Statement of Dr. Ghassem R. Asrar
Administrator National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Before the
Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics
Committee on Science
House of Representatives

September 10, 1998


Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee,

I am pleased to be here today to discuss with you the status of NASA's Earth Science Enterprise and specifically the challenges we face in the Earth Observing System. I look forward to working with you, Mr. Chairman, and all the members of this Subcommittee in support of this very important program and ensuring that the first of the next generation of Earth remote sensing satellites are launched and successfully complete their missions without further delay.

In my testimony today, I will be providing you with a status report on a most successful 1998, an overview of what is planned for 1999, and an explanation of the reasons for the challenges we face to make 1999 a successful year.

Accomplishments in FY 1998

The Earth Science Enterprise continues to make great progress through FY 1998. Significant scientific events have been analyzed using data from our orbiting spacecraft and scientific campaigns. Unfortunately the launch of Landsat-7 was delayed and the problems with the Flight Operations Segment of the Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS) resulted in the delay of the AM-1 launch.

The beginning of the fiscal year was ushered in with a strong El Niño event, and now towards the end of the year we see signs of a La Niña. Multiple spacecraft and instruments have played an important role in predicting the El Niño event and will continue to track a possible La Niña. Images derived from the TOPEX-Poseidon satellite were frequently featured throughout the national news media, allowing the public to watch the progression of El Niño across the Pacific Ocean.

In October, Radarsat brought us the first detailed radar map of Antarctica. Nearly 70% of the Earth's fresh water is contained in the Antarctic region, and changes in this reservoir directly influence world sea levels and climate.

In November, we had the successful launch of Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM), a cooperative mission with Japan, which has proven to be valuable for both scientific research and development of new weather forecasting capabilities. So far, TRMM has exceeded expectations by providing unprecedented insights into rainfall cloud systems in the tropics. TRMM all weather sea surface temperature data obtained for the first time appears to confirm the onset of a La Niña event. The scientific understandings resulting from this mission will revolutionize our knowledge of how storms and hurricanes are forming/dissipating.

To fill the data gap caused by the loss of NASA Scatterometer (NSCAT) on the Advanced Earth Orbiting Satellite (ADEOS), the QuikScat mission was awarded in November through a fast track procurement method. The satellite, instrument, ground system, and launch vehicle are being developed, integrated and launched in a year. This mission is proceeding within budget and on schedule for a launch in November of this year.

In June, in an effort to improve the monitoring of the fires in central America and Mexico, we worked with NOAA to develop a new internet site to study fires. We have been monitoring other fires worldwide including those in Indonesia and Russia and the results are made available via the Internet.

The Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS), which became fully operational as part of a data purchase from the private sector, provided important data on coastal up-welling in the Northwest, Argentina, and South Africa, which fostered dramatic plankton blooms, a critical food source for fish. These data are used to understand the role of oceans in removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, the ocean's productivity, and as a bonus, the spacecraft is providing valuable images of the land.

In the applications, commercialization and education area we selected 24 Earth science information partners to develop new science and applications products from ESE data. We are preparing to select at least 5 new Regional Earth Science Applications Centers as public/private partnerships for applying remote sensing data to regional problems. We sponsored over 400 workshops to train K-12 teachers in Earth System science.

In May we had the successful launch of the NOAA-15 spacecraft, which has since been turned over to NOAA to collect meteorological and oceanographic data to enhance weather and climate forecasting.

In August, we conducted a coordinated experiment with NOAA flying NASA planes out of Florida to study this season's hurricanes. This effort has coincided with occurrence of hurricanes Bonnie and Danielle. We believe the knowledge gained from this study will improve our ability to predict such events in the long-term.

This sampling of major events has, I hope, given you an appreciation of what this Enterprise has accomplished over the past year. Our focus is on scientific discovery and exploration, and more importantly, to demonstrate the benefits of such knowledge towards addressing practical societal issues having to do with food production, water resources, etc. This is now the focus of our Applications, Commercialization and Education Program. This time next year I hope to be able to recount more exciting outcomes from the challenging missions to be launched in FY 1999.

Let me now turn to the current challenges facing the Earth Science Enterprise.

