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NASA NTRS1997

Threatened and Endangered Species Survey for Patrick Air Force Base, Florida

A review of previous environmental work conducted at Patrick Air Force Base (PAFB) indicated that several threatened, endangered, or species of special concern occurred or had the potential to occur there. This study was implemented to collect more information on protected species at PAFB. A map of landcover types was prepared for PAFB using aerial photography, groundtruthing, and a geographic information system (GIS). Herbaceous vegetation was the most common vegetation type. The second most abundant vegetation type was disturbed shrubs/exotics. The beach and associated dune vegetation comprised 3.2% of the land area, but was the most extensive natural community within PAFB. A few isolated mangrove communities exist along the Banana River. Seventy-seven species of vascular plants occurred on the dunes, including four species listed by state agencies: spider lily (Hymenocallis latifolia), prickly pear cactus (Opuntia stricta), beach star (Remirea maritima), and inkberry (Scaevola plumien). Surveys of other habitats revealed eighty-four species of vascular plants including two state-listed species: spider lily and prickly pear cactus. Many of these areas are dominated by invasive, exotic species, particularly Brazilian pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius) and Australian pine (Casuarina equisetifolia), and native species of open or disturbed sites such as camphorweed (Heterotheca subaxillaris) and beardgrass (Andropogon spp.). Due to the isolation of PAFB from other natural areas, most exotic plant populations on the base are not an immediate threat to intact native plant communities. Dune habitat was surveyed for the southeastem beach mouse (Peromyscus polionotus niveiventris) by quarterly trapping along eight 100 m transects. No beach mice were found. The limited extent of dune habitat, its fragmented condition, and the isolation of PAFB from extant populations of the beach mouse probably accounts for its absence. Surveys of birds on PAFB found an avifauna characteristic of species that occur in the Indian River Lagoon system. Twenty-five species of waterbirds were observed during quarterly surveys on PAFB, including five species listed as species of special concern by the state of Florida: Snowy Egret (Egretta thula), Little Blue Heron (Egretta caerulea), Tricolored Heron (Egretta tricolo4, White Ibis (Eudocimus albus), and Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis). The Golf Course was used extensively by almost all species of waterbirds on PAFB. Twenty-two species of shorebirds were observed on PAFB. Although no listed species were observed, the potential exists for several protected species of shorebirds to use the beach at PAFB during some parts of the year. The Airfield runways and associated grass areas were important sites at PAFB for loafing and feeding for some shorebirds. Surveys of rooftop nesting by Least Terns (Stema antillarum) on PAFB found a large colony on a rooftop in the PAFB Industrial Area. This colony produced some independent young. Two rooftop Least Tern colonies reported from previous years were inactive during 1996. A small number of Black Skimmers (Rhynchops nigee attempted to nest at the Least Ten colony but were unsuccessful. Surveys for the gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) revealed burrows and tortoises only at the Waste Study Site; five burrows and three tortoises were observed. No Florida scrub lizards (Sceloporus woodi), eastern indigo snakes (Drymarchon corais couperl), or diamondback terrapins (Malademys terrapin terrapin) were observed. American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis) were observed on the Golf Course and using ditches, ponds, and areas along the Banana River. The amount of dune habitat could be expanded by not mowing areas adjacent to the dunes to allow dune species to colonize and expand. Planting dune species as part of the beach renourishment project will also increase this habitat. Exotic plants dominate several areas on the base and are used by threatened, endangered, and species of special concern. However, the use of native vegetation in landscaping projects throughout the base would improve habitat for wildlife, and invasive, exotic plants should not be used in any horticultural plantings. Water quality of ponds, ditches, and canals is important for waterbirds; it should be maintained and protected from contamination. Nesting Least Terns are sensitive to disturbance; rooftops used for nesting should be protected from disturbance. Monitoring of Least Tern and Black Skimmer nesting should be continued to determine what roofs are being used and whether nesting is successful. Furthermore, based on the large numbers of waterbirds observed on PAFB, continued monitoring of them is recommended.

