Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 71 / Wednesday, April 13, 2011 / Notices 20715 

1The 60-day notice included the following 

estimate of the aggregate burden hours for this 

generic clearance federal-wide: 

Average Expected Annual Number of Activities: 

25,000. 

Average Number of Respondents per Activity: 

200. 

Annual Responses: 5,000,000. 

Frequency of Response: Once per request. 

Average Minutes per Response: 30. 

Burden Hours: 2,500,000. 

qualitative feedback we mean 

information that provides useful 

insights on perceptions and opinions, 

but are not statistical surveys that yield 

quantitative results that can be 

generalized to the population of study. 

This feedback will provide insights into 

customer or stakeholder perceptions, 

experiences and expectations, provide 

an early warning of issues with service, 

or focus attention on areas where 

communication, training or changes in 

operations might improve delivery of 

products or services. These collections 

will allow for ongoing, collaborative and 

actionable communications between the 

Agency and its customers and 

stakeholders. It will also allow feedback 

to contribute directly to the 

improvement of program management. 

Feedback collected under this generic 

clearance will provide useful 

information, but it will not yield data 

that can be generalized to the overall 

population. This type of generic 

clearance for qualitative information 

will not be used for quantitative 

information collections that are 

designed to yield reliably actionable 

results, such as monitoring trends over 

time or documenting program 

performance. Such data uses require 

more rigorous designs that address: The 

target population to which 

generalizations will be made, the 

sampling frame, the sample design 

(including stratification and clustering), 

the precision requirements or power 

calculations that justify the proposed 

sample size, the expected response rate, 

methods for assessing potential nonresponse bias, the protocols for data 

collection, and any testing procedures 

that were or will be undertaken prior to 

fielding the study. Depending on the 

degree of influence the results are likely 

to have, such collections may still be 

eligible for submission for other generic 

mechanisms that are designed to yield 

quantitative results. 

The Agency received no comments in 

response to the 60-day notice published 

in the Federal Register of December 22, 

2010 (75 FR 80542). 

Below we provide NASA 

Headquarters projected average 

estimates for the next three years: 1

Current Actions: New collection of 

information. 

Type of Review: New Collection. 

Affected Public: Individuals and 

Households, Businesses and 

Organizations, State, Local or Tribal 

Government. 

Average Expected Annual Number of 

Activities: 1,000. 

Respondents: 200,000 annually. 

Annual Responses: 200,000. 

Frequency of Response: Once per 

request. 

Average Minutes per Response: 15 

minutes. 

Burden Hours: 50,000 hours (over 

three years). 

An agency may not conduct or 

sponsor, and a person is not required to 

respond to, a collection of information 

unless it displays a currently valid 

Office of Management and Budget 

control number. 

Fran Teel, 

Acting NASA Clearance Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2011–8761 Filed 4–12–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7510–13–P 

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND 

SPACE ADMINISTRATION 

[Notice (11–034)] 

National Environmental Policy Act; 

Sounding Rockets Program; Poker Flat 

Research Range 

AGENCY: National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration. 

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an 

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 

and to conduct scoping for continuing 

sounding rocket operations at Poker Flat 

Research Range (PFRR), Alaska. 

SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National 

Environmental Policy Act, as amended, 

(NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the 

Council on Environmental Quality 

Regulations for Implementing the 

Procedural Provisions of NEPA (40 CFR 

parts 1500–1508), and NASA’s NEPA 

policy and procedures (14 CFR part 

1216, subpart 1216.3), NASA intends to 

prepare an EIS for its continued use of 

the University of Alaska-Fairbanks 

(UAF) owned and managed PFRR, 

outside of Fairbanks, Alaska. The U.S. 

Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), 

Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and 

UAF will serve as Cooperating Agencies 

as they possess both regulatory 

authority and specialized expertise 

regarding the Proposed Action that will 

be the subject of the EIS. 

