NASA Advisory Council Recommendation 

Planetary Science Subcommittee Analysis Groups 

2011-03-03 (SC-03) 

Recommendation: 

NASA should revise the Tenns ofReference (TOR) for the Lunar Exploration Analysis Group 


(LEAG), Mars Exploration Analysis Group (MEPAG), and the Small Bodies Assessment 


Group (SBAG) to reflect the recommendations contained in the Task Group ofthe NASA 


Advisory Council (NAC) Science Committee (TagAG) final report. Specifically: 


I) 	 Add explicit tasking authority for the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD) 

and relevant Committees of the NAC; 

2) 	 Add language concerning appointment ofthe Chair (and in the case ofLEAG, CoChairs) that has appointment made by the Associate Administrator (AA) for Science 

after consultation with the AA for Exploration Systems; 

3) Update language to capture revisions in the topic areas covered by the respective 

Analysis Groups; 

4) Acknowledge the uniqueness ofLEAG by: 

a. 	 Establishing a LEAG Co-Chair for Science (appointed by the AA for Science 

after consultation with AA for Exploration Systems), who would replace the 

current LEAG Chair as a member ofthe NAC Science Committee's Planetary 

Science Subcommittee. 

b. 	 Establishing a LEAG Co-Chair for Exploration (appointed by AA for 

Exploration Systems after consultation with AA for Science) who would be 

added to the membership of the NAC Exploration Committee; and, 

c. 	 Incorporating language that the LEAG Executive Secretary should be appointed 

by the AA for Science after consultation with AA for Exploration Systems; 

5) 	 Refine the wording concerning the role ofthe Designated Federal Official 

(DFO)lExecutive Secretary to ensure consistency with the Federal Advisory Committee 

Act (F ACA) Final Rule and NASA Policy, while recognizing the value of a close 

working relationship between the Executive Secretary and the Chair. 

Major Reasons for the Recommendation: 

These recommended changes would update the three relevant Planetary Science Subcommittee 

Analysis Groups so that they can more directly provide analysis not only to the Science 

Mission Directorate (SMD), but also to the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD) 

for integration of science into its exploration mission objectives. 

Enclosure 
2 

Consequences of No Action on the Recommendation: 


ESMD is left without a clear and direct mechanism for tasking the three relevant Planetary 


Science Subcommittee Analysis Groups that cover targets of interest to ESMD, namely, LEAG 


(Moon), MEPAG (Mars), and SBAG (asteroids). 


NASA Response: 


NASA does not concur with this recommendation. Its implementation would establish 


Planetary Analysis Groups (PAGs) as an advisory group related to the NASA Advisory 


Council and subject to the provisions ofthe Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA). The 


NASA Administrator has directed that the PAGs remain separate from the NASA Advisory 


Council and its Committees. As such, PAGs will not provide advice to the Agency but may 


continue as analysis groups, and the provisions of FACA do not apply. In response to the 


recommendation of having the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (now subsumed into 


the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate (HEOMD)) having a direct 


mechanism for tasking the PAGs, NASA will make no changes to the Terms of Reference, 


since HEOMD already has the ability to task the PAGs.