I 
112TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1641 
To direct the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to plan to 
return to the Moon and develop a sustained human presence on the Moon. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 15, 2011 
Mr. POSEY (for himself, Ms. JACKSON LEE of Texas, Mr. WOLF, Mr. BISHOP 
of Utah, and Mr. OLSON) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 
A BILL 
To direct the National Aeronautics and Space Administration 
to plan to return to the Moon and develop a sustained 
human presence on the Moon. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Reasserting American 
Leadership in Space Act’’ or the ‘‘REAL Space Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) The 109th Congress passed the National 
Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization 
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Act of 2005 overwhelmingly, establishing as the Na-
tional Aeronautics and Space Administration’s pri-
ority human space flight goal: ‘‘To develop a sus-
tained human presence on the Moon . . . to promote 
exploration, commerce, science, and United States 
preeminence in space as a stepping stone for the fu-
ture exploration of Mars and other destinations.’’. 
(2) The 110th Congress overwhelmingly re-
affirmed the vision of returning to the Moon as an 
integral part of exploring further into our solar sys-
tem through the passage of the National Aero-
nautics and Space Administration Authorization Act 
of 2008, expressing support for ‘‘the broad goals of 
the space exploration policy of the United States, in-
cluding the eventual return to and exploration of the 
Moon and other destinations in the solar system and 
the important national imperative of independent ac-
cess to space’’. 
(3) The 111th Congress, in the National Aero-
nautics and Space Administration Authorization Act 
of 2010, called for the development of a heavy lift 
capability of greater than 130 metric tons consisting 
of the Space Launch System (SLS) and Multi-Pur-
pose Crew Vehicle (MPCV) to pursue exploration, 
yet fell short on explicitly stating a clear destination. 
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(4) The 112th Congress has reaffirmed this 
commitment to the development of a heavy lift capa-
bility. 
(5) A sustained human presence on the Moon 
will allow astronauts and researchers the oppor-
tunity to leverage new technologies in addressing the 
challenges of sustaining life on another celestial 
body, lessons which are necessary and applicable as 
we explore further into our solar system, to Mars 
and beyond. 
(6) A sustained human presence on the Moon 
would once again inspire and engage public interest 
in our space program, motivating young people to 
excel in the vital subjects of math and science, sub-
jects in which American students lag behind our 
international competitors. 
(7) A sustained human presence on the Moon 
would challenge American industry to continue to 
develop technologies that not only enhance our ex-
ploration programs but can be applied across all dis-
ciplines of science. 
(8) The commercial applications of space tech-
nologies have had tens of billions of dollars in eco-
nomic impact, including products from semiconduc-
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