Challenges

Earth Observing System Data Information System (EOSDIS)

The EOSDIS is an extremely challenging undertaking. The system is planned to be evolutionary, with multiple versions deployed to keep pace with technology changes and to support successive EOS mission launches while serving users of NASA's EOS data in a free and open fashion. Since 1994 EOSDIS Version 0 has been the operational science data system and presently manages archived data and data from currently operating spacecraft. In the past year, the Version 0 data centers have responded to over 330,000 user requests and delivered 1.5 million data products comprising a volume of over 60 Terabytes (60 million million bytes).

The EOSDIS Core System (ECS) is the ground system designed to replace Version 0 for archival and distribution of science data products, to process science data products from the EOS program, and to command and control the EOS satellites. The development of this complex system has experienced delays due to implementation problems. The ECS is comprised of the Flight Operations Segment (FOS) and the Science Data Processing System (SDPS). The ECS is supplied via a 10-year contract recently acquired by Raytheon from Hughes Information Systems.

The FOS was intended to be a very progressive, state-of-the-art system to support multiple spacecraft and to significantly reduce operations costs. In March 1998, FOS, which was to provide command and control for AM1 and subsequent spacecraft, failed its system test. The failure resulted in a delay to the launch of AM1.

NASA and the contractors are presently examining the system closely to determine if FOS can be repaired within its current design. In addition, a back-up solution is being pursued based on established systems using commercial software. Specific criteria have been established for the FOS and the prime back-up system to support the decision process. The prime backup system is currently being funded under already allocated contractor funds.

The SDPS has been phased to provide the launch-critical functionality to support the launch of AM1 and Landsat-7. The portion of the AM1/Landsat-7 SDPS software which provides the core capabilities required for the early missions has been delivered to the operational data centers (DAACs), and is presently being tested. However, the SDPS has also experienced significant delays and cost overruns over the past several years. These continued delays and overruns are attributable to several factors:

  1. ambitious requirements and the overall complexity in the design of the system;
  2. the high rate of turnover in information technologists, which is being experienced not only by the ECS contractors but across the U.S. information system market today;
  3. the high turnover rate (or low retention rate) of >30% in qualified programmers by the contractor.

Although late, the SDPS appears to be functioning correctly and will be available to support the launch of Landsat-7 and AM-1 next year.

In addition, NASA and the prime ECS contractor have been working closely with the EOS investigators and the DAACs since the beginning of August to update and simplify the overall SDPS implementation. This new approach is intended to meet the highest-priority requirements for data products and services while minimizing costs. Included in the new approach is the transfer of responsibility for the generation of higher-level data products to the instrument teams where appropriate. We are making every effort to solve these problems within the EOSDIS budget.

I will keep the Subcommittee apprised of this issue and resolution as it develops.

AM -1

The EOS AM-1 launch has been delayed from its originally scheduled June 1998 target date primarily due to problems with the Flight Operations Segment (FOS) of the EOS Data Information System (EOSDIS) which prevented the AM launch date. Increased spacecraft contractor support to the FOS recovery effort is being provided. The development of an alternative system to the FOS is proceeding in parallel.

The Atlas-IIAS launch vehicle, the launch pad, and all transportation equipment are complete. The vehicle is currently erected on the launch pad at the Vandenberg Air Force base north of Santa Barbara, California. The vehicle, pad, and the processing facilities have completed a comprehensive set of tests through a Pathfinder program conducted jointly with the USAF. There is no launch window constraint for AM-1 associated with time of year.

In summary, the AM-1 spacecraft, instruments, and launch vehicle has passed all performance tests. We are now working off a number of technical issues while awaiting the delivery of a flight operations system. The earliest launch date for the AM-1 mission is May 30, 1999.

Landsat-7

Landsat 7 is currently planning a launch readiness date of no earlier than March 8, 1999, 3 months delay from the commitment date. This delay was caused when the Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) instrument encountered difficulties during instrument tests last year.

During a series of instrument-level thermal vacuum tests beginning in December 1997, the electrical power supplies for the ETM+ instrument failed. The power supplies were returned to the manufacturer for troubleshooting and rework. The technical difficulties were traced to the substitution of diodes in the power supplies. The parts had been upgraded to meet military standards for space hardware. Although the new part was of a higher quality overall, its thermal characteristics turned out to be incompatible with the design, a subtle difference not uncovered in analysis. All the diodes in the power supplies were replaced in March-April 1998. The power supplies were then individually re-tested in thermal vacuum test and reintegrated into the instrument in May 1998. The instrument was returned to the Landsat 7 integration and test-flow in June 1998.

