Notice of Information Collection, 9339-9340 [2018-04412]

Agencies

• National Aeronautics and Space Administration

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 43 (Monday, March 5, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9339-9340]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-04412]


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NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

[Notice: (18-015)]


Notice of Information Collection

AGENCY: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

ACTION: Notice of information collection.

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SUMMARY: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, as part of 
its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, 
invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this 
opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information 
collections.

DATES: All comments should be submitted within 60 calendar days from 
the date of this publication.

ADDRESSES: All comments should be addressed to Lori Parker, National 
Aeronautics and Space Administration, 300 E Street SW, Washington, DC 
20546-0001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of the information collection instrument(s) and instructions 
should be directed to Lori Parker, NASA Clearance Officer, NASA 
Headquarters, 300 E Street SW, JF0000, Washington, DC 20546, (202) 358-
1351.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract

    Supersonic flight over land is currently restricted in the U.S. and 
many countries because sonic boom

[[Page 9340]]

noise disturbs people on the ground and can potentially damage private 
property. NASA has developed a method for generating low level sonic 
boom noise similar to that anticipated for quiet supersonic flight. As 
sufficient research is assembled, there is potential for a change in 
federal and international policy.
    The Waveforms Sonic Boom Perception and Response Risk Reduction 
(WSPRRR) test will utilize a specialized maneuver developed by NASA 
using an existing F-18 research aircraft to correlate human annoyance 
response with low level sonic boom noise in a community setting. This 
effort is designed to evaluate remote aircraft basing and operations, 
community engagement, sonic boom measurements, and community annoyance 
surveys. The effort will improve research methods for future community-
scale response testing using a purpose-built, low boom flight 
demonstration aircraft (LBFD).
    NASA supported two prior risk reduction field tests to evaluate 
data collection methods for low boom community response at Edwards Air 
Force Base (EAFB) in November 2011 (see ref. 1&2). The findings from 
both studies are not readily generalizable to a larger population, as 
the residents at EAFB are accustomed to hearing full level sonic booms 
on a routine basis.

II. Methods of Collection

    The Agency will only submit a collection for approval under this 
generic clearance if it meets the following conditions:
    The collections are voluntary;
    The collections are low-burden for respondents (based on 
considerations of total burden hours, total number of respondents, or 
burden-hours per respondent) and are low-cost for both the respondents 
and the Federal Government;
    The collections are non-controversial and do not raise issues of 
concern to other Federal agencies;
    Any collection is targeted to the solicitation of opinions from 
respondents who have experience with the program or may have experience 
with the program in the near future;
    Information gathered will be used only internally for general 
service improvement and program management purposes and is not intended 
for release outside of the agency;
    Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of 
substantially informing influential policy decisions; and
    Information gathered will yield qualitative information; the 
collections will not be designed or expected to yield statistically 
reliable results or used as though the results are generalizable to the 
population of study.
    Feedback collected under this generic clearance provides useful 
information, but it does not yield data that can be generalized to the 
overall population. This type of generic clearance for qualitative 
information will not be used for quantitative information collections 
that are designed to yield reliably actionable results, such as 
monitoring trends over time or documenting program performance. Such 
data uses require more rigorous designs that address: The target 
population to which generalizations will be made, the sampling frame, 
the sample design (including stratification and clustering), the 
precision requirements or power calculations that justify the proposed 
sample size, the expected response rate, methods for assessing 
potential non-response bias, the protocols for data collection, and any 
testing procedures that were or will be undertaken prior to fielding 
the study. Depending on the degree of influence the results are likely 
to have, such collections may still be eligible for submission for 
other generic mechanisms that are designed to yield quantitative 
results.
    As a general matter, information collections will not result in any 
new system of records containing privacy information and will not ask 
questions of a sensitive nature, such as sexual behavior and attitudes, 
religious beliefs, and other matters that are commonly considered 
private.

III. Data

    Title: Waveforms Sonic Boom Perception and Response Risk Reduction 
(WSPRRR) Program.
    OMB Number: 2700-xxxx.
    Type of Review: New Clearance.
    Affected Public: Individuals and Households, Businesses and 
Organizations, State, Local, or Tribal Government.
    Average Expected Annual Number of Activities: 50.
    Average Number of Respondents per Activity: Variable.
    Annual Responses: Variable.
    Frequency of Responses: Variable.
    Average Minutes per Response: Variable.
    Burden Hours: 2,000.

IV. Request for Comments

    Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
NASA, including whether the information collected has practical 
utility; (2) the accuracy of NASA's estimate of the burden (including 
hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information; (3) ways to 
enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be 
collected; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on respondents, including automated collection techniques 
or the use of other forms of information technology.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized 
and included in the request for OMB approval of this information 
collection. They will also become a matter of public record.

Lori Parker,
NASA PRA Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2018-04412 Filed 3-2-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7510-13-P