The purpose of this notice is to 

apprise interested agencies, 

organizations, tribal governments, and 

individuals of NASA’s intent to prepare 

the EIS and to request input regarding 

the definition of reasonable alternatives 

and significant environmental issues to 

be evaluated in the EIS. 

In cooperation with BLM, UAF, and 

USFWS, NASA will hold public scoping 

meetings as part of the NEPA process 

associated with the development of the 

EIS. The scoping meeting locations and 

dates identified at this time are 

provided under SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION below. 

DATES: Interested parties are invited to 

submit comments on environmental 

issues and concerns, preferably in 

writing, on or before June 1, 2011, to 

assure full consideration during the 

scoping process. 

ADDRESSES: Comments submitted by 

mail should be addressed to Joshua 

Bundick, Manager, Poker Flat Research 

Range EIS, NASA Goddard Space Flight 

Center’s Wallops Flight Facility, 

Wallops Island, Virginia 23337. 

Comments may be submitted via e-mail 

to Joshua.A.Bundick@nasa.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Joshua Bundick, Manager, Poker Flat 

Research Range EIS, NASA Wallops 

Flight Facility, Wallops Island, Virginia 

23337; telephone (757) 824–2319; 

e-mail: Joshua.A.Bundick@nasa.gov. 

Additional information about NASA’s 

Sounding Rocket Program (SRP) and the 

University of Alaska-Fairbanks’ PFRR 

may be found on the internet at http:// 

sites.wff.nasa.gov/code810 and http:// 

www.pfrr.alaska.edu, respectively. 

Information regarding the NEPA process 

for this proposal and supporting 

documents (as available) are located at 

http://sites.wff.nasa.gov/code250/ 

pfrr_eis.html. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Programmatic Background 

NASA’s SRP, based at the Goddard 

Space Flight Center’s Wallops Flight 

Facility (WFF), supports the NASA 

Science Mission Directorate’s strategic 

vision and goals for understanding the 

phenomena affecting the past, present, 

and future of Earth and the solar system 

and supports the Agency’s educational 

mission. The suborbital missions 

enabled by the SRP provide researchers 

with opportunities to build, test, and fly 

new instrument concepts while 

simultaneously conducting world class 

scientific research. With its hands-on 

approach to mission formulation and 

execution, the SRP also helps ensure 

that the next generation of space 

scientists receives the training and 

experience necessary to move on to 

NASA’s larger, more complex missions. 

mstockstill on DSKH9S0YB1PROD with NOTICES

20716 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 71 / Wednesday, April 13, 2011 / Notices 

Launch Sites 

Sounding rockets can be launched 

from permanently established ranges or 

from temporary launch sites using 

NASA’s mobile range assets. Permanent 

ranges include WFF in Wallops Island, 

Virginia; PFRR near Fairbanks, Alaska; 

White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) in 

White Sands, New Mexico; Kwajalein 

Island, Marshall Islands Republic; 

Esrange, Kiruna, Sweden; and the 

Norwegian Rocket Range, And<ya, 

Norway. In the past, temporary launch 

sites have included Australia, Brazil, 

Greenland, and Puerto Rico. The 

majority of sounding rocket launches 

occur at WSMR, WFF, and PFRR. 

Where the SRP conducts its work is 

highly dependent on the scientific goals 

of each mission. For example, if 

equatorial phenomena must be 

observed, a site such as Brazil is used. 

For middle latitudes, Wallops Island, 

Virginia, or White Sands, New Mexico, 

are selected. If the aurora borealis must 

be observed, a northern latitude is 

required, such as at PFRR. 

PFRR Background 

The PFRR, located northeast of the 

unincorporated village of Chatanika, 

Alaska, consists of approximately 2,100 

hectares (5,200 acres) of land that house 

rocket and payload support facilities, 

launch pads, and tracking 

infrastructure. Since the late 1960s, 

NASA, other government agencies, and 

educational institutions have supported 

suborbital rocket launches from the 

PFRR. While the PFRR is owned and 

managed by the Geophysical Institute of 

UAF, the NASA SRP has exclusively 

funded and managed the support 

contract with PFRR for more than 25 

years. 

