Dana J. Johnson

Analyzes the nation's aeronautic testing needs and the effectiveness of and management issues for, NASA's major wind tunnel and test propulsion facilities in serving those needs. The National Aeronautics and Space Adrninistration's (NASA's) wind tunnel and propulsion test facilities continue to be important to U.S. competitiveness across the military, commercial, and space sectors. Unfortunately, managemen tissues are creating real risks to these facilities. NASA needs to develop an aeronautics test technology vision and plan; analyze the viability of a national test facility plan; identify and maintain its minimum set of facilities; and identify financial shared support to keep its underutilized but essential facilities from entering financial collapse.

Space weapons have been debated intensely in the past. The latest instance of prominent debate is over their use for ballistic missile defense. But this is not the only possible role for space weapons, and that fact raises a further concern: What if an adversary were to develop such weapons? Could one? Why would it? It is time for broader public discussion of the issues. Before deciding to acquire or forgo space weapons for terrestrial confict, the United States should fully discuss what such weapons can do, what they will cost, and the likely consequences of acquiring them. The authors of this report seek to aid this discussion not by arguing for or against space weapons but by describing their attributes, classifying and comparing them, and explaining how each might be used. The authors also explore how a nation might decide to acquire such weapons and how other nations might react.

This report examines five ways to conduct space system acquisition in an interagency setting: executing agent; system integrator; independent agent; confederation; and joint programme office. It analyzes key elements inherent to interagency acquisition, including acquisition complexity, programme management, programme control, requirements management, funding stability, customer responsiveness, cultural alignment, and staffing.