SBAG Findings
Findings from SBAG 30, January 30–February 1, 2024
- Finding #1 – SBAG urges NASA to take immediate action to ensure the long-term maintenance and expanded future capacity of the Deep Space Network.
NASA’s Deep Space Network (DSN) provides critical communications support for an increasing number of spacecraft beyond near-Earth orbit for science and exploration. As spacecraft instrument technology advances and human spaceflight to the Moon resumes, the requests for usage of this aging infrastructure and the requested uplink and downlink data volumes will grow. Yet, DSN capacity is not currently planned to increase in concert. While the Lunar Exploration Ground Sites (LEGS) facilities are expected to reduce the load on DSN from Artemis, DSN capacity is still anticipated to be insufficient compared to future demands. Additionally, deferred system maintenance for existing DSN assets poses a risk to the network's current capacity. The long-term health and capability of the DSN are critical to current and future planetary science, including small body science, and SBAG supports expanding the capabilities of this national resource as soon as possible.
- Finding #2 – SBAG advocates that NASA prioritize efforts to observe and characterize asteroid 99942 Apophis (2004 MN4) before, during, and after its April 13, 2029 close approach with the Earth, including leveraging domestic partnerships and international collaborations, along with ground-based observational campaigns, to collect pre-, during, and post-Earth encounter data to the greatest extent possible.
Apophis’ close flyby of the Earth provides a once-in-a-7,500 year naturally occurring opportunity to investigate, quantify, and understand the consequences of planetary tides on the evolution of asteroids and glean important information about Apophis’ interior structure, which is otherwise impossible to obtain. The opportunity to observe Apophis prior to this historic event is important to complement the data that will be collected by the OSIRIS-APEX spacecraft after Apophis’ close approach to Earth, thus substantially improving our understanding of asteroid dynamics and structure. Addressing these knowledge gaps is crucial for defending the Earth from a future impactor.
- Finding #3 – SBAG urges NASA to find a launch opportunity to scientifically compelling targets for the Janus mission.
NASA SMD is now in the custody of the capable Janus spacecraft pair, and it is in NASA’s hands to decide how the spacecraft, originally designed to fly by near-Earth binary asteroid systems, should be used. Janus represents an important and exciting scientific resource for our community. In addition to promising science return, Janus will demonstrate the capabilities of low-cost spacecraft for small body exploration. We urge NASA to explore all avenues for possible launch opportunities, taking advantage of already designed and built spacecraft. More broadly, we reiterate the request for NASA to communicate the criteria required for missions in storage to be returned to an active flight program status.
- Finding #4 – SBAG encourages NASA to prepare for and support international collaborations, especially through Participating Scientist Programs, with other ongoing and future international small body and planetary defense missions.
In particular, SBAG would like to see NASA participation in support of collaborations of upcoming JAXA, ESA and UAE missions such as DESTINY+, Comet Interceptor, Emirates Mission to the Asteroid Belt (EMA), and RAMSES, if the latter goes forward. SBAG is highly supportive of an equitable competed process and program to permit members of the small body community to participate in these missions.
- Finding #5 – SBAG encourages NASA to develop an opportunity within the mission program structure or planetary R&A programs to support precursor science investigations to further the understanding of critical topics in small body exploration in advance of the arrival of several small body missions at their targets.
The precursor work will provide opportunities for the community to engage with missions like Lucy, Psyche, OSIRIS-APEX, Hera, and MMX, and maximize their science return. A collaborative program, multidisciplinary in approach, would additionally reduce mission risk, inform observations, improve data analysis, and enable more in-depth interpretation of the results.
- Finding #6 – SBAG encourages NASA to release a SIMPLEx lessons learned document to the community.
SBAG supports the SIMPLEx program to provide innovative, economical, and efficient opportunities to explore small bodies, as well as integrate early career scientists into mission concepts, proposals, and flight projects. SBAG recognizes the enhanced mission risk for a SIMPLEx-class mission and acknowledges that a review of the small satellite program is underway to determine its scientific value and improve it for future opportunities. SBAG recognizes that SIMPLEx has an important place in a balanced NASA PSD portfolio, echoing the SIMPLEx finding in Origins, Worlds, and Life: A Decadal Strategy for Planetary Science and Astrobiology 2023- 2032.
- Finding #7 – SBAG urges NASA and other agencies to continue working together on a plan for new and upgraded radar facilities for planetary science to replace the loss of Arecibo considering the capability gaps and facility needs identified in the Interagency Deep Space Radar Study Report.
Currently, Goldstone and Canberra, which are part of the DSN, are the only radar facilities actively working to support planetary science and planetary defense observations. In addition, the DSN is over-subscribed with space communications demands and is scheduled to have at least one year of downtime for maintenance in the near future. The interagency radar study report considered NASA, NSF, and DoD as important stakeholders, identified a variety of needs from the different agencies, and presented a notional reference architecture for future facilities. However, following the release of the report, there is no solid plan to move forward on making upgrades or building a new facility. SBAG encourages the stakeholders to start laying out a plan, identifying all of the domestic and international partners and responsibilities, and considering broader participation from the entire planetary community to provide input for planning a future radar facility.
- Finding #8 – SBAG requests that NASA promptly conveys the New Frontiers and Discovery program opportunities, including their relative prioritization, as decisions are made.
The Decadal Survey recommends a cadence for these missions, and SBAG encourages NASA to implement this recommendation when possible. Competed mission opportunities are important for all career stages and disciplines. Therefore, SBAG encourages transparent communication about these decisions so that mission teams can optimize preparation time.
- Finding #9 – SBAG strongly advocates for NASA to continue and expand its programs for training the next-generation planetary science workforce.
Supporting early-career scientists, especially those in non-permanent positions, is vital for the field's growth. SBAG recognizes NASA’s successes in sustained programs like FINESST and NPP and recommends maintaining more recently developed training programs like PI Launchpad and Here to Explore, which enhance inclusivity and promote accessibility to missions. Additionally, SBAG supports efforts to increase diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) in the workforce, highlighting a broad concern across disciplines.
- Finding #10 – SBAG encourages NASA to continue and expand its support for open science by enhancing infrastructure, providing clear guidance on data and software archiving, and engaging the community through training and feedback opportunities.
SBAG recognizes NASA's efforts to make scientific data more accessible, particularly by transitioning archives to the cloud and supporting necessary infrastructure development. However, the community identifies a need for clearer guidance on best practices and required standards for data and software archiving and emphasizes the importance of community consensus in determining the scientific value of data. SBAG appreciates the inclusion of Open Science and Data Management Plans (OSDMP) in the merit score of proposals, and values the educational initiatives aimed at both proposers and review panels. To further advance open science, SBAG suggests that NASA facilitates more training opportunities (e.g., both in the form of workshops and online resources) to better support the transition to more open science, and requests for information and town halls to engage the community more effectively in shaping future open science strategies.