To minimize the impact of the schedule delay caused by the instrument power supply failures, the Landsat 7 spacecraft continued on parallel tests whenever possible. In addition, an early integration test of the ETM+ and spacecraft was performed successfully in June 1998. This test verified mechanical and electrical interfaces between instrument and spacecraft and included a functional performance test that enhanced confidence in the success of the remaining test program. Following the early integration test, the ETM+ was removed from the spacecraft to repeat the instrument-level thermal vacuum tests. At the same time, the spacecraft bus successfully completed a thermal vacuum test, fixed a solar array deployment problem (including a successful test of the fix).

The ETM+ recently successfully completed the instrument-level thermal vacuum tests. Performance has been nominal. It is due for delivery to spacecraft integration this month, after which a new launch readiness date will be officially set. After integration onto the spacecraft, observatory-level thermal vacuum tests will be conducted during October-November 1998. Based on instrument and spacecraft bus performance during the early integration and individual thermal vacuum tests, we anticipate successful observatory-level tests.

The current instrument, spacecraft, and launch vehicle schedules support a launch between 3/8/99 and 3/31/99. Launch by March 31, 1999 will lead to normal mission operations, and the availability of land imagery data - about June 1, 1999.

Other Flight Program Development Efforts

In addition to the missions experiencing delays, there are other flight missions within the Earth Science Enterprise that are proceeding on schedule. Here is a brief status on their progress.

EOS PM-1 will provide information on cloud formation, precipitation, and radiative properties and on air-sea fluxes of energy, carbon, and moisture. The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) has completed engineering model fabrication and final assembly of the flight model is near completion. The Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit (AMSU), Clouds and Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES), and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometor (MODIS) are in advanced stages of assembly and test. The Brazilian's and the Japanese have committed to provide the Humidity Sounder for Brazil (HSB) and the Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer (AMSR-E), respectively. The HSB and AMSR instruments have completed Critical Design Review (CDR) and are approaching completion of final assembly. The common spacecraft CDR was successfully completed this year. At this stage, all instrument and spacecraft development remains on schedule for a December 2000 launch.

The EOS Chemistry mission will study the chemistry and dynamics of the Earth's atmosphere with emphasis on the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere. The Chemistry project is in Phase C/D. The High Resolution Dynamic Limb Sounder (HIRDLS), Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS), and Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) instruments successfully completed their Preliminary Design Reviews in 1997 and 1998. These instruments are in a detailed design and development phase. The Ozone Measuring Instrument (OMI) is contributed by the Netherlands as a replacement for another instrument which was to have been provided by Japan. It is beginning its design and development effort and is on schedule to have a PDR in late 1998. The common spacecraft PDR was also completed in 1998 with no significant issues identified for the Chemistry mission to be launched in 2002.

There are two Stratospheric Gas and Aerosol Experiment (SAGE III) instruments being manufactured for long-term monitoring of atmospheric ozone and aerosols. The first instrument has successfully completed its testing and integration phase for the Meteor 3M mission in cooperation with Russia. It is in the final checkout and will be delivered and shipped in the early fall of 1998 to Russia to fly on a Russian Meteor-3M(1) spacecraft in 1999. The second SAGE is a Flight of Opportunity instrument, planned for an approximate year 2000-2001 launch. The second instrument is going through test and integration phase and its delivery is expected late this year.

The Critical Design Review for the EOS Jason-1 mission was held by the French Space Agency (CNES) in June 1998 as planned and the system-level CDR is planned for fall 1998. The CDR has verified that CNES remains on-track to the May 2000 launch readiness date. NASA has held CDR's for the Jason Microwave Radiometer and the TurboRogue Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver; engineering model fabrication is underway for these two instruments, for delivery to CNES later this year. NASA has also held the Manufacturing Review for the Laser Retroreflector Array (its simple, structure-only design did not require a full CDR) and fabrication of the flight unit has begun. Transfer of the TurboRogue GPS Receiver technology and design to US industry has been accomplished.

The EOS Ice, Clouds and Land Elevation Satellite (ICESat) will measure ice sheet height and volume for long-term climate variability studies. NASA selected the spacecraft contractor from the Goddard Space Flight Center's catalog of industry standard spacecraft in February 1998. The mission approach to using the catalog spacecraft allows a streamlined development schedule, so that the traditional PDR, CDR sequence was modified to a single Mission Design Review, to be held in early FY 1999. The instrument, the Geoscience Laser Altimeter System (GLAS), remains on schedule with a System Requirements Review and PDR this year.

