Augustine Panel: NASA Told to Scrub Moon Missions. (October 23, 2009)

A high profile panel chaired by retired aerospace executive Norman Augustine which had released its summary conclusions on 7 September has now released the full detail (155 pages) backing up its advice.

However, it recommended that NASA should consider extending space shuttle launches into 2011 rather than in the autumn of 2010. The panel also was in favour of maintaining the international space station through 2020 or beyond. It also favours increasing support for NASA's technology programs.

According to Science's Andrew Lawler: "Augustine and Edward Crawley, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology engineer and panel member, said that NASA instead [of moving ahead with a government-built Ares-1 rocket with a capsule on top called the Orion] might rope in private industry for a joint effort to build a less ambitious vehicle that could be ready by 2016—rather than 2017 or later than Ares is likely to fly. That cheaper rocket could take astronauts to the space station well before its demise, which now is slated for 2016." And they also "expressed their interest in bypassing a landing on the moon—the destination set by U.S. President George W. Bush in 2004—in favor of a lunar flyby or rendezvous with an asteroid or Martian moon."

The White house is not prepared to comment on the report at this time, but there is expectation that it will announce its reaction sometime early in the new year.

ScienceNow makes the observation:

The President has on numerous occasions confirmed his commitment to human space exploration, and the goal of ensuring that the nation is on a vigorous and sustainable path to achieving our boldest aspirations in space. Against a backdrop of serious challenges with the existing program, the Augustine Committee has offered several key findings and a range of options for how the nation might improve its future human space flight activities. We will be reviewing the Committee's analysis, and then ultimately the President will be making the final decisions.