THE DECADE OF DISCOVERY IN ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS

By ANDREW PEREZ

CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY RECOMMENDATIONS INTRODUCTION OUR PLACE IN THE UNIVERSE DISCOVERIES OF THE 1980S THE 1990S: THE DECADE OF DISCOVERY PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF THIS STUDY CHARGE TO THE COMMITTEE CONTENTS OF THIS REPORT RECOMMENDATIONS FOR STRENGTHENING GROUND-BASED INFRASTRUCTURE ACHIEVING A BALANCED SPACE PROGRAM OVERALL STRATEGY SIGNIFICANCE OF LARGE SPACE OBSERVATORIES RECOMMENDED NEW EQUIPMENT INITIATIVES GROUND AND SPACE INITIATIVES THE COMBINED EQUIPMENT LIST SMALL PROJECTS AND TECHNOLOGICAL INITIATIVES EXPLANATION OF NEW EQUIPMENT INITIATIVES SCIENCE OPPORTUNITIES OUR SOLAR SYSTEM AND THE SEARCH FOR OTHER PLANETS THE FORMATION AND EVOLUTION OF OUR SOLAR SYSTEM THE SEARCH FOR OTHER PLANETS COMETS AND THE ORIGINS OF LIFE WEATHER AND VOLCANOES THE LIFE HISTORY OF STARS THE SUN THE FORMATION OF STARS THE LIFE AND DEATH OF STARS THE LIFE HISTORY OF GALAXIES THE MILKY WAY AS A GALAXY THE EVOLUTION OF GALAXIES THE POWER SOURCE OF QUASARS AND ACTIVE GALAXIES THE BIRTH OF GALAXIES THE LIFE HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSE THE BIG BANG MODEL THE LARGE-SCALE STRUCTURE OF THE UNIVERSE DARK MATTER THE ORIGIN OF THE UNIVERSE THE END OF THE UNIVERSE EXISTING PROGRAMS GROUND-BASED ASTRONOMY OPTICAL AND INFRARED ASTRONOMY RADIO ASTRONOMY PLANETARY ASTRONOMY SOLAR ASTRONOMY THE SEARCH FOR EXTRATERRESTRIAL INTELLIGENCE SPACE ASTRONOMY THE GREAT OBSERVATORIES THE EXPLORER PROGRAM THE SUBORBITAL PROGRAM INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATIONS SHUTTLE PAYLOADS TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT THEORETICAL AND LABORATORY ASTROPHYSICS PARTICLE ASTROPHYSICS NEW INITIATIVES THE DECADE OF THE INFRARED HIGH SPATIAL RESOLUTION THE MILLIMETER ARRAY ADAPTIVE OPTICS OPTICAL AND INFRARED INTERFEROMETERS ASTROMETRIC INTERFEROMETRY MISSION LARGE EARTH-BASED SOLAR TELESCOPE VLA EXTENSION CONSTRUCTION OF LARGE TELESCOPES A SOUTHERN 8-M TELESCOPE CONSTRUCTION AND SUPPORT OF 4-M TELESCOPES THE INFORMATION EXPLOSION OTHER INITIATIVES DEDICATED SPACECRAFT FOR FUSE ACCELERATION OF THE EXPLORER PROGRAM FLY'S EYE TELESCOPE ASTRONOMY AND THE COMPUTER REVOLUTION A HIERARCHY OF COMPUTING POWER DATA ACQUISITION AND PROCESSING DATA REDUCTION AND ANALYSIS ARCHIVING COMPUTERS AND THEORETICAL ASTROPHYSICS WORKSTATIONS AND HIERARCHICAL COMPUTING NETWORKS COMMUNITY CODE DEVELOPMENT ASTRONOMY FROM THE MOON ASTRONOMY AND THE SPACE EXPLORATION INITIATIVE THE MOON AS AN OBSERVATORY SITE PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS A HUMAN PRESENCE SCIENCE FROM A LUNAR OBSERVATORY OBSERVATIONS WITH SINGLE TELESCOPES INTERFEROMETRY AT VISIBLE AND NEAR-INFRARED WAVELENGTHS INTERFEROMETRY AT SUBMILLIMETER WAVELENGTHS RADIO OBSERVATIONS HIGH-ENERGY ASTROPHYSICS AN EVOLUTIONARY PROGRAM OF TECHNOLOGICAL AND SCIENTIFIC DEVELOP- MENT SPECIFIC TECHNOLOGY INITIATIVES THE IMPACT OF THE LUNAR PROGRAM WHERE SHOULD THE PROGRAM BE IN 10 YEARS? CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS POLICY OPPORTUNITIES THE PREVIOUS DECADE EDUCATIONAL INITIATIVE REVIVING GROUND-BASED ASTRONOMY BALANCED SPACE ASTROPHYSICS PROGRAM INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION ASTRONOMY AS A NATIONAL ASSET ASTRONOMY AND AMERICA'S SCIENTIFIC LEADERSHIP PUBLIC SCIENTIFIC LITERACY TRAINING OF PROFESSIONAL SCIENTISTS SYNERGISM WITH OTHER SCIENCES HIGH-ENERGY AND PARTICLE PHYSICS GEOPHYSICS ASTRONOMY AND THE EARTH'S ENVIRONMENT AN ASTRONOMICAL CONTEXT FOR THE EARTH'S ENVIRONMENT MODELS OF THE EARTH'S ENVIRONMENT ASTRONOMY, WEATHER, AND OZONE DEPLETION USES OF ASTRONOMICAL TECHNIQUES OUTSIDE ASTRONOMY MEDICINE INDUSTRY DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY WHY THEY CALL IT UNIVERSAL TIME ENERGY ASTRONOMY AS AN INTERNATIONAL ENTERPRISE REFERENCES