National Environmental Policy Act; Mars Science Laboratory Mission, 52347-52348 [E6-14649]

Agencies

• National Aeronautics and Space Administration

[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 171 (Tuesday, September 5, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52347-52348]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-14649]


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NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

[Notice (06-063)]


National Environmental Policy Act; Mars Science Laboratory 
Mission

AGENCY: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

ACTION: Notice of availability of draft environmental impact statement 
(DEIS) for implementation of the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission.

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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as 
amended, (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the Council on Environmental 
Quality Regulations for Implementing the Procedural Provisions of NEPA 
(40 CFR Parts 1500-1508), and NASA policy and procedures (14 CFR Part 
1216 subpart 1216.3), NASA has prepared and issued a DEIS for the 
proposed MSL mission. The DEIS addresses the potential environmental 
impacts associated with implementing the mission. The purpose of this 
proposal is to explore the surface of Mars with a mobile science 
laboratory (rover). This environmental impact statement (EIS) is a 
tiered document (Tier 2 EIS) under NASA's Programmatic EIS for the Mars 
Exploration Program (MEP). The DEIS presents descriptions of the 
proposed MSL mission, spacecraft, and candidate launch vehicle; an 
overview of the affected environment at and near the launch site; and 
the potential environmental consequences associated with the Proposed 
Action and alternatives, including the No Action Alternative.
    The MSL mission is planned for launch during the September-November 
2009 time period from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS), 
Florida, on an expendable launch vehicle. The arrival date at Mars 
would range from mid-July 2010 to not later than mid-October 2010, 
depending on the exact launch date and selected landing site, yet to be 
determined, on the surface of Mars. Using advanced instrumentation, the 
MSL rover would acquire significant, detailed information regarding the 
habitability of Mars from a scientifically promising location on the 
surface. The mission would also fulfill NASA's strategic technology 
goals of increasing the mass of science payloads delivered to the 
surface of Mars, expanding access to higher and lower latitudes, 
increasing precision landing capability, and increasing traverse 
capability (mobility) to distances on the order of several kilometers.
    The DEIS evaluates two alternatives in addition to the No Action 
Alternative. Under the Proposed Action (Alternative 1), the proposed 
MSL rover would utilize a radioisotope power system, a Multi-Mission 
Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (MMRTG), as its primary source of 
electrical power to operate and conduct science on the surface of Mars. 
Under Alternative 2, an MSL rover would utilize solar energy as its 
primary source of electrical power to operate and conduct science on 
the surface of Mars.

DATES: Written comments on the DEIS must be received by NASA no later 
than October 23, 2006, or 45 days from the date of publication in the 
Federal Register of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's notice 
of availability of the MSL DEIS, whichever is later.

ADDRESSES: Comments submitted via first class, registered, or certified 
mail should be addressed to Mark R. Dahl, Mail Suite 3X63, Planetary 
Science Division, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters, 300 E 
Street SW., Washington, DC 20546-0001. Comments submitted via express 
mail, a commercial deliverer, or courier service should be addressed to 
Mark R. Dahl, Mail Suite 3X63, Planetary Science Division, Science 
Mission Directorate, Attn: Receiving & Inspection (Rear of Building), 
NASA Headquarters, 300 E Street SW., Washington, DC 20024-3210. While 
hard copy comments are preferred, comments may be sent by electronic 
mail to mep.nepa@hq.nasa.gov.
    The DEIS may be reviewed at the following locations:
    (a) NASA Headquarters, Library, Room 1J20, 300 E Street, SW., 
Washington, DC 20546;
    (b) Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Visitors Lobby, Building 249, 4800 
Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, CA 91109.
    Hard copies of the DEIS also may be examined at other NASA Centers 
(see SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION below).
    Limited hard copies of the DEIS are available, on a first request 
basis, by contacting Mark R. Dahl at the address, telephone number, or 
electronic mail address indicated herein. The DEIS is also available in 
Adobe[supreg] portable document format at https://spacescience.nasa.gov/
admin/pubs/msl/index.htm.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark R. Dahl, Planetary Science 
Division, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters, Washington, 
DC 20546-0001, telephone 202-358-4800, or electronic mail 
mep.nepa@hq.nasa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The MEP is currently being implemented as a 
sustained series of flight missions to Mars, each of which will provide 
important, focused scientific return. The MEP is fundamentally a 
science driven program whose focus is on understanding and 
characterizing Mars as a dynamic system and ultimately addressing 
whether life is or was ever a part of that system. The core MEP 
addresses the highest priority scientific investigations directly 
related to the Program goals and objectives. MSL investigations would 
be a means of addressing several of the high-priority scientific 
investigations recommended to NASA by the planetary science community.
    The overall scientific goals of the MSL mission can be divided into 
four areas: (1) Assess the biological potential of at least one 
selected site on Mars, (2) characterize the geology and geochemistry of 
the landing region at all appropriate spatial scales, (3) investigate 
planetary processes of relevance to past habitability, and (4) 
characterize the broad spectrum of the Martian surface radiation 
environment. The following specific objectives are planned for the 
mission to address these goals:


[[Page 52348]]


--Determine the nature and inventory of organic carbon compounds;
--Inventory the chemical building blocks of life (carbon, hydrogen, 
nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, and sulfur);
--Identify features that may represent the effects of biological 
processes;
--Investigate the chemical, isotopic, and mineralogical composition of 
Martian surface and near-surface geological materials;
--Interpret the processes that have formed and modified rocks and 
regolith;
--assess long-timescale (i.e., 4-billion-year) atmospheric evolution 
processes; and
--Determine the present state, distribution, and cycling of water and 
carbon dioxide.

