Not all aspects of life and microgravity sciences research require a space-based environment. Developing a Larger Research Community Will Require Adjusting Funding Priorities

NASA intends to build a space station-era research community from the ground up. A NASA official estimates that the number of ground-based microgravity researchers needs to increase from 73 to 240 between fiscal years 1992 and 1998. Although this approach appears reasonable, the planned funding levels do not match the program’s objective, and funding priorities may need to be reassessed if the number of life and microgravity ground-based investigators is to be significantly increased. Selecting IML-2 Investigators Illustrated Two Basic Approaches for Developing Research Community

In recent years, NASA has used two approaches for developing life and microgravity science research communities—“select for flight” or “select for science.” In the select-for-flight approach, all of the U.S. life science and most of the U.S. microgravity investigators on IML-2 were selected from proposals submitted in response to flight-related announcements. A NASA microgravity research official estimates that NASA will need to fund about 240 ground-based investigators to support a station-based microgravity sciences research program. Ground-based research is funded from NASA’s research and analysis budget. However, NASA does not anticipate that this budget will increase for fiscal years 1995 through 1999. Based on the Committee’s direction, NASA requires that all research proposals be reviewed by peers for scientific merit and relevance (previously, some life science research conducted by NASA scientists was not subject to peer review); all research be reviewed by peers at least every 3 years; all research be reviewed for progress annually and for the performance of its objectives at least every 3 years; peer review be performed by the best-qualified individuals available in the peer review scores provided by external peer review groups be critical factors determining the priority for initial and continued funding of research projects and programs. Assessing the Impact of Canceled Spacelab Flight on the Research Community

NASA’s efforts to develop a research community are not likely to be adversely affected by the February 1994 cancellation of SLS-3. The U.S. principal investigators on the Spacelab flight stated that they will be able to meet their experiment objectives on other missions, including multiple Shuttle flights to Mir. Experiment Quality Assurance Procedures

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) guiding principle for quality assurance is periodic review over the lifetime of an experiment.
Why GAO Did This Study

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) efforts to develop a robust life and microgravity sciences research community for the space station, focusing on: (1) what NASA is doing to assess the required size of the research community needed for the space station and to ensure that such a community will be available; (2) how NASA will ensure that the research selected for the space station will be the best possible; and (3) whether the recently cancelled shuttle research flight adversely affected NASA efforts to develop a research community for the space station.

What GAO Found

GAO found that: (1) NASA is focusing on developing a comprehensive research program that emphasizes more ground-based research and uses space flight only for research efforts that require a microgravity environment in space; (2) NASA wants to greatly increase the number of ground-based investigators to accomplish this program; (3) the science-oriented approach is reasonable, but funding levels could jeopardize it unless NASA adjusts its funding priorities so, to achieve its goal, NASA will need to increase funding for life and microgravity sciences research and analysis from fiscal years 1995 through 1999; (4) if NASA funding remains at expected levels, a smaller than desired number of ground investigators in the ground-based research program will be selected; (4) although peer review panels and NASA sometimes disagree on the scientific merit and relevance of NASA funding proposals, NASA funding decisions were generally consistent with the recommendations of the peer review panels; and (5) NASA efforts to increase the size of its life and microgravity sciences research community are not likely to be adversely affected by the cancellation of the third Spacelab Life Sciences flight, since most of the principal investigators have been accommodated on other space flights and generally will be able to meet their experiment objectives.