Oddy, Donna M.↗

NASA NTRS1997

Project Synopsis for High School/High Tech

To help increase the diversity of workers at NASA centers it is necessary to provide students with disabilities the opportunities to explore careers in high technology. HIGH SCHOOL/HIGH TECH, an enrichment program, pioneered at Goddard Space Flight Center, successfully introduces students with disabilities to high tech careers. This community-based partnership serves as a model for three additional NASA sites-Ames Research Center, Johnson Space Flight Center, and Lewis Research Center. For a three year period beginning August 15, 1995, provide financial and technical support to a local agency in each NASA center area which serves persons with disabilities to enable a High School/High Tech program to develop and stand alone. Each project will develop a basis of cooperation with Ames, Johnson, and Lewis as well as a variety of community groups including the public schools, high tech employers, post-secondary education and training programs, rehabilitation agencies, and community economic development organizations. Throughout the startup period and thereafter, local youths with disabilities will have early exposure to professions in mathematics, science, and technology-related fields. This exposure will be multifaceted to insure adequate opportunity for realistic career exploration so these youths have an opportunity to test their interests and abilities. The exposure will be presented in the most supportive environment that is feasible.

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NASA NTRS1997

Emergency Operations Center at Johnson Space Center

In June 1966, at the start of the Gulf Coast hurricane season, the Johnson Space Center (JSC) celebrated the opening of its new 4,000-square foot, state-of-the-art Emergency Operations Center (EOC). The new EOC has been upgraded and enhanced to support a wide spectrum of emergencies affecting JSC and neighboring communities. One of the main features of the EOC is its premier computerized dispatch center. The new system unites many of JSC's critical emergency functions into one integrated network. It automatically monitors fire alarms, security entrances, and external cameras. It contains the JSC inventory of hazardous materials, by building and room, and can call up Material Safety Data Sheets for most of the generic hazardous materials used on-site. The EOC is available for community use during area emergencies such as hurricanes and is a welcome addition to the Clear Lake/Galveston Bay Area communities' emergency response resources.

Caylor, Gary C.↗

NASA NTRS1998

NASA's Electronic Procurement System and the Impact on Small Business

Three workshops, held in Lancaster, Orange County and Compton, were produced by the Los Angeles Regional Technology Alliance (LARTA) and NASA Far West Technology Transfer Center (FWRTTC). The workshops were held on December 12, 1997, February 5, 1998, and March 30, 1998, respectively. The purpose behind these workshops was to spread information regarding NASA procurement opportunities to small businesses in the region. This was accomplished by inviting economic and business development organizations to the three workshops, presenting NASA procurement resources to them, and asking them to distribute this information to the small businesses in their communities. With the assistance of LARTA, marketing and publicity in the form of direct mail, telemarketing, and promotion via a web site was implemented to publicize the workshops. These methods were remarkably effective because they enabled the workshops to attain its full capacity. Further publicity was provided by Wendy Reed of Valley Focus Magazine, an Antelope Valley Magazine aimed at business people. Her article entitled, "Doing Business with the Government" recapped the Lancaster workshop that she had attended and made references to several presentations. In the article, she discussed selling to the government via electronic commerce, and specifically mentioned Robert Medina, the NASA Dryden Small Business Specialist, as a contact person for those interested in pursuing procurement opportunities. The feedback provided by the participants is illustrated by the enclosed graphs and charts. These figures represent the number of participants who have frequented web sites presented at workshops, specifically the NASA procurement resources, and how extensive information dissemination was. Input from participants was favorable and encouraged more NASA Dryden workshops directly to the small business communities. There was an overwhelming response to the benefit of the NASA procurement opportunities presented at the workshops. Ninety-nine percent of participants who responded to surveys expressed that the NASA procurement information was beneficial. By the fifth month after the start of the workshops, NASA procurement resource inquiries peaked at 100%. Also during this time, 100% of respondents to a survey mentioned that they had passed along information from workshops to other small businesses or organizations that could benefit from it. These results indicate successful implementation of the Dryden Workshops. The objective of spreading NASA procurement opportunities throughout small businesses in the region was achieved through the three workshops. In conclusion, we recommend that further NASA procurement workshops be funded to continue the education and outreach that has been started. We also feel that in addition to targeting economic development service providers, Dryden procurement should also be provided directly to small business communities.

