Assess NASA's Aeronautics Flight Research Capabilities

The National Research Council’s Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board will establish an ad hoc committee will perform a study to assess and make recommendations about how best to integrate flight research into the current Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate’s (ARMD) fundamental research activities and integrated systems research activities.  

A Decadal Strategy for Solar and Space Physics (Heliophysics)

The Space Studies Board shall establish a Heliophysics Survey Committee to develop a comprehensive science and mission strategy for heliophysics research for a 10-year period beginning in approximately 2013. The survey committee, informed by up to 5 study panels that will also be established by the Board, will broadly canvas the field of solar and space physics.