The ASAP bases its advice on direct observation of NASA operations and decision-making. In the aftermath of the Shuttle Columbia accident, Congress required that the ASAP submit an annual report to the NASA Administrator and to Congress. The annual report is to examine NASA’s compliance with the recommendations of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board (CAIB), as well as NASA’s management and culture related to safety.

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92-463, as amended, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration will announce meetings of the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel on this page.

Upcoming ASAP Meeting

Thursday, January 30, 2025

Federal Register Notice – January 15, 2025

Background

The Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel is a senior advisory committee that reports to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Congress. The Panel was established by Congress after the Apollo 204 Command and Service Module spacecraft fire in January 1967. 

The Panel’s statutory duties, as prescribed in Section 6 of the NASA Authorization Act of 1968, Public Law 90-67, 42 U.S.C. 2477 are as follows: 

“The Panel shall review safety studies and operations plans that are referred to it and shall make reports thereon, shall advise the Administrator with respect to the hazards of proposed operations and with respect to the adequacy of proposed or existing safety standards, and shall perform such other duties as the Administrator may request.” 

The Act is an effective piece of legislation for two important reasons. One, for the first time in NASA’s history, an independent safety review body provides timely and continuous oversight of its aerospace programs. Two, NASA is required to keep the House Committee on Science and Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation fully informed of its activities. 

For further information, please refer to the following documents: 

• Public Law creating the Panel (pdf) 
• NASA Management Instruction implementing the Panel (pdf) 
• Document describing how the Panel would implement recommendations (pdf) NOT 508 COMPLIANT

Activities

Each year since its inception in 1968, the Panel conducts a number of multifaceted, fact-finding sessions at NASA, its Centers, and contractor sites to review, evaluate, and advise on a wide range of program activities, systems, procedures, and management policies that contribute to risk. After this extensive data gathering process, the Panel then provides identification and assessment of these elements to top management. Priority is given to programs involving human space flight safety. 

In addition to undertaking specific assignments or investigations as requested by the NASA Administrator, Deputy Administrator, and the Congress, the Panel:

• Continuously examines the technical management capability of NASA programs from a safety/reliability viewpoint to assess their strengths and weaknesses. 
• Selects a small number of specific program/project functional hardware/software areas and assess their worthiness with regard to safety/reliability. 
• Assesses those judgments rendered by internal and external review groups. 
• Acts to cause NASA and its contractors to be introspective regarding critical hardware/software systems and subsystems, and the decisions affecting them.

The work of the Panel culminates each year in the publication of its Annual Report. This comprehensive Report presents findings and recommendations in key areas defined by the Panel during the previous year. The Report is a public document distributed to the NASA Administrator, appropriate House and Senate Committees and Subcommittees, NASA Centers, American and international industries, the media, academia and the public.