Dozier, Ken↗

NASA NTRS1998

NASA Ocean Altimeter Pathfinder Project: Data Processing Handbook - Report 1

The NOAA/NASA Pathfinder program was created by the Earth Observing System (EOS) Program Office to determine how satellite-based data sets can be processed and used to study global change. The data sets are designed to be long time-sedes data processed with stable calibration and community consensus algorithms to better assist the research community. The Ocean Altimeter Pathfinder Project involves the reprocessing of all altimeter observations with a consistent set of improved algorithms, based on the results from TOPEX/POSEIDON (T/P), into easy-to-use data sets for the oceanographic community for climate research. This report describes the processing schemes used to produce a consistent data set and two of the products derived f rom these data. Other reports have been produced that: a) describe the validation of these data sets against tide gauge measurements and b) evaluate the statistical properties of the data that are relevant to climate change. The use of satellite altimetry for earth observations was proposed in the early 1960s. The first successful space based radar altimeter experiment was flown on SkyLab in 1974. The first successful satellite radar altimeter was flown aboard the Geos-3 spacecraft between 1975 and 1978. While a useful data set was collected from this mission for geophysical studies, the noise in the radar measured and incomplete global coverage precluded ft from inclusion in the Ocean Altimeter Pathfinder program. This program initiated its analysis with the Seasat mission, which was the first satellite radar altimeter flown for oceanography.

Koblinsky, C. J.↗

NASA NTRS1999

NASA Ocean Altimeter Pathfinder Project: Data Set Validation - Report 2

The NOAA/NASA Pathfinder program was created by the Earth Observing System (EOS) Program Office to determine how existing satellite-based data sets can be processed and used to study global change. The data sets are designed to be long time-series data processed with stable calibration and community consensus algorithms to better assist the research community. The Ocean Altimeter Pathfinder Project involves the reprocessing of all altimeter observations with a consistent set of improved algorithms, based on the results from TOPEX/POSEIDON (T/P), into easy-to-use data sets for the oceanographic community for climate research. Details are currently presented in two technical reports: Report# 1: Data Processing Handbook Report #2: Data Set Validation This report describes the validation of the data sets against a global network of high quality tide gauge measurements and provides an estimate of the error budget. The first report describes the processing schemes used to produce the geodetic consistent data set comprised of SEASAT, GEOSAT, ERS-1, TOPEX/ POSEIDON, and ERS-2 satellite observations.

Koblinsky, C. J.↗

NASA NTRS1998

The Process of Science Communications at NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center

The communication of new scientific knowledge and understanding is an integral component of science research, essential for its continued survival. Like any learning- based activity, science cannot continue without communication between and among peers so that skeptical inquiry and learning can take place. This communication provides necessary organic support to maintain the development of new knowledge and technology. However, communication beyond the peer-community is becoming equally critical for science to survive as an enterprise into the 21st century. Therefore, scientists not only have a 'noble responsibility' to advance and communicate scientific knowledge and understanding to audiences within and beyond the peer-community, but their fulfillment of this responsibility is necessary to maintain the survival of the science enterprise. Despite the critical importance of communication to the viability of science, the skills required to perform effective science communications historically have not been taught as a part of the training of scientist, and the culture of science is often averse to significant communication beyond the peer community. Thus scientists can find themselves ill equipped and uncomfortable with the requirements of their job in the new millennium. At NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center, we have developed and implemented an integrated science communications process, providing an institutional capability to help scientist accurately convey the content and meaning of new scientific knowledge to a wide variety of audiences, adding intrinsic value to the research itself through communication, while still maintaining the integrity of the peer-review process. The process utilizes initial communication through the world-wide web at the site http://science.nasa.gov to strategically leverage other communications vehicles and to reach a wide-variety of audiences. Here we present and discuss the basic design of the science communications process, now in operation for nearly two years. Serving scientists in Earth Science, Microgravity Science, and Space Science. Critical features of the design are illustrated, and essential skills required to operate the process are defined. Measures of success will also be presented.

Horack, John M.↗

NASA NTRS1999

Education and Public Outreach for MSFC's Ground-Based Observations in Support of the HESSI Mission

A primary focus of NASA is the advancement of science and the communication of these advances to a number of audiences, both within the science research community and outside it. The upcoming High Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (HESSI) mission and the MSFC ground-based observing program, provide an excellent opportunity to communicate our knowledge of the Sun, its cycle of activity, the role of magnetic fields in that activity, and its effect on our planet. In addition to ground-based support of the HESSI mission, MSFC's Solar Observatory, located in North Alabama, will involve students and the local education community in its day-to-day operations, an experience which is more immediate, personal, and challenging than their everyday educational experience. Further, by taking advantage of the Internet, our program can reach beyond the immediate community. By joining with Fernbank Science Center in Atlanta, Georgia, we will leverage their almost 30 years'experience in science program delivery in diverse situations to a distance learning opportunity which can encompass the entire Southeast and beyond. This poster will outline our education and public outreach plans in support of the HESSI mission in which we will target middle and high school students and their teachers.

