Upcoming Meeting

Wednesday, April 29, 2026

Federal Register Notice: [Link]

Scope

The International Space Station Advisory Committee (ISSAC) provides independent assessments to the NASA Administrator and the Associate Administrator for Space Operations on all matters related to the safety, operations, and utilization of the International Space Station, including rendezvous and docking procedures; crew, controller, and support training; aerospace systems test and verification procedures; aerospace structures, loads, and materials; aerospace medicine, including crew health and performance; and program and project management, including spaceflight safety and mission assurance strategies.

History

The International Space Station Advisory Committee can trace its roots back to 1994, when the NASA Advisory Council (NAC) established the NAC Task Force on the Shuttle-Mir Rendezvous and Docking Missions (Shuttle-Mir Task Force) to review issues associated with the planning, training, operations, rendezvous and docking, and management of the Shuttle-Mir Program.

Chaired by Lt. Gen. Thomas P. Stafford (USAF, ret), the Shuttle-Mir Task Force met throughout the second half of the 1990s and produced a number of reports and recommendations. The task force was unique in having a Russia-based sister advisory group with whom it met and conducted joint assessments. The Russian advisory group, which was established by the Russian Space Agency (RSA) and reported to the head of RSA, was called the Advisory Expert Council. The NAC Shuttle-Mir Task Force and RSA Advisory Expert Council (together referred to as the Joint Commission) issued joint reports and recommendations throughout the Shuttle-Mir Program.

As the Shuttle-Mir Program was coming to an end in 1998, the Joint Commission began to focus its attention on the safety and operational readiness of the International Space Station. To reflect this shift in focus, in 1999 the NAC changed the name of the Shuttle-Mir Task Force to the Task Force on International Space Station Operational Readiness.

In 2006, its name was changed again when NASA restructured the task force and chartered it as an independent federal advisory committee. General Stafford remained the chairman of the reformatted committee, which was now called the NASA International Space Station Advisory Committee (ISSAC). The reporting structure was also changed, with the ISSAC reporting to the NASA Administrator, whereas its predecessor task forces had reported to the NAC.

Through their joint meetings and joint assessments with the Roscosmos Advisory Expert Council, the ISSAC and its predecessor task forces have proven to be effective at providing insightful advice and promoting open communication and sharing of information between U.S. and Russian space experts. The ISSAC is well positioned to continue playing this important role as the International Space Station moves into its final years of operation.