The Solar Stellar Irradiance Comparison Experiment (SOLSTICE) continued to make progress towards a December 2002 launch. SOLSTICE is being developed at the Laboratory for Space and Atmospheric Physics (LASP) at the University of Colorado and is currently in Phase B (Phase C/D contract planned for award in January 1999). SOLSTICE successfully completed a Conceptual Design and Cost Review in March 1998 and LASP is preparing to issue a Request for Proposals for a MidEx class spacecraft in late 1998.

NASA awarded Phase B contracts for the Total Solar Irradiance Mission (TSIM) to two contractors in July 1998. The University of Colorado (Laboratory for Space and Atmospheric Physics) and the Naval Research Laboratory will both conduct Phase B design studies and present Mission Design Reviews to NASA in January 1999. TSIM is NASA's science contribution (along with launch services) to the joint NASA/Canadian Space Agency SciSat (science satellite) program, and is the follow-on to the EOS ACRIM mission.

The QuikScat mission will fill the ocean-wind vector data gap created by the loss of the NASA Scatterometer (NSCAT) on the Japanese Advanced Earth Observing Satellite (ADEOS-I) spacecraft. The contractor was selected on November 19, 1997 to provide the QuikScat spacecraft. Ball was selected via the Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (ID/IQ) rapid delivery spacecraft contract. The QuikScat mission remains on schedule for launch on a Titan-II from Vandenberg Air Force Base in November 1998.

The Active Cavity Radiometer Irradiance Monitor (ACRIM) continues to make excellent progress in 1998 and is on schedule for launch in October 1999.

The New Millennium Program (NMP) focuses on identifying and demonstrating in-flight, advanced technologies that reduce cost or improve performance of future spacecraft and/or instruments. Under this program, the Earth Orbiting-1 (EO-1) is an advanced technology pathfinder for future land imaging mission and is scheduled for launch in late 1999. The spacecraft and the Advanced land Imager (ALI) instrument are in their testing and integration phase. The ALI delivery to the spacecraft contractor is expected late this year. The Earth Orbiting-2 (EO-2) mission, SPARCLE, was confirmed in May 1998, and is scheduled for launch in 2001 aboard the Space Shuttle. The purpose of this mission is to demonstrate an advanced solid state laser system for measuring atmospheric winds.

The first Earth System Science Pathfinder (ESSP) Vegetation Canopy Lidar (VCL) mission, led by a University of Maryland College Park PI, completed Phase B and is currently in Phase C/D with an expected launch date of May 2000. The second ESSP mission, Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE), led by a PI from the University of Texas at Austin, is in Phase B with launch expected in June 2001. The second ESSP Announcement of Opportunity was released in the third quarter of FY98. We completed evaluation of the 20 proposals submitted to NASA in response to this announcement and recommended only 11 missions to proceed for development of detailed proposals for evaluation in the second phase.

Uncosted carryover

Over the past two years, the Committee has rightly expressed concern with the Earth Science Enterprise's level of uncosted budget authority. Let me say from the outset that I have pledged to reduce the uncosted budget authority for the Enterprise to the target level by the end of FY 1999's $350 - $400 million. The ESE intends to manage the program with the goal of reducing the uncosted carryover to this steady state level based on approximately three months of uncosted carryover on flight and ground system development projects, one month of uncosted carryover on mission operations, and six months of uncosted on research and analysis (grant-based activities).

I do have some good news to report concerning the status of ESE's uncosted carryover balance. All elements of the program are making great progress toward this target. We have implemented process improvements, especially in the grant-based research and analysis program. The ESE continues to factor the status of the uncosted carryover into the ongoing assessment of FY 1998 performance, as well as into all future budget development activities. As you recall, the total ESE uncosted carryover balance at the end of FY 1996 was $765 million. The total ESE uncosted carryover balance at the end of FY 1997 was $696 million. The FY 1998 estimate for uncosted carryover balance is approximately $550 million (a $146M improvement).

Congress appropriates two year research and development budget authority for the Earth Science Enterprise in the Science, Aeronautics, and Technology Appropriation. The Enterprise has two years to place orders for work (an obligation). What is essential to understand is that "obligating" budget authority, or placing specific orders for work, is the important metric of the rate NASA is utilizing budget authority. Focusing on uncosted budget authority, which for the most part represent orders that have been placed for work before the work is completed, is actually too late to influence the process. The budget authority has already been provided contractors and grantees, and costing the budget authority is simply a procedural mechanism for getting payment for the work performed.

