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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23582.
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NASA Space Technology
Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited

Committee on NASA Technology Roadmaps

Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board

Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences

A Report of

images

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, DC
www.nap.edu

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23582.
×

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS500 Fifth Street, NWWashington, DC 20001

This activity was supported by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, under Contract No. NNH11CD57B. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any agency or organization that provided support for the project.

International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-44696-9
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-44696-1
Digital Object Identifier: 10.17226/23582

Copies of this report are available free of charge from

Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Keck Center of the National Academies
500 Fifth Street, NW
Washington, DC 20001

Additional copies of this report are available from the National Academies Press, 500 Fifth Street, NW, Keck 360, Washington, DC 20001; (800) 624-6242 or (202) 334-3313; http://www.nap.edu.

Copyright 2016 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America

Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23582.

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23582.
×

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The National Academy of Sciences was established in 1863 by an Act of Congress, signed by President Lincoln, as a private, nongovernmental institution to advise the nation on issues related to science and technology. Members are elected by their peers for outstanding contributions to research. Dr. Marcia McNutt is president.

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Learn more about the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine at www.national-academies.org.

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23582.
×

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Reports document the evidence-based consensus of an authoring committee of experts. Reports typically include findings, conclusions, and recommendations based on information gathered by the committee and committee deliberations. Reports are peer reviewed and are approved by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23582.
×

OTHER RECENT REPORTS OF THE AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ENGINEERING BOARD

Commercial Aircraft Propulsion and Energy Systems Research: Reducing Global Carbon Emissions (Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board [ASEB], 2016)

Transformation in the Air: A Review of the FAA’s Certification Research Plan (ASEB, 2015)

3D Printing in Space (ASEB, 2014)

Autonomy Research for Civil Aviation: Toward a New Era of Flight (ASEB, 2014)

Pathways to Exploration: Rationales and Approaches for a U.S. Program of Human Space Exploration (ASEB with Space Studies Board [SSB], 2014)

Continuing Kepler’s Quest: Assessing Air Force Space Command’s Astrodynamics Standards (ASEB, 2012)

NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities: Restoring NASA’s Technological Edge and Paving the Way for a New Era in Space (ASEB, 2012)

NASA’s Strategic Direction and the Need for a National Consensus (Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences, 2012)

Recapturing NASA’s Aeronautics Flight Research Capabilities (SSB and ASEB, 2012)

Reusable Booster System: Review and Assessment (ASEB, 2012)

Solar and Space Physics: A Science for a Technological Society (SSB with ASEB, 2012)

Limiting Future Collision Risk to Spacecraft: An Assessment of NASA’s Meteroid and Orbital Debris Programs (ASEB, 2011)

Preparing for the High Frontier—The Role and Training of NASA Astronauts in the Post-Space Shuttle Era (ASEB, 2011)

Advancing Aeronautical Safety: A Review of NASA’s Aviation Safety-Related Research Programs (ASEB, 2010)

Capabilities for the Future: An Assessment of NASA Laboratories for Basic Research (Laboratory Assessments Board with SSB and ASEB, 2010)

Defending Planet Earth: Near-Earth Object Surveys and Hazard Mitigation Strategies (SSB with ASEB, 2010)

Forging the Future of Space Science: The Next 50 Years: An International Public Seminar Series Organized by the Space Studies Board: Selected Lectures (SSB with ASEB, 2010)

Recapturing a Future for Space Exploration: Life and Physical Sciences Research for a New Era (ASEB, 2010)

Limited copies of ASEB reports are available free of charge from

Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board
Keck Center of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
500 Fifth Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001
(202) 334-3477/aseb@nas.edu
www.nationalacademies.org/ssb/ssb.html

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23582.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23582.
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COMMITTEE ON NASA TECHNOLOGY ROADMAPS

TODD J. MOSHER, Syncroness, Co-Chair

LISELOTTE J. SCHIOLER, Schioler Consulting, Co-Chair

ARDEN L. BEMENT, JR., Purdue University

JOHN C. BROCK, Aerospace Consultant, Northrop Grumman Space Technology (retired)

JAMES L. BURCH, Southwest Research Institute

STEPHEN GOREVAN, Honeybee Robotics, Ltd.

CHARLES L. ISBELL, JR., Georgia Institute of Technology

H. JAY MELOSH, Purdue University

DAVID P. MILLER, University of Oklahoma

DANIEL O’SHAUGHNESSY, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory

TORREY RADCLIFFE, The Aerospace Corporation

JOHN R. ROGACKI, Doolittle Institute, Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition

JULIE A. SHAH, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

ALAN M. TITLE, Lockheed Martin Advanced Technology Center

Staff

ALAN C. ANGLEMAN, Senior Program Officer, Study Director

DWAYNE A. DAY, Senior Program Officer, Study Director

MICHAEL H. MOLONEY, Director, Space Studies Board and Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board

ANESIA WILKS, Senior Program Assistant

Page viii Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23582.
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AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ENGINEERING BOARD

