On Robotic Lunar Precursor Missions of the Office of Exploration

On August 21, 1992, Space Studies Board Chair Louis J. Lanzerotti and Committee on Planetary and Lunar Exploration Chair Larry Esposito sent the following letter to Dr. Michael D. Griffin, associate administrator for NASA's Office of Exploration.

As you know, the Space Studies Board is the National Research Council's primary advisory body for civil space research. 1 Within this broad scope, the charter of the Board's Committee on Planetary and Lunar Exploration (COMPLEX) is to advise the Board on "the entire range of planetary system studies that can be conducted from space." 2 This advisory purview extends across the entire spectrum of U.S. space research conducted by both "NASA and other government agencies." 3 COMPLEX's advisory capacity thus includes planetary science aspects of the Space Exploration Initiative (SEI) being implemented by NASA's Office of Exploration (OEXP).

At COMPLEX's April 27-28, 1992, meeting in Washington, D.C., you briefed committee members on the report, Workshop on Early Robotic Missions to the Moon, 4 sponsored by your office, and on the current status of OEXP's lunar exploration program. The attached scientific assessment, prepared by COMPLEX based on information provided during this meeting, gauges the extent to which the flight program outlined in the LPI report addresses the recommendations that COMPLEX has made on priorities for lunar science.

In your presentation to COMPLEX, you noted that the federal budget development schedule obliged OEXP to initiate a rapid assessment of the possible instruments for its proposed lunar orbiters and lander, precluding a more widely publicized and more formally peer-reviewed instrument evaluation. The Board notes that a broadly based selection process that includes peer review has served the science community very well in the past; it has helped NASA accomplish its goals, while assuring fair competition and the best possible science. As a result, although the Board and committee appreciate your efforts to act expeditiously and streamline the procurement process, it is recommended that future OEXP review and selection processes promote and actively facilitate the widest possible community participation.

Overall, COMPLEX's assessment suggests that the program of robotic lunar exploration that the committee reviewed presents a significant opportunity to advance scientific investigation of the Moon. It is emphasized that the committee's assessment is limited to these lunar science objectives and does not consider the separate issue of the adequacy of data from the proposed flight program to support a subsequent program of human exploration. The Board and COMPLEX look forward to providing further guidance on scientific aspects of the SEI on a continuing basis.

1 National Academy of Sciences President Detlev Bronk, June 26, 1958.

2 Assessment of Solar System Exploration Programs: 1991, Committee on Planetary and Lunar Exploration, Space Studies Board, National Academy Press, Washington, D.C., 1991, page 3.

3 Reference 2, page 3.

4 Workshop on Early Robotic Missions to the Moon, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston, Texas, February 1992; proceedings of a workshop organized by NASA's Office of Exploration.

Scientific Assessment of Proposed Robotic Lunar Missions of NASA's Office of Exploration