Adams, Mitzi L.↗

NASA NTRS1998

The Process of Science Communications at NASA/Marshall Space Flight Center

Horack, John M.↗

NASA NTRS1999

An Overview of the NASA Sounding Rockets and Balloon Programs

The U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Sounding Rockets and Balloon Programs conduct a combined total of approximately fifty to sixty missions per year in support of the NASA scientific community. These missions are provided in support of investigations sponsored by NASA'S Offices of Space Science, Life and Microgravity Sciences & Applications, and Earth Science. The Goddard Space Flight Center has management and implementation responsibility for these programs. The NASA Sounding Rockets Program has continued to su,pport the science community by integrating their experiments into the sounding rocket payload and providing the rocket vehicle and launch operations necessary to provide the altitude/time required obtain the science objectives. The sounding rockets continue to provide a cost-effective way to make in situ observations from 50 to 1500 km in the near-earth environment and to uniquely cover the altitude regime between 50 km and 130 km above the Earth's surface, which is physically inaccessible to either balloons or satellites. A new architecture for providing this support has been introduced this year with the establishment of the NASA Sounding Rockets Contract. The Program has continued to introduce improvements into their operations and ground and flight systems. An overview of the NASA Sounding Rockets Program with special emphasis on the new support contract will be presented. The NASA Balloon Program continues to make advancements and developments in its capabilities for support of the scientific ballooning community. Long duration balloon (LDB) is a prominent aspect of the program with two campaigns scheduled for this calendar year. Two flights are scheduled in the Northern Hemisphere from Fairbanks, Alaska, in June and two flights are scheduled from McMurdo, Antarctica, in the Southern Hemisphere in December. The comprehensive balloon research and development (R&D) effort has continued with advances being made across the spectrum of balloon related disciplines. As a result of these technology advancements a new ultra long duration balloon project (ULDB) for the development of a 100- day duration balloon capability has been initiated. The ULDB will rely upon new balloon materials and designs to accomplish its goals. The Program has also continued to introduce new technology and improvements into flights systems, ground systems and operational techniques. An overview of the various aspects of the NASA Balloon Program will be presented.

Flowers, Bobby J.↗

NASA NTRS1998

NAESA Augmentation Pilot Project

This project was one project within the Native American Earth and Space Academy (NAESA). NAESA is a national initiative comprised of several organizations that support programs which focus on 1) enhancing the technological, scientific and pedagogical skills of K-14 teachers who instruct Native Americans, 2) enhancing the understanding and applications of science, technology, and engineering of college-bound Native Americans and teaching them general college "survival skills" (e.g., test taking, time management, study habits), 3) enhancing the scientific and pedagogical skills of the faculty of tribally-controllcd colleges and community colleges with large Native American enrollments, and 4) strengthening the critical relationships between students, their parents, tribal elders, and their communities. This Augmentation Pilot Project focused on the areas of community-school alliances and intemet technology use in teaching and learning and daily living addressing five major objectives.