LESTER L. LYLES, The Lyles Group, Chair

ELIZABETH R. CANTWELL, Arizona State University, Vice Chair

ARNOLD D. ALDRICH, Aerospace Consultant

BRIAN M. ARGROW, University of Colorado, Boulder

STEVEN J. BATTEL, Battel Engineering

MEYER J. BENZAKEIN, Ohio State University

BRIAN J. CANTWELL, Stanford University

EILEEN M. COLLINS, Space Presentations, LLC

MICHAEL P. DELANEY, Boeing Commercial Airplanes

EARL H. DOWELL, Duke University

ALAN H. EPSTEIN, Pratt & Whitney

KAREN FEIGH, Georgia Institute of Technology

PERETZ P. FRIEDMANN, University of Michigan

MARK J. LEWIS, Science and Technology Policy Institute, Institute of Defense Analyses

RICHARD MCKINNEY, Independent Consultant

JOHN M. OLSON, Sierra Nevada Corporation

ROBIE I. SAMANTA ROY, Lockheed Martin

AGAM N. SINHA, Ans Aviation International, LLC

ALAN M. TITLE, Lockheed Martin, Advanced Technology Center

DAVID M. VAN WIE, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory

SHERRIE L. ZACHARIUS, The Aerospace Corporation

Staff

MICHAEL H. MOLONEY, Director

CARMELA J. CHAMBERLAIN, Administrative Coordinator

TANJA PILZAK, Manager, Program Operations

CELESTE A. NAYLOR, Information Management Associate

MEG A. KNEMEYER, Financial Officer

SU LIU, Financial Assistant

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23582.
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Preface

The NASA Authorization Act of 2010 directed NASA to create a program to maintain its research and development base in space technology. In response, NASA created a set of 14 draft space technology roadmaps to guide the development of space technologies. These roadmaps were the subject of a comprehensive external review by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine,1 which in 2012 issued the National Research Council report NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities: Restoring NASA’s Technological Edge and Paving the Way for a New Era in Space.2 NASA then began a reexamination and updating of its 2010 draft technology roadmaps, resulting in a new set of 2015 roadmaps. A significant aspect of the updating has been the effort to assess the relevance of the technologies by showing their linkage to a set of mission classes and design reference missions (DRMs) from the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate and the Science Mission Directorate. The new set of roadmaps also includes a roadmap that addresses aeronautical technologies. In the spring of 2015, the updated roadmaps were released to the public for review and comment.

Also in 2015, the Academies were asked to assemble a committee to evaluate the technologies in the updated set of 14 space technology roadmaps. Per the statement of task, the aeronautics roadmap is not included in the present study, because the 2012 NRC report, which serves as a baseline for it, has no such aeronautics roadmap. The full statement of task appears in Appendix A of this report. Specific elements of the statement of task include identifying technologies in NASA’s 2015 roadmaps that were not evaluated by the 2012 NRC report, prioritizing those technologies using the same process documented in the 2012 NRC report, and recommending a methodology for future independent reviews of NASA’s technology roadmaps.

In response to this latest request, the NRC appointed the 14-member Committee on NASA Technology Roadmaps. For the sake of continuity, many members of the committee were veterans of the study that led to the 2012 NRC report. The committee met four times: in September and November 2015, in Washington, D.C.; in January 2016, in Irvine, California; and in March 2016 in Washington, D.C.

___________________

1 Effective July 1, 2015, the institution is called the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. References in this report to the National Research Council (NRC) are used in a historical context to refer to activities before that date.

2 National Research Council, 2012, NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities: Restoring NASA’s Technological Edge and Paving the Way for a New Era in Space, The National Academies Press, Washington, D.C.

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23582.
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Acknowledgment of Reviewers

This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. 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:

Kenneth M. Baldwin, University of California, Irvine,

Ellen J. Bass, Drexel University,

Mark Devlin, University of Pennsylvania,

Bill Gibson, World View Enterprises,

Alastair M. Glass, Tyndall National Institute of Ireland,

Jonathan Goff, Altius Space Machines,

Joseph H. Koo, The University of Texas, Austin,

Alfred U. MacRae, MacRae Technologies,

Michael Norman, University of California, San Diego,

Stephen M. Rock, Stanford University,

George W. Sutton, Analysis and Applications, and

Daniel Weihs, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology.

Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations, nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release. The review of this report was overseen by Steven J. Battel, Battel Engineering, who 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 authoring committee and the institution.

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23582.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2016. NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/23582.
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Page viii Cite
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Historically, the United States has been a world leader in aerospace endeavors in both the government and commercial sectors. A key factor in aerospace leadership is continuous development of advanced technology, which is critical to U.S. ambitions in space, including a human mission to Mars. To continue to achieve progress, NASA is currently executing a series of aeronautics and space technology programs using a roadmapping process to identify technology needs and improve the management of its technology development portfolio.

NASA created a set of 14 draft technology roadmaps in 2010 to guide the development of space technologies. In 2015, NASA issued a revised set of roadmaps. A significant new aspect of the update has been the effort to assess the relevance of the technologies by listing the enabling and enhancing technologies for specific design reference missions (DRMs) from the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate and the Science Mission Directorate. NASA Space Technology Roadmaps and Priorities Revisited prioritizes new technologies in the 2015 roadmaps and recommends a methodology for conducting independent reviews of future updates to NASA's space technology roadmaps, which are expected to occur every 4 years.

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