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Augustine Committee

{{Short description|Group established by Dan Quayle to study US human spaceflight's future}}

{{For|the 2009 committee|Review of United States Human Space Flight Plans Committee}}

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The Advisory Committee on the Future of the United States Space Program, commonly known as the Augustine Committee, was a 1990 space policy group requested by Vice President Dan Quayle, chairman of the National Space Council. The objective of the committee was to evaluate the long-term future of NASA and the United States civilian space program.{{Cite web|author=Warren E. Leary|author-link=Warren Leary|title=White House Orders Review of NASA Goals|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/07/17/science/white-house-orders-review-of-nasa-goals.html|date=July 17, 1990|work=The New York Times|access-date=June 23, 2009}} The committee's final report (known as the Augustine Report) recommended that the space program should comprise five activities—space science, Earth science, human spaceflight, space technology and space transportation—with space science as the highest priority for funding. It also proposed an unmanned launch vehicle to replace some Space Shuttle launches, and a scaled-back redesign of space station Freedom.{{Cite web|author=Warren E. Leary|author-link=Warren Leary|title=U.S. Advisers Urge Sweeping Change In Space Program|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/12/11/us/us-advisers-urge-sweeping-change-in-space-program.html|date=December 11, 1990|work=The New York Times|access-date=June 23, 2009}}

Original recommendations

In its original report, the committee ranked five space activities in order of priority:

  1. Space science
  2. Technology development
  3. Earth science
  4. Unmanned launch vehicle
  5. Human spaceflight

At a dinner with Vice President Quayle and committee members, Office of Management and Budget director Richard Darman argued that the low priority projects would be eliminated during the budget process. The committee members decided to change their report. Space science was still given first priority, but the other activities were assigned equal priority behind space science.{{Cite web|author=Thor Hogan|author-link=Thor Hogan|title=The Augustine and Synthesis Group Reports|url=https://history.nasa.gov/sp4410.pdf|date=May 2007|work=Mars Wars: The Rise and Fall of the Space Exploration Initiative|publisher=NASA|access-date=June 23, 2009| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090625091639/https://history.nasa.gov/sp4410.pdf| archive-date= 25 June 2009 | url-status= live}}

After discussing the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster the executive summary of the committee's report recommended, "saving the Space Shuttle for those missions requiring human presence."

Members

The committee had twelve members in total, with one chairman and one vice chairman.{{Cite web|author=Warren E. Leary|author-link=Warren Leary|title=Panel Named for NASA Review|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/08/03/us/panel-named-for-nasa-review.html|date=August 3, 1990|work=The New York Times|access-date=June 23, 2009}}

See also

References

{{Reflist}}

External links

  • [https://history.nasa.gov/augustine/racfup1.htm Report of the Advisory Committee on the Future of the U.S. Space Program] NASA History Division
  • [http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/augustin.html Principal Recommendations of the Augustine Commission, 1990] NASA Public Affairs Office

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Category:NASA oversight

Category:Reports of the United States government

Category:Space policy of the United States

Category:United States national commissions

Category:Augustine studies