The Galactic Centre and Bulge above the ESO 3

The Astronomy and Astrophysics Decadal Survey is a review of

astronomy Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest includ ...

and

astrophysics Astrophysics is a science that employs the methods and principles of physics and chemistry in the study of astronomical objects and phenomena. As one of the founders of the discipline, James Keeler, said, astrophysics "seeks to ascertain the ...

literature produced approximately every ten years by the National Research Council of the

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the ...

in the United States. The report surveys the current state of the field, identifies research priorities, and makes recommendations for the coming decade. The

decadal survey A decadal survey is a 10-year plan outlining scientific missions and goals created by the United States National Academies. It is a summary of input from scientists in the United States and beyond. Examples include: * Astronomy and Astrophysics ...

represents the recommendations of the research community to governmental agencies on how to prioritize scientific funding within astronomy and astrophysics. The editing committee is informed by topical panels and subcommittees, dedicated

conferences A conference is a meeting, often lasting a few days, which is organized on a particular subject, or to bring together people who have a common interest. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always d ...

, and direct community input in the form of

white paper A white paper is a report or guide that informs readers concisely about a complex issue and presents the issuing body's philosophy on the matter. It is meant to help readers understand an issue, solve a problem, or make a decision. Since the 199 ...

s summarizing the state of the art in each subdiscipline. The most recent report, Astro2020, was released in 2021.

Ground-Based Astronomy: A Ten-Year Program, 1964

The first report, ''Ground-Based Astronomy: A Ten-Year Program'', was released in 1964. The authoring committee was chaired by Albert Whitford. The report recommends construction of national observing facilities, including especially mid-sized ground-based optical telescopes.

Astronomy and Astrophysics for the 1970s, 1972

The second report, ''Astronomy and Astrophysics for the 1970s'', was released in 1972. The committee was chaired by Jesse L. Greenstein. It recommends priorities for both space- and ground-based programs, and was instrumental in the eventual construction of the

Very Large Array The Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) is a centimeter-wavelength radio astronomy observatory in the southwestern United States built in the 1970s. It lies in central New Mexico on the Plains of San Agustin, between the towns of Magdalena, Ne ...

Astronomy and Astrophysics for the 1980s, 1982

The third report, ''Astronomy and Astrophysics for the 1980s'', was released in 1982. The committee was chaired by George B. Field. It recommended the launch of the "Advanced X-Ray Astrophysics Facility", which was realized in 1999 as the

Chandra X-ray Observatory The Chandra X-ray Observatory (CXO), previously known as the Advanced X-ray Astrophysics Facility (AXAF), is a Flagship-class space telescope launched aboard the during STS-93 by NASA on July 23, 1999. Chandra is sensitive to X-ray sources ...

. It also identified construction of the

Very Long Baseline Array The Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) is a system of ten radio telescopes which are operated remotely from their Array Operations Center located in Socorro, New Mexico, as a part of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO). These ten radio ...

as a priority, in addition to briefly mentioning the

Hubble Space Telescope The Hubble Space Telescope (HST or Hubble) is a space telescope that was launched into low Earth orbit in 1990 and remains in operation. It was not the Orbiting Solar Observatory, first space telescope, but it is one of the largest and most ...

(before it received that name) and the Shuttle Infrared Telescope Facility (later Spitzer).

The Decade of Discovery in Astronomy and Astrophysics, 1991

The fourth report, ''The Decade of Discovery in Astronomy and Astrophysics'', was released in 1991. The committee was chaired by John N. Bahcall. It recommended the launch of the "Space Infrared Telescope Facility", realized in 2003 as the

Spitzer Space Telescope The Spitzer Space Telescope, formerly the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), was an infrared space telescope launched in 2003, that was deactivated when operations ended on 30 January 2020. Spitzer was the third space telescope dedicate ...

, the fourth and final in NASA's

Great Observatories program NASA's series of Great Observatories satellites are four large, powerful space telescope, space-based astronomical telescopes launched between 1990 and 2003. They were built with different technology to examine specific wavelength/energy region ...

