Proposed Science Themes for NASA’s Fifth New Frontiers Mission

By: Space Studies Board and Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences and National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and Committee on Astrobiology and Planetary Sciences and Committee on Proposed Science Themes for NASA’s Fifth New Frontiers Mission

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Synopsis: NASA’s New Frontiers (NF) program plays a crucial role in solar system exploration by soliciting principal investigator (PI)-led missions at a more frequent cadence of two per decade than flagship missions, but with a larger budget and scope than Discovery missions. Mission themes for the New Frontiers 5 (NF-5) announcement of opportunity (AO) were evaluated in the 2011 planetary science decadal survey Vision and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013-2022 and reevaluated in Report Series - Committee on Astrobiology and Planetary Science: Options for the Fifth New Frontiers Announcement of Opportunity. The most recent planetary science decadal survey, Origins, Worlds, and Life: A Decadal Strategy for Planetary Science and Astrobiology 2023-2032, recommended mission themes for NF-6 and NF-7 for the current decade (2023–2032). Since the completion of the Origins, Worlds, and Life report, the timing for the upcoming NF-5 AO has been delayed to no earlier than 2026, overlapping with the timeframe expected for NF-6. Therefore, NASA requested that the National Academies investigate and report on any scientific, programmatic, and technological advances that have a significant impact on the mission themes prioritized for the next NF AO.