Tracking Number: 2010-02-17 (TIC-04) 


Share the Work, Share the Results 


NASA Advisory Council Recommendation: 

The Council strongly urges NASA to quickly engage with other Federal Agencies and 

Departments as it develops its new technology programs. NASA can both benefit from and 

contribute to research and development in other parts of the U.S, Government. 

Major Reasons for the Recommendation: 

NASA can both benefit from and contribute to research and development in other parts of the 

Government. The benefit will redound not just to NASA and the other agencies, but to the 

entire country. 

NASA Response: 

NASA concurs with the Council's recommendation. NASA has a strong legacy ofinteragency 

partnerships that we will build on. During the past five years, NASA has had approximately 

364 interagency partnerships with over 30 partners, about two thirds of which were 

partnerships with Department of Defense agencies. NASA's Office of the Chief Technologist 

(OCT) has actively engaged a number of Federal agencies and departments in planning and 

formulating its new Space Technology programs. To date, OCT has engaged the U.S. Defense 

Advanced Research Projects Agency, the Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy, the 

National Science Foundation, the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity, the 

Department of Defense's Director for Defense Research and Engineering, and the U,S. Air 

Force Research Laboratory. Senior, as well as working-level, discussions concerning NASA 

research and technology programs/plans and possible collaboration with these U.S. 

Government agencies are ongoing and will continue on a regular basis. Recently, NASA 

received Congressional approval to reallocate $36.5 million in FY 2010 funding to accelerate 

eight high-priority research projects. Three ofthese research and technology projects will be 

system studies conducted in collaboration with DARPA to investigate horizontal launch 

capabilities, in-orbit satellite servicing, and power-beam propulsion. Additionally, a key 

element ofthe OCT organization is the Partnerships, Innovation, and Commercial Space office. 

Building on the success ofNASA's Innovative Partnership Program, this functional element 

has the specific responsibility ofincreasing NASA's collaboration with industry, academia, and 

other Government agencies. 

NASA will also engage other U.S. Government agencies in the development ofNASA 

technology roadmaps. This integrated set oftechnology-area roadmaps are under development 

by the OCT, with the goal of providing long-term recommendations and prioritizations for the 

Agency's technology investment "pathways." The approach involves using NASA's Strategic 

Goals, Outcomes, and Objectives, as well as the strategic plans of the NASA Mission 

Directorates, with substantial inputs from other Government agencies, academia, and industry, 

Enclosure 4 
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to identify the highest-priority technology investments. NASA has engaged the NRC to 

develop technology inputs from academia, industry, and other Government agencies, and to 

conduct the formal review process of the roadmaps. The key is to ensure that these roadmaps 

have full involvement and vetting by the space technology partners and stakeholders both 

internal and external to the Government. By relying on the NRC to perform this input 

collaboration and review function, we provide for credibility and openness in this roadmapping 

process. Once established, this agency-level technology roadmap will be visited each year to 

assess performance and make mid-course corrections. In addition, these roadmaps will be fully 

revised every four years (consistent with NASA Strategic Plan updates) through a formal peerreview process. A formal release of the first complete (externally peer reviewed) version of 

this planning material will occur by October 1, 2011. 

NASA has played, and will continue to play, a significant role in interagency efforts to transfer 

technology from Federal research laboratories to the private sector. NASA is one ofthe key 

agency participants in the Federal Laboratory Consortium, a national organization chartered by 

Congress to foster technology transfer from Federal agencies to state and local governments, 

academia, and the private sector. 

NASA will also continue collaborative efforts with other Federal agencies and local 

government/economic development organizations to help make more visible the technologies 

emerging from Federal laboratories that may benefit the private sector. Recent technology 

partnership forums have included renewable energy, bioinformatics, robotic technology for first 

responders and homeland security, biomedical technology, and nanotechnology. 

A recent example of interagency partnerships is the LAUNCH initiative, which is a partnership 

between NASA, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and the State 

Department, as well as private entities. LAUNCH is a global initiative to identify and support 

the innovative work poised to contribute to a sustainable future and accelerate solutions to meet 

urgent challenges facing our society. This is achieved through a series of forums. The first 

was LAUNCH: Water in March 2010, and the next was LAUNCH: Health in October 2010.