11 February 2019
Dear members of the astrophysics community,
Following a new directive from the NASA Astrophysics Division (APD), the Program Offices (POs) have modified our strategic technology gap prioritization process to a joint Astrophysics-wide, biennial process. Starting in 2019, the POs identify the technology areas requiring development to enable or enhance future strategic astrophysics missions every other year. To ensure that APD invests in the right technologies, we are reaching out to the community to help identify the technology capability gaps between today's state-of-the-art and what will be needed for missions identified by the 2010 Decadal Survey, the 2018 Astrophysics Implementation Plan, and/or the 30-year Astrophysics Road Map. See an overview of our new process in a briefing at the Seattle AAS in January 2019.
As the first step in this process, we want to hear what you think are the most important areas for technology development not currently being addressed. If you know of a missing technology gap, please download the technology gap submission form, fill it out according to the instructions enclosed with the form, and email the completed entry to Thai Pham and Brendan Crill by June 1, 2019. If you have questions, feel free to email those to Thai or Brendan, leaving enough time for a response and your submission before the deadline.
In parallel, we will ask the four large-mission Science and Technology Definition Teams (STDTs), HabEx, LUVOIR, Lynx, and Origins Space Telescope, to update their technology gaps. With the help and review of the PAGs and the ExoTAC, we will merge existing gaps and those received from the community if and as needed.
During the summer, the POs' science and technology teams will prioritize the technology capability gaps according to a list of criteria published biennially (the above-mentioned slides explain the full process). Importantly, the joint gap list will inform the next Strategic Astrophysics Technology (SAT) solicitation. Prioritized rankings, along with a description of NASA's technology needs, and other PO technology highlights will be published in the new Astrophysics Biennial Technology Report (ABTR) in October 2019.
Please refer to the ExEP Technology Plan Appendix and the 2017 PCOS and COR Program Annual Technology Reports (PATRs) for more information about APD technology gaps. This is your opportunity to take an active role in shaping the future of space technology for astrophysics, and future scientific breakthroughs achieved by NASA's missions.
APD Program Offices Technologists,
Brendan Crill, Opher Ganel, Thai Pham, and Nick Siegler