-
The revised Plan should include an explicit, comprehensive description of the process for applying the science priority criteria to both the detailed science questions and the mission concepts.
In the committee's view, strategic issues cannot be discussed in isolation from implementation issues. Consequently, the committee offers the following recommendations for broadening the Plan and making the next version even more useful to NASA, the USGCRP, and the community by adding a discussion of key strategic elements. The following recommendations concern the strategy aspects of the Plan:
-
NASA should develop a shorter but more inclusive stand-alone strategic plan that describes ESE's process for setting scientific and technical priorities and for ensuring that the important Earth science questions are answered. NASA should view the Earth Science Enterprise Research Strategy as a living document, to be updated internally every year and released for public comment and review every 3 to 5 years.
-
The revised Plan should include matrices that map the detailed science questions to measurement parameters, implementation procedures, models, calibration/validation/verification requirements, and potential partners.
-
The revised Plan should describe how NASA will ensure the continuity of key variables from the EOS era through the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) era. The Plan should describe NASA's role in the implementation of NPOESS and other bridging observing systems, including (1) maintaining and supporting new research-quality calibrated data, (2) producing advanced biogeophysical algorithms, and (3) supporting the relevant research.
-
The revised Plan should describe how NASA will develop strategies for delivering data and information to the broader scientific community and other users of scientific data, particularly in the post-Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS) era.
-
The revised Plan should explicitly discuss the framework for the development of partnerships (national, international, and commercial) that are necessary for the ESE's scientific objectives to be realized.
-
In the process of developing its Plan, NASA should consult with other agencies (national and foreign) and the research community to define specific roles and responsibilities, define platforms (underwater, surface, air, and space), and obtain appropriate and necessary commitments.
III. THE PRIMARY SCIENCE ISSUES
The primary science issues identified in the ESE's current strategy are listed in Table 2. These issues reflect in part the current research program in the Earth Science Enterprise (see Table 1).