    The proposed MSL mission would utilize a rover with advanced 
instrumentation to acquire significant detailed information regarding 
the habitability of Mars from a scientifically promising location. The 
mission would also fulfill NASA's strategic technology goals of 
increasing the mass of science payloads delivered to the surface of 
Mars, expanding access to higher and lower latitudes, increasing 
precision landing capability, and increasing traverse capability 
(mobility) to distances on the order of several kilometers.
    Mobility is essential because evidence for past or present life on 
Mars will very likely not be so abundant or widespread that it will be 
available in the immediate vicinity of the selected landing site. 
Without the mobility necessary to conduct in situ exploration, it may 
not be possible to uniquely characterize a target location.
    The Proposed Action (Alternative 1) consists of continuing 
preparations for and implementing the MSL mission to Mars. The proposed 
MSL rover would utilize a MMRTG as its primary source of electrical 
power to operate and conduct science on the surface of Mars. Under 
Alternative 2, NASA would discontinue preparations for the Proposed 
Action (Alternative 1) and implement an alternative MSL mission to 
Mars. The alternative MSL rover would utilize solar energy as its 
primary source of electrical power to operate and conduct science on 
the surface of Mars. With either the Proposed Action (Alternative 1) or 
Alternative 2, the MSL spacecraft would be launched on board an 
expendable launch vehicle from CCAFS, Florida during the September-
November 2009 time period. Under the No Action Alternative, NASA would 
discontinue preparations for the MSL mission, and the spacecraft would 
not be launched. With either the Proposed Action (Alternative 1) or 
Alternative 2, the potentially affected environment for a normal launch 
includes the area at and in the vicinity of the launch site, CCAFS in 
Florida. The environmental impacts of a normal launch of the mission 
for either alternative would be associated principally with the exhaust 
emissions from the expendable launch vehicle. These effects would 
include: (1) Short-term impacts on air quality within the exhaust cloud 
and near the launch pad, and (2) the potential for acidic deposition on 
the vegetation and surface water bodies at and near the launch complex.
    Potential launch accidents could result in the release of some of 
the radioactive material on board the spacecraft. The MMRTG planned for 
use on the rover for the Proposed Action (Alternative 1) would use 
plutonium dioxide, with a radioisotope inventory of approximately 
58,700 curies, to provide electrical power. For either alternative, two 
of the science instruments on the rover would use small quantities of 
radioactive material, totaling approximately two curies, for instrument 
calibration or science experiments.
    The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), in cooperation with NASA, has 
performed a risk assessment of potential accidents for the MSL mission. 
This assessment used a methodology refined through applications to the 
Galileo, Ulysses, Cassini, Mars Exploration Rover, and New Horizons 
missions. DOE's risk assessment for the proposed MSL mission indicates 
that in the event of a launch accident the expected impacts of released 
radioactive material at and in the vicinity of the launch area, and on 
a global basis, would be small. Alternative 2 would not involve any 
MMRTG-associated radiological risks since an MMRTG would not be used 
for this mission alternative.
    NASA will hold public comment meetings during which the public is 
invited to participate in an open exchange of information and 
submission of comments on the DEIS. Each public meeting will begin with 
an opportunity for informal discussions with project personnel, 
followed by a brief NASA presentation on the MSL mission, and conclude 
with the submission of formal comments, both written and oral. These 
meetings will be held on:

--September 27, 2006, from 1 p.m.-4 p.m. and 6 p.m.-9 p.m. at the 
Florida Solar Energy Center; H. George Carrison Auditorium; 1679 
Clearlake Road, Cocoa, Florida 32922;
--October 10, 2006, from 1 p.m.-4 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Washington 
on Capitol Hill; Congressional Room A; 400 New Jersey Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20001.

    Further information on the public meetings can be obtained by 
contacting Mark R. Dahl at the address or telephone number indicated 
herein, or by visiting the MSL DEIS Web site at: https://
spacescience.nasa.gov/admin/pubs/msl/index.htm. Advanced registration 
for attending any of the meetings is not required.
    The FEIS may be examined at the following NASA locations by 
contacting the pertinent Freedom of Information Office:
    (a) NASA, Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035 (650-604-
3273);
    (b) NASA, Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, CA 93523 (661-
276-2704);
    (c) NASA, Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field, Cleveland, OH 44135 
(216-433-2813);
    (d) NASA, Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (301-
286-4721);
    (e) NASA, Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX 77058 (281-483-8612);
    (f) NASA, Kennedy Space Center, FL 32899 (321-867-9280);
    (g) NASA, Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA 23681 (757-864-
2497);
    (h) NASA, Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL 35812 (256-
544-1837); and
    (i) NASA, Stennis Space Center, MS 39529 (228-688-2118).
    Any person, organization, or governmental body or agency interested 
in receiving a copy of NASA's Record of Decision after it is rendered 
should so indicate by mail or electronic mail to Mr. Dahl at the 
addresses provided above.
    Written public input and comments on alternatives and environmental 
issues and concerns associated with the proposed Mars Science 
Laboratory mission are hereby requested.

Olga M. Dominguez,
Assistant Administrator for Infrastructure and Administration.
 [FR Doc. E6-14649 Filed 9-1-06; 8:45 am]
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