For this reason, we believe that the meaningful goal should be to reduce unobligated budget authority to the very minimum. The amount of unobligated budget authority at year end should be no more than:

  1. the amounts attributable to unutilized program reserves planned for the budget year but carried forward and available to the program;
  2. procurements which, for procedural reasons, could not be obligated;
  3. requirements deriving from prudent management of the Agency resources.

Out of a total of $2,786M worth of appropriated two year (PY 97 and PY 98) budget authority, we have placed 88% of this total on defined contracts and grants. This is as of the end of July 1998, with two months of work remaining this fiscal year. In other words NASA has placed an order on the work for all but $342M (unobligated Budget Authority). The unobligated Budget Authority balance at the end of FY97 was $260M compared to the projected at the end of FY98 of $120M (a $140M improvement).

I am taking very seriously the issue of costing and obligating Budget Authority in a timely manner. We are making solid progress toward this end and I look forward to sitting in front of the committee next year to tell you we have achieved our goal.

Data Purchase

We recently announced the selection of five companies for Phase II of the NASA Scientific Data Purchase. We received proposals for 65 products from 18 companies. In November 1997, we selected 23 products from 11 companies for negotiation of Phase I data buy products. NASA awarded 10 contracts which resulted in delivery of 22 products. After critical scientific validation and evaluation of the Phase I products, we have made 5 selections for Phase II which will best meet the science requirements of ESE. Contract awards will be made by the end of this month.

Understanding that a thriving commercial remote sensing industry can provide NASA with more flexibility in meeting our science requirements, we have recognized the need to work with industry through the development of partnerships such as those recently selected. We plan to work intensely with these industry partners to develop arrangements that preserve our quality science data requirements, while allowing for commercial viability. Toward this objective, science data purchases are now an integral part of NASA's Earth Science Enterprise's data acquisition strategy. We intend to routinely include the commercial data buys as part of our science solicitations. I have established a general policy which is being incorporated into all of future ESE proposal solicitations. This policy states:

NASA's policy is to work cooperatively with other U.S. government agencies and our international partners in the development of a comprehensive capability to observe and understand the Earth. In addition, both National and NASA policy require NASA to support private-sector investment in commercial space activities by committing the U.S. government to purchase commercially available goods and services. NASA will not develop a mission that in any significant way competes with or duplicates planned commercial capabilities.

The ESE is committed to the development of a robust U.S. commercial remote sensing industry that contributes to its long term strategic goals, such as transferring government-developed technology, when appropriate, and enhancing knowledge of commercial data applications. This new approach will reduce costs and extend benefits of NASA remote sensing science and technology programs and, at the same time, promote industrial leadership in commercial remote sensing.

I have recently reorganized the Office of Earth Science at NASA HQ in order to focus more on commercial remote sensing and its applications. The new Applications, Commercialization, and Education Division of ESE performs an important HQ interface with Stennis Space Center's Commercial Remote Sensing Program (CRSP). While the Division manages a broad spectrum of applications research and outreach programs, the Stennis Space Center will focus specifically on implementing the ESE commercial strategy, serving as the Lead Center for Earth Science commercial remote sensing industry development. An ESE goal is to build a bridge between the commercial remote sensing industry and ESE's science research community with the aid of this newly established division.

Conclusion

NASA's Earth Science Enterprise continues to conduct cutting edge research on the physical, chemical and biological processes that comprise the dynamic Earth system. This research has important practical applications to the nation in such areas as improved severe storm and seasonal climate forecasting, food production, water resources management, etc. We are working to facilitate the commercial and public use of these results through such means as the Commercial Remote Sensing Program at the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi and at Regional Applications Centers around the country.

Unquestionably, we are experiencing schedule problems in the testing phase of two key missions, and continuing problems with our data information system. We have taken steps to assure a firm pathway to launch AM-1 and Landsat-7 as soon as and as safely as possible. We are working with the EOSDIS contractor to ensure the essential functions to operate the spacecraft and conduct basic data processing are in place at launch. In parallel, we are working to evolve the concept for data management to reduce the complexity of EOSDIS to arrive at a more achievable and flexible system. Finally, we have made substantial progress in the Earth Science Enterprise financial management and commercial partnerships.

Mr. Chairman, I thank you and members of the Subcommittee for this opportunity to update you on the status and progress by NASA's exciting Earth Science Enterprise.

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