Astronomy and Astrophysics in the New Millennium, 2001

The fifth report, ''Astronomy and Astrophysics in the New Millennium'', was released in 2001. The committee was co-chaired by Christopher McKee and Joseph H. Taylor. It gives highest priority to the construction and launch of Next Generation Space Telescope, now known as the

James Webb Space Telescope The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a space telescope designed to conduct infrared astronomy. As the largest telescope in space, it is equipped with high-resolution and high-sensitivity instruments, allowing it to view objects too old, Lis ...

which launched on 25 December 2021. The report reaffirms the 1991 recommendation for the completion of the Millimeter Array, now part of the

Atacama Large Millimeter Array The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) is an astronomical interferometer of 66 radio telescopes in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile, which observe electromagnetic radiation at millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths. The ar ...

international collaboration. It also examines the benefits of a robust astronomy research program to the nation, and expresses concern regarding the percentage of funding tied to a few large projects.

New Worlds, New Horizons in Astronomy and Astrophysics, 2010

The sixth report, ''New Worlds, New Horizons in Astronomy and Astrophysics'', was released in 2010. The committee was chaired by Roger D. Blandford. Recommendations for scientific questions to be answered include: the nature of

dark energy In physical cosmology and astronomy, dark energy is a proposed form of energy that affects the universe on the largest scales. Its primary effect is to drive the accelerating expansion of the universe. It also slows the rate of structure format ...

; the structure, distribution, and evolution of exoplanetary systems; detailed examination of extreme processes including

supernovae A supernova (: supernovae or supernovas) is a powerful and luminous explosion of a star. A supernova occurs during the last evolutionary stages of a massive star, or when a white dwarf is triggered into runaway nuclear fusion. The original ob ...

and the merger of superdense objects; and how galaxies and galaxy clusters formed from the early hot universe. The report also examines technical readiness, scheduling, and funding issues as well as basic science. The recommendations consider a range of funding scenarios based on projected budgets for the major funding agencies,

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

, the

National Science Foundation The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) is an Independent agencies of the United States government#Examples of independent agencies, independent agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that su ...

, and the

Department of Energy A ministry of energy or department of energy is a government department in some countries that typically oversees the production of fuel and electricity; in the United States, however, it manages nuclear weapons development and conducts energy-rela ...

. The top priorities identified by the report include: * Wide-Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST), now known as the

Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope (shortened as the Roman Space Telescope, Roman, or RST) is a NASA infrared space telescope in development and scheduled to launch to a Sun–Earth L2 orbit by May 2027. It is named after former NASA Chie ...

, a space-based telescope to be located at Lagrangian point L2 that will survey and catalogue

exoplanets An exoplanet or extrasolar planet is a planet outside the Solar System. The first confirmed detection of an exoplanet was in 1992 around a pulsar, and the first detection around a main-sequence star was in 1995. A different planet, first detec ...

and may help settle questions of the nature of

. *

Large Synoptic Survey Telescope The Vera C. Rubin Observatory, formerly known as the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), is an astronomy, astronomical observatory in Chile. Its main task will be carrying out a synoptic astronomical survey, the Legacy Survey of Space and Tim ...

(LSST), now known as the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, a wide field ground-based telescope that will provide measurements of

weak gravitational lensing While the presence of any mass bends the path of light passing near it, this effect rarely produces the giant arcs and multiple images associated with strong gravitational lensing. Most lines of sight in the universe are thoroughly in the weak ...

and map and record transient or moving phenomena such as

and

near-Earth asteroid A near-Earth object (NEO) is any small Solar System body orbiting the Sun whose closest approach to the Sun (perihelion) is less than 1.3 times the Earth–Sun distance (astronomical unit, AU). This definition applies to the object's orbit aro ...

s. * New Worlds Technology Development Program to plan and lay the groundwork for future missions to study nearby Earth-like exoplanets *

Cerro Chajnantor Atacama Telescope The Cerro Chajnantor Atacama Telescope (CCAT) is a proposed diameter telescope that is intended to reveal the cosmic origins of stars, planets, and galaxies with its Submillimetre astronomy, submillimeter cameras and spectrometers enabled by sup ...

