The
Ride Report is the informal name of the report
titled
NASA Leadership and America's Future in Space: A Report
to the Administrator.
In 1986, a task force under the leadership of
Sally Ride was asked to formulate a new
strategy for NASA
. The
report was issued in 1987.
The Ride Report proposed four main initiatives for study and
evaluation. These were:
- Mission to Planet Earth
- Exploration of the Solar System
- Outpost on the Moon
- Humans to Mars
Mission to Planet Earth would be centred around the
observation of our home planet. New technologies for observation
would be needed, and launch capabilities for
geostationary and
polar orbits. The
space
station that was under planning at the time this report was
issued, is called simply "the Space Station" and is more ambitious
than the current
ISS, in
that it would be well-developed enough to have ability for assembly
of satellites and platforms in orbit. A transfer vehicle to launch
these into geostationary orbit is proposed as well.
In the section
Exploration of the Solar System, the report
points out that there are too few
planetary exploration
missions planned. It proposes some new missions, such as a cometary
mission, an extended
Cassini mission
(including three probes; one for the study of the atmosphere of
Saturn, one atmospheric
Titan probe and one to land on Titan) and a
Mars sample return mission.
A
permanent Lunar outpost
is discussed in
Outpost on the Moon. This goal would be
reached through three phases, where the first would deal with
robotic exploration during the
1990s to find a suitable site. In the second phase, astronauts
would be launched to the Moon on a Lunar transfer vehicle from the
Space Station. They would bring scientific instruments and
equipment and modules for the outpost. In the third phase, the
outpost would be a permanent installation, with closed-loop
life-support systems, and great abilities for
exploration of the Moon. According
to the plan, there would be a crew of 30 living and working on the
Moon by 2010.
In
Humans to Mars the ambitious goal of
manned Mars landing is
proposed to happen as soon as 2010. Preparations for these missions
include robotic exploration of Mars, with orbiters,
rovers and sample return missions. The Space
Station was to be used for study of the human body during long
space flights. The construction of an outpost on Mars could begin
during the 2020s.
The Ride Report also recognizes the risks of making the Space
Station dependent on one single
launch
vehicle - the
Space Shuttle. It
proposes the development of a shuttle-derived cargo launcher, as a
way of diversifying the launch fleet.
See also
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