Mission: to provide a forum for professional development and for the exchange of technical information among space flight professionals; to advocate international cooperation and operational compatibility in current and future space exploration endeavors:
- Planetary Congress: ASE organizes a Planetary Congress to serve as a forum where members interact professionally and develop ASE programs. The week-long event generates communication on issues of common interest to the international space community, government agencies and the public. Members exchange information about their national space programs, make technical presentations on selected topics relevant to human space flight operations and visit with media and local communities to promote expanded awareness of the benefits of human space exploration. In October, 2010, ASE convened its XXIII Planetary Congress in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
- Technical Symposia: ASE–USA hosts a series of quarterly dinner symposia featuring keynote speakers from the NASA and aerospace contractor community. These events are designed to facilitate professional development for active astronauts as well as to allow former astronauts and interested members of the aerospace community to discuss current and future plans for human space exploration. Past topics have included “Life After Space – Transitioning from NASA to the Private Sector,” “An Early History of STS Development,” “Physiological Research Issues for Long-Duration Missions,” “New Opportunities for Exploration,” “Design Requirements for Next Generation Vehicles,” and “Prospects for Robotic Repair of the Hubble Space Telescope,” “ISS- What Is It Good For, Anyway?,” “Update on CEV Design and Mission Architecture” and “A New Constellation on the Horizon”.
- In 2009, ASE was represented at the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee of the Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, at the AIAA Planetary Defense Conference, at the 37th Sesssion of the Committee on Space Rescue, and at the International Astronautical Congress in Korea.
- ASE–USA National Congress: In 2004 ASE–USA initiated a local version of the international ASE Congress in conjunction with the biannual JSC Astronaut Reunion. The most recent National Congress was held in 2010, in conjunction with the 2010 Astronaut Reunion. This event is designed to allow greater participation by ASE-USA member astronauts as well as corporate and community leaders in local ASE events. The two-day event includes briefings on current spaceflight topics, tours of the Johnson Space Center, a golf tournament and community outreach activities.
- Near Earth Objects Committee: The ASE Committee on Near Earth Objects was formed in 2005 to oversee the delivery of the ASE Open Letter on NEOs to world leaders and relevant international organizations. It sought opportunities, as reflected in the letter, to support both national and international efforts to address the challenges implicit in protecting the Earth from near-Earth object impacts. To facilitate this process the ASE, through its Committee on NEOs, convened a series of workshops, calling on experts from around the world with relevant experience, to address this challenge in detail and to prepare, for submission to COPUOS, a draft NEO deflection protocol for its consideration. The workshops were held in France, Romania, Costa Rica and the United States. The NEO Committee formally presented the results of its work to the United Nations in June, 2009.
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