A Review of the Community Assessment Report (CAR) from the Mass Change Decadal Observable Applications Team

In support of the Mass Change (MC) satellite mission development, the NASA Mass MC Decadal Observables Study Team formed the MC Applications Team (MCAT) to assess user communities and their needs. Applications requirements were derived from the National Academy of Sciences’ 2017-2027 Decadal Survey for Earth Science and Applications from Space and from community engagement activities. A number of engagement mechanisms were employed to identify and reach out to both communities of practice (end-users and decision makers with experience using Earth observing satellite data such as GRACE) and communities of potential (stakeholders from select user communities who may have operational or practical uses for MC data and information products).

 

A primary goal of the MCAT was the development of a Community Assessment Report (CAR) to identify user communities, particularly those underserved, that may offer an opportunity for expanding the user base for NASA Earth observations and research applications for the future MC mission. CAR activities included assessments of both communities of practice (comprised of existing users of EO gravity mission data), and communities of potential (those who may benefit from future MC mission data or information products). Mass change observations have the potential to support numerous practical applications across a wide range of Earth systems variables. The focus of MCAT user engagement in this analysis was principally on water resources applications, due to the great potential for assessment and management using these observations ((for example, groundwater conservation planning). With the CAR, we were able to identify and characterize select existing and potential user communities, describe specific use cases for these communities, suggest pathways for future sustained engagement, and provide recommendations for next steps.