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We also assembled expert witnesses from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and asked them to use their committee structure to give us a projection of where space technology would be going in the next 50 years.

We also drew on their capability to host a special meeting to discuss the very difficult area of space commercialization in which we had both young entrepreneurs and representatives of the large established companies, all examining the question: Where is the economic future in space, both short-range and long-range?

In addition to this, since we were looking so far into the future, we assembled a gaggle, I suppose you might call - I don't know what you call a group of futurists - but we assembled them to try to get the different insights that people might have on the 21st century America environment.  This is a very difficult subject and we wanted to get the broadest possible viewpoints.  In many ways we felt it was like the classic example of the blind man describing the elephant - each person sees a different facet.  And from all of this we tried to assemble what 21st century America would be like.  And then answer your question: What would be the best possible space program to further the broader goals of 21st century America?

In addition, we traveled overseas, very kindly at your invitation, to talk to our Soviet opposite numbers.  We also discussed in Paris with the European Space Agency their plans for the future.  Others of us attended international meetings in Stockholm, Switzerland, Germany, and Italy.  We had presentations from the European Space Agency.  We had all of the major aerospace contractors come in and give us their viewpoints.  We had many members of academia.  And we also were very privileged at Dr. Tom Donahue's invitation, to go to Woods Hole while his summer group was having their study of the future of space science and, indeed, American science, moving into the next century to make sure that we understood what the mainstream of scientific thought was, the opportunities, the programs that should be put into place.

So, it was from these inputs that we then had our series of meetings.  And I must tell you that the basic approach that we took was that the report's contents would reflect the 15 Commissioners' viewpoints.  All 15 have signed it.  And we laid it out as a ground rule that we would not try to second guess what this committee might wish to receive, might find palatable, what you, Mr. Chairman, might - might wish us to say.  But that, rather, we would try to take a look at the state of this Nation in the year 1985 and 1986; where we thought we were going for the next 50 years;  where we thought the rest of the world was going; what the status of the - of the technology and the economies would be; and particularly, then, of the structure of the inner solar system around us and what opportunities there might be.

And it was from a distillation of all of these considerations that we then, in a series of meetings, hammered out one by one the various points that you see mentioned in our report.

I believe it is fair to say that when you are considering the question of American leadership in space, which you mentioned in your opening remarks, that this implies not only the level of effort and the direction of the United States, but it also implies that we know something about where other nations are going.