The committee deliberating NASA's future has outlined seven possible scenarios to shape US space operations for the coming decade. The ten-person panel, chaired by Norman Augustine, retired head of aerospace giant Lockheed Martin, set out its choices in a public meeting in Washington DC on 5 August.
Five of the seven scenarios would extend the life of the International Space Station by five years to 2020; three could allow the space shuttle to continue past 2011; but only two spell out a future for Ares I, the rocket being built to replace the shuttle as the main way of getting astronauts into space.
The number of options presented to the president — whose administration has called for a reduced NASA budget — may change between now and 31 August, when the panel will deliver its final report.
Additional information
Click here for a longer version of this story.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Presidential panel lays out options for NASA's future. Nature 460, 791 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/460791b
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/460791b