Hoover, John J.↗

NASA NTRS1999

Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission

Tropical rainfall affects the lives and economics of a majority of the Earth's population. Tropical rain systems, such as hurricanes, typhoons, and monsoons, are crucial to sustaining the livelihoods of those living in the tropics. Excess rainfall can cause floods and great property and crop damage, whereas too little rainfall can cause drought and crop failure. The latent heat release during the process of precipitation is a major source of energy that drives the atmospheric circulation. This latent heat can intensify weather systems, affecting weather thousands of kilometers away, thus making tropical rainfall an important indicator of atmospheric circulation and short-term climate change. Tropical forests and the underlying soils are major sources of many of the atmosphere's trace constituents. Together, the forests and the atmosphere act as a water-energy regulating system. Most of the rainfall is returned to the atmosphere through evaporation and transpiration, and the atmospheric trace constituents take part in the recycling process. Hence, the hydrological cycle provides a direct link between tropical rainfall and the global cycles of carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur, all important trace materials for the Earth's system. Because rainfall is such an important component in the interactions between the ocean, atmosphere, land, and the biosphere, accurate measurements of rainfall are crucial to understanding the workings of the Earth-atmosphere system. The large spatial and temporal variability of rainfall systems, however, poses a major challenge to estimating global rainfall. So far, there has been a lack of rain gauge networks, especially over the oceans, which points to satellite measurement as the only means by which global observation of rainfall can be made. The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM), jointly sponsored by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of the United States and the National Space Development Agency (NASDA) of Japan, provides visible, infrared, and microwave observations of tropical and subtropical rain systems.The satellite observations are complemented by ground radar and rain gauge measurements to validate satellite rain estimation techniques. Goddard Space Flight Center's involvement includes the observatory, four instruments, integration and testing of the observatory, data processing and distribution, and satellite operations. TRMM has a design lifetime of three years. Data generated from TRMM and archived at the GDAAC are useful not only for hydrologists, atmospheric scientists, and climatologists, but also for the health community studying infectious diseases, the ocean research community, and the agricultural community.

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NASA NTRS1998

Diurnal Reflectance Changes in Vegetation Observed with AVIRIS

Among the most important short-term dynamic biological processes are diurnal changes in canopy water relations. Plant regulation of water transport through stomatal openings affects other gaseous transport processes, often dramatically decreasing photosynthetic fixation of carbon dioxide during periods of water stress. Water stress reduces stomatal conductance of water vapor through the leaf surface and alters the diurnal timing of stomatal opening. Under non-water stressed conditions, stomates typically open soon after dawn and transpire water vapor throughout the daylight period. During stress periods, stomates may close for part of the day, generally near mid-day. Under prolonged stress conditions, stomatal closure shifts to earlier times during the day; stomates may close by mid-morning and remain closed until the following morning - or remain closed entirely. Under these conditions the relationship between canopy greenness (e.g., measured with a vegetation index or by spectral mixture analysis) and photosynthetic fixation of carbon is lost and the remotely sensed vegetation metric is a poor predictor of gas exchange. Prediction of stomatal regulation and exchange of water and trace gases is critical for ecosystem and climate models to correctly estimate budgets of these gases and understand or predict other processes like gross and net ecosystem primary production. Plant gas exchange has been extensively studied by physiologists at the leaf and whole plant level and by biometeorologists at somewhat larger scales. While these energy driven processes follow a predictable if somewhat asymmetric diurnal cycle dependent on soil water availability and the constraints imposed by the solar energy budget, they are nonetheless difficult to measure at the tree and stand levels using conventional methods. Ecologists have long been interested in the potential of remote sensing for monitoring physiological changes using multi-temporal images. Much of this research has focused on day-to-day changes in water use, especially for agricultural applications. Ustin et al. showed seasonal changes in canopy water content in chaparral shrub could be estimated using optical methods. Vanderbilt et al. followed asymmetric diurnal changes in the reflectance of a walnut orchard, but could not attribute specific reflectance changes to specific changes in canopy architecture or physiology. Forests and shrub lands in California experience prolonged periods of drought, sometimes extending six months without precipitation. The conifer and evergreen chaparral communities common to the foothill region around the central valley of California retain their foliage throughout the summer and have low transpiration rates despite high net radiation and temperature conditions. In contrast, grasslands and drought resistant deciduous species in the same habitat are seasonally dormant in summer. Because of differences in the mechanisms of drought tolerance, rooting depth and physiology between different plant communities in the region, it is likely that they display differences in diurnal water relations. The presence of diverse plant communities provides an opportunity to investigate possible diurnal landscape patterns in water relations that could be observed by an airborne hyperspectral scanner. This investigation of AVIRIS data collected over forest and shrub land represents the continuation of a prior investigation involving spectral mixture analysis of diurnal effects in the same AVIRIS data set.