(CCAT), a ground-based telescope sensitive in the millimeter and submillimeter range. CCAT will survey young dusty star systems and galaxies, and serve as a companion to

at the same site. Other priorities include

Laser Interferometer Space Antenna The Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) is a planned space probe to detect and measure gravitational waves—tiny ripples in the fabric of spacetime—from astronomical sources. LISA will be the first dedicated space-based gravitational-w ...

(LISA) for measuring

gravitational waves Gravitational waves are oscillations of the gravitational field that travel through space at the speed of light; they are generated by the relative motion of gravitating masses. They were proposed by Oliver Heaviside in 1893 and then later by H ...

and

International X-ray Observatory The International X-ray Observatory (IXO) is a cancelled X-ray telescope that was to be launched in 2021 as a joint effort by NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). In May 2008, ESA and NASA e ...

for investigating black holes and the evolution of large scale structure in the universe. The report also recommends augmenting the Explorer program for small and medium-sized missions with rapid turnaround and high scientific return, and the creation of a Midscale Innovations Program within the

for funding projects in the $4–135 million range.

Pathways to Discovery in Astronomy and Astrophysics for the 2020s

The seventh report, released to the public at 11 am ET on Thursday, November 4, 2021, recommended scientific priorities and investments for the next decade to help achieve the following primary goals: search for habitable exoplanets and

extraterrestrial life Extraterrestrial life, or alien life (colloquially, aliens), is life that originates from another world rather than on Earth. No extraterrestrial life has yet been scientifically conclusively detected. Such life might range from simple forms ...

, study

black hole A black hole is a massive, compact astronomical object so dense that its gravity prevents anything from escaping, even light. Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity predicts that a sufficiently compact mass will form a black hole. Th ...

s and

neutron star A neutron star is the gravitationally collapsed Stellar core, core of a massive supergiant star. It results from the supernova explosion of a stellar evolution#Massive star, massive star—combined with gravitational collapse—that compresses ...

s and study the growth and evolution of galaxies. The top priority recommended to the NSF was to combine the

Thirty Meter Telescope The Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) is a planned extremely large telescope (ELT) proposed to be built on Mauna Kea, on the Hawaii (island), island of Hawai'i. The TMT would become the largest visible-light telescope on Mauna Kea. Scientists hav ...

and

Giant Magellan Telescope The Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) is a ground-based, extremely large telescope currently under construction at Las Campanas Observatory in Chile's Atacama Desert. With a primary mirror diameter of 25.4 meters, it is expected to be the largest G ...

programs into one United States Extremely Large Telescope program. The top priority recommended to NASA was to establish a new Great Observatories Mission and Technology Maturation program that would conduct studies into 2030s-launched telescopes, with a

hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two diff ...

of LUVOIR (successor to Hubble) and HabEx (successor to Spitzer) as the first major project with an estimated cost of US$11 billion, to be followed by cheaper

far-infrared astronomy Far-infrared astronomy is the branch of astronomy and astrophysics that deals with objects visible in far-infrared radiation (extending from 30 μm towards submillimeter wavelengths around 450 μm). In the far-infrared, stars are not espec ...

and

X-ray astronomy X-ray astronomy is an observational branch of astronomy which deals with the study of X-ray observation and detection from astronomical objects. X-radiation is absorbed by the Earth's atmosphere, so instruments to detect X-rays must be taken to ...

designs (the

Origins Space Telescope Origins Space Telescope (''Origins'') is a concept study for a far-infrared survey space telescope mission.Lynx X-ray Observatory The Lynx X-ray Observatory (''Lynx'') is a NASA-funded Large strategic science missions, Large Mission Concept Study commissioned as part of the National Academy of Sciences 2020 Astronomy and Astrophysics Decadal Survey. The concept study phas ...

) with an estimated cost from US$3 billion to US$5 billion each. NASA formally endorsed and initiated the plans in 2024.

References

{{Portal bar , Astronomy, Education, New York (state), Outer space, Science, Solar System, Spaceflight, Stars Astronomy organizations United States National Academies Decadal science surveys