The northern location of the PFRR is 

strategic for launching sounding rockets 

for scientific research in auroral space 

physics and earth science. The PFRR is 

the only high-latitude, auroral-zone 

rocket launching facility in the United 

States where a sounding rocket can 

readily study the aurora borealis and the 

sun–Earth connection. Recent Earth 

science-based missions have furthered 

the understanding of ozone depleting 

substances in the upper atmosphere. 

Such studies are critical for the 

continual refinement of theories and 

research on the topics of ozone 

depletion, global warming, and climate 

change. Recent space physics-focused 

missions have measured the upper 

atmospheric winds and auroras in the 

ionosphere. The information collected 

further assists the nation’s scientists in 

understanding the interactions between 

the sun and Earth as well as the origin 

and evolution of the solar system. 

Technology development and validation 

enabled by the SRP at the PFRR is 

critical in furthering the development of 

Earth and space science instruments at 

a fraction of the size and cost that would 

result from using other launch methods. 

The PFRR facility also supports 

educational outreach programs where 

students and scientists from various 

universities are able to conduct 

aeronautics and space research. 

Additionally, from an operational 

perspective, PFRR is an ideal location 

for sounding rocket missions. Directly 

north (downrange) from the launch site 

are vast areas of open, very sparsely 

populated lands of interior Alaska and 

the Arctic Ocean to the extreme north. 

Having the ability to launch rockets over 

such a vast area with very low 

population density is critical to 

ensuring public safety. 

Existing SRP NEPA Documents and 

Context 

In 2000, NASA published a Final 

Supplemental EIS (FSEIS) for the SRP. 

The 2000 FSEIS considered SRP 

operations at a programmatic level and 

expanded upon the original SRP EIS 

prepared in 1973, to include multiple 

launch sites, new launch vehicles, and 

updated environmental conditions. In 

its Record of Decision for the 2000 

FSEIS, NASA decided to continue SRP 

operations at its current level of effort at 

all launch sites, including PFRR. Since 

then, NASA has launched 

approximately four (4) sounding rockets 

annually from PFRR primarily during 

the winter months. It is expected that 

this launch rate at PFRR would continue 

to satisfy NASA’s needs into the 

reasonably foreseeable future. 

NASA recently reviewed its 2000 SRP 

FSEIS and determined that the overall 

environmental analysis in the 2000 SRP 

FSEIS remains sufficient to support the 

Agency’s broad programmatic decision 

to continue the SRP, however potential 

changes in both PFRR operations and 

the environmental context of the launch 

corridor north of PFRR warrant 

preparation of additional PFRR-specific 

environmental analysis to better inform 

Agency decisions regarding PFRR. For 

example, PFRR is now considering a 

more rigorous rocket and payload 

recovery process. Additionally, a large 

portion of downrange lands are 

undergoing wilderness review, which 

could ultimately affect how rocket and 

payload recoveries are handled. 

Accordingly, NASA began the 

preparation of an Environmental 

Assessment to determine if those 

changes presented potentially a 

significant impact necessitating an EIS. 

During the scoping process for the EA 

in the fall of 2010, NASA solicited input 

from over 75 potentially interested 

agencies and organizations. A number of 

conservation organizations expressed 

concern regarding NASA’s continued 

operations at PFRR and requested that a 

more detailed assessment be performed. 

As such, NASA decided that an EIS 

would be the most appropriate level of 

NEPA documentation for the proposal. 

The subject EIS will tier from the 

programmatic 2000 FSEIS and provide a 

focused analysis of SRP operations at 

PFRR. 