Vanderbilt, V. C.↗

NASA NTRS1999

Exploration of Uncertainty in Glacier Modelling

There are procedures and methods for verification of coding algebra and for validations of models and calculations that are in use in the aerospace computational fluid dynamics (CFD) community. These methods would be efficacious if used by the glacier dynamics modelling community. This paper is a presentation of some of those methods, and how they might be applied to uncertainty management supporting code verification and model validation for glacier dynamics. The similarities and differences between their use in CFD analysis and the proposed application of these methods to glacier modelling are discussed. After establishing sources of uncertainty and methods for code verification, the paper looks at a representative sampling of verification and validation efforts that are underway in the glacier modelling community, and establishes a context for these within overall solution quality assessment. Finally, an information architecture and interactive interface is introduced and advocated. This Integrated Cryospheric Exploration (ICE) Environment is proposed for exploring and managing sources of uncertainty in glacier modelling codes and methods, and for supporting scientific numerical exploration and verification. The details and functionality of this Environment are described based on modifications of a system already developed for CFD modelling and analysis.

Thompson, David E.↗

NASA NTRS1999

A Virtual Collaborative Environment for Mars Surveyor Landing Site Studies

Over the past year and a half, the Center for Mars Exploration (CMEX) at NASA Ames Research Center (ARC) has been working with the Mars Surveyor Project Office at JPL to promote interactions among the planetary community and to coordinate landing site activities for the Mars Surveyor Project Office. To date, CMEX has been responsible for organizing the first two Mars Surveyor Landing Site workshops, web-archiving resulting information from these workshops, aiding in science evaluations of candidate landing sites, and serving as a liaison between the community and the Project. Most recently, CMEX has also been working with information technologists at Ames to develop a state-of-the-art collaborative web site environment to foster interaction of interested members of the planetary community with the Mars Surveyor Program and the Project Office. The web site will continue to evolve over the next several years as new tools and features are added to support the ongoing Mars Surveyor missions.

Gulick, V.C.↗

NASA NTRS1999

A Virtual Collaborative Environment for Mars Surveyor Landing Site Studies

Gulick, V. C.↗

NASA NTRS2000

Space Commercial Opportunities for Fluid Physics and Transport Phenomena Applications

Microgravity research at NASA has been an undertaking that has included both science and commercial approaches since the late 80s and early 90s. The Fluid Physics and Transport Phenomena community has been developed, through NASA's science grants, into a valuable base of expertise in microgravity science. This was achieved through both ground and flight scientific research. Commercial microgravity research has been primarily promoted thorough NASA sponsored Centers for Space Commercialization which develop cost sharing partnerships with industry. As an example, the Center for Advanced Microgravity Materials Processing (CAMMP)at Northeastern University has been working with cost sharing industry partners in developing Zeolites and zeo-type materials as an efficient storage medium for hydrogen fuel. Greater commercial interest is emerging. The U.S. Congress has passed the Commercial Space Act of 1998 to encourage the development of a commercial space industry in the United States. The Act has provisions for the commercialization of the International Space Station (ISS). Increased efforts have been made by NASA to enable industrial ventures on-board the ISS. A Web site has been established at http://commercial/nasa/gov which includes two important special announcements. One is an open request for entrepreneurial offers related to the commercial development and use of the ISS. The second is a price structure and schedule for U.S. resources and accommodations. The purpose of the presentation is to make the Fluid Physics and Transport Phenomena community, which understands the importance of microgravity experimentation, aware of important aspects of ISS commercial development. It is a desire that this awareness will be translated into a recognition of Fluid Physics and Transport Phenomena application opportunities coordinated through the broad contacts of this community with industry.

Gavert, R.↗

NASA NTRS2000

NASA EPSCoR Nebraska Preparation Grant: Year 1. Research Cluster: Small Aircraft Transportation System/Nebraska Implementation Template (SATS-NIT)

NASA, the U.S. Department of Transportation/Federal Aviation Administration, industry stakeholders, and academia have joined forces to pursue the NASA National General Aviation Roadmap leading to a Small Aircraft Transportation System (SATS). This strategic undertaking has a 25-year goal to improve air access and bring next-generation technologies to small communities. The envisioned outcome is to improve travel between remote communities and transportation centers in urban areas by utilizing the nation's 5,400 public use general aviation airports. To facilitate this initiative, SATS stakeholders must plan, coordinate, and implement a comprehensive upgrade of public infrastructure within the framework of the national air transportation system. Ultimately, SATS may permit tripling aviation system throughput capacity by tapping the under-utilized airspace and general aviation facilities. The SATS investments, which begin in FY 2001, are designed to support the national goal of doorstep-to-destination travel at four times the speed of highways for the nation's suburban, rural, and remote communities.

Bartle, John R.↗