Cooperating Agency Actions 

The PFRR EIS will serve as a 

decision-making tool not only for NASA 

but also for its two Federal Cooperating 

Agencies, BLM and USFWS. Directly 

north of the PFRR facility are its 

downrange flight zones, over which 

rockets are launched and within which 

spent stages and payloads impact the 

ground. Within these flight zones are 

landmasses owned or managed by 

several Federal, State and Native 

Alaskan organizations, including the 

USFWS, BLM, Alaska Department of 

Natural Resources, Doyon Regional 

Corporation, and the Native Village of 

Venetie Tribal Government. More 

specifically, the subject Federal lands 

within the PFRR flight corridor are 

BLM’s North Steese Conservation Area 

and White Mountain National 

Recreational Area, and the UFWSmanaged Arctic and Yukon Flats 

National Wildlife Refuges (NWRs). 

Historically, the managing entities have 

issued UAF annual or multi-year 

special-use authorizations and 

agreements for impact of rockets and 

recovery operations on these lands. 

BLM and USFWS are currently 

considering if and how future 

authorizations for rocket landing and 

recovery would be issued for the 

properties under their management. 

Additionally, both agencies are 

currently preparing long-term 

management plans for their respective 

landholdings. BLM is currently drafting 

its Eastern Interior Resource 

Management Plan; Arctic NWR is 

currently updating its Comprehensive 

Conservation Plan (CCP); and the 

revision of the Yukon Flats NWR CCP 

is expected to begin within the next two 

years. The results of these planning 

processes will play a significant role in 

how future launches from PFRR would 

occur. As such, the PFRR EIS will 

consider the effects of each agency’s 

respective permitting actions within the 

context of their long-term management 

objectives. 

mstockstill on DSKH9S0YB1PROD with NOTICES

Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 71 / Wednesday, April 13, 2011 / Notices 20717 

Alternatives 

The EIS will consider a range of 

alternatives that meet NASA’s needs for 

obtaining the requisite earth and space 

science data afforded by high-latitude 

sounding rocket launches in support of 

both NASA’s science and educational 

missions. 

Alternatives currently being 

considered for evaluation in the EIS 

include: 

• Continuing the SRP in its present 

form and at the current level of effort; 

• Continuing SRP launches from 

PFRR within the existing flight zones 

with differing requirements for 

identification and recovery of spent 

stages and payloads; 

• Modifying the trajectories of the 

existing flight zones; and 

• Conducting a subset of launches at 

other high-latitude launch sites, thereby 

avoiding the federally-managed lands. 

The No Action Alternative is to 

discontinue sounding rocket launches 

from PFRR. NASA anticipates that the 

areas of potential environmental impact 

from each alternative of most interest to 

the public will be: The effects of rocket 

and payload landing and recovery on 

special interest lands (including 

Wilderness Areas and Wild Rivers), 

considerations to ensure public safety 

during rocket flight, and potential 

effects on subsistence uses on lands 

within the flight zones. 

Scoping Meetings 

NASA and its Cooperating Agencies 

plan to hold three public scoping 

meetings to provide information on the 

PFRR EIS and to solicit public 

comments regarding environmental 

concerns and alternatives to be 

considered in the EIS. The public 

scoping meetings are scheduled as 

follows: 

—Friday, April 29, 2011, at the Tribal 

Hall, Third and Alder Streets, Fort 

Yukon, Alaska, 1 p.m.–4 p.m. 

—Monday, May 2, 2011, at the 

University of Alaska-Fairbanks, 

William R. Wood Student Center, 

505 South Chandalar Drive, 

Fairbanks, Alaska, 2 p.m.–4 p.m. 

—Monday, May 2, 2011, at the Pioneer 

Park, Blue Room, 2300 Airport 

Way, Fairbanks, Alaska, 6 p.m.–8 

p.m. 

—Tuesday, May 3, 2011, at the United 

States Fish and Wildlife Service 

Alaska Regional Office, Gordon 

Watson Conference Room, 1011 

East Tudor Road, Anchorage, 

Alaska, 2 p.m.–4 p.m. and 6 p.m.– 

8 p.m. 

As the EIS is prepared, the public will 

be provided several opportunities for 

involvement, the first of which is during 

scoping. Even if an interested party does 

not have input at this time, other 

avenues, including reviews of the Draft 

and Final EIS, will be offered in the 

future. The availability of these 

documents will be published in the 

Federal Register and through local news 

media to ensure that all members of the 

public have the ability to actively 

participate in the NEPA process. 

In conclusion, written public input on 

alternatives and environmental issues 

and concerns associated with NASA’s 

SRP launches at PFRR that should be 

addressed in the EIS are hereby 

requested. 

Olga M. Dominguez, 

Assistant Administrator, Office of Strategic 

Infrastructure. 

[FR Doc. 2011–8844 Filed 4–12–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7510–13–P 

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND 

SPACE ADMINISTRATION 

[Notice: (11–035)] 

NASA Advisory Council; Space 

Operations Committee; Meeting. 

AGENCY: National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration. 

ACTION: Notice of meeting. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public 

Law 92–463, as amended, the National 

Aeronautics and Space Administration 

announces a meeting of the NASA 

Advisory Council (NAC) Space 

Operations Committee. 

DATES: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 8 a.m.–2 

p.m. local time. 

ADDRESSES: Doubletree Hotel, 2080 

North Atlantic Ave, Cocoa Beach, FL 

32931. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Jacob Keaton, NAC Space Operations 

Committee Executive Secretary, 

National Aeronautics and Space 

Administration Headquarters, 

Washington, DC 20546, 202/358–1507, 

jacob.keaton@nasa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

agenda for the meeting includes the 

following topics: 

—Space Operations Mission Directorate 

FY2012 Budget. 

—Commercial Crew Development 

Program status. 

—Commercial Orbital Transportation 

System status. 

—21st Century Launch Complex status. 

—Recommendation preparation and 

discussion. 

The meeting will be open to the 

public up to the seating capacity of the 

room. It is imperative that the meeting 

be held on this date to accommodate the 

scheduling priorities of the key 

participants. 

P. Diane Rausch, 

Advisory Committee Management Officer, 

National Aeronautics and Space 

Administration. 

[FR Doc. 2011–8845 Filed 4–12–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7510–13–P 

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND 

SPACE ADMINISTRATION 

[Notice: (11–036)] 

NASA Advisory Council; Audit, 

Finance and Analysis Committee; 

Meeting 

AGENCY: National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration. 

ACTION: Notice of meeting. 

SUMMARY: In accordance with the 

Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public 

Law 92–463, as amended, the National 

Aeronautics and Space Administration 

announces a meeting of the Audit, 

Finance and Analysis Committee of the 

NASA Advisory Council. 

DATES: Tuesday, May 3, 2011, 9 a.m.– 

11:45 a.m., Local Time. 

ADDRESSES: NASA Headquarters, 

Conference Room 8D48, 300 E Street, 

SW., Washington, DC 20546. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Charlene Williams, Office of the Chief 

Financial Officer, National Aeronautics 

and Space Administration 

Headquarters, Washington, DC 20546, 

Phone: 202–358–2183, fax: 202–358– 

4336. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

agenda for the meeting includes the 

following topics: 

• Overview of the GAO Quick Look 

Book. 

• Overview of the NASA Strategic 

Plan. 

• Committee Discussion. 

The meeting will be open to the public 

up to the seating capacity of the room. 

It is imperative that the meeting be held 

on this date to accommodate the 

scheduling priorities of the key 

participants. Visitors will need to show 

a valid picture identification such as a 

driver’s license to enter the NASA 

Headquarters building (West Lobby— 

Visitor Control Center), and must state 

that they are attending the Audit, 

Finance, and Analysis Committee 

meeting in room 8D48 before receiving 

an access badge. All non-U.S. citizens 

mstockstill on DSKH9S0YB1PROD with NOTICES