[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 91 (Tuesday, May 13, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20320-20321]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-08389]
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NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
[NASA Document No: NASA-25-008; NASA Docket No: NASA-25-0002]
National Environmental Policy Act; Notice of Availability of the
Draft Supplemental Programmatic Environmental Assessment (PEA) for
NASA's Scientific Balloon Program
AGENCY: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
ACTION: Notice of availability.
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SUMMARY: Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as
amended, NASA has prepared and issued a Draft Supplemental PEA that
analyzes scientific balloon launch/flight operations originating from
NASA's Balloon Program Office (BPO) facilities in Fort Sumner, New
Mexico, Palestine, Texas, and the proposed Burns, Oregon scientific
balloon launch facility. Written public input and comments on
alternatives, environmental issues, or other matters associated with
the scientific balloon program's activities are hereby requested.
DATES: Publication of this notice of availability starts a 30-day
public comment period. Interested parties are invited to submit
comments on environmental issues and the substance of the Draft
Supplemental PEA by June 12, 2025.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and materials may be submitted through one
of the following methods:
U.S. Mail: Comments submitted via first class, registered,
or certified mail should be addressed to Shari Miller, Mail Stop 250,
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Wallops Flight Facility, 34200 Fulton
Street, Wallops Island, VA 23337.
Federal E-Rulemaking Portal: Written comments and
recommendations should be sent within 30 days of publication of this
notice. You may submit comments, identified by NASA Docket Number NASA-
25-0002 to the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
We encourage you to submit comments electronically through the
Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov. If submitting
your comments electronically, it is not necessary to also submit a hard
copy. All comments received will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov. Before including your address, phone number, email
address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, be
advised that your entire comment--including any personal identifying
information you provide--may be publicly available at any time. Please
see SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for additional electronic access for
details on accessing the Draft Supplemental PEA.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shari Miller via telephone at 757-824-
2327, or email at [email protected] and [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: For over 35 years, NASA has launched and
monitored the flights of scientific balloons launched from the BPO
facilities at the Fort Sumner Municipal Airport in the Village of Fort
Sumner, New Mexico, and in Palestine, Texas. Scientific balloons are
used to collect scientific data and conduct research in the fields of
geoscience, heliophysics, and astrophysics while operating in a near-
space environment. Currently, NASA launches 31 scientific balloons each
year. NASA proposes to increase the annual number of scientific
balloons launched by adding a new launch site. In accordance with NEPA,
NASA has prepared this Scientific Balloon Program Supplemental PEA to
evaluate the potential environmental effects of adding a new scientific
balloon launch site in Burns, Oregon and a new tracking station at
Idaho Falls, Idaho. This site, to the north of the existing sites,
would allow for larger cargos and longer float times, increasingly in
demand. Up to ten scientific balloon flights per year would be launched
from the proposed Burns launch site. In addition, construction,
demolition, and renovation would take place at the Fort Sumner,
Palestine, and proposed Burns launch sites and the Idaho Falls tracking
site.
NASA has launched and monitored the flights of balloons from BPO
launch facilities located in Fort Sumner, New Mexico and Palestine,
Texas for over 35 years. Balloons are used to collect scientific data
and conduct research on the atmosphere and near-space environments
primarily in support of NASA's Science Mission Directorate. Significant
finds, such as the discovery of the ozone hole above the Antarctic in
the mid-1980s, have been made by
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instruments tested or operated on NASA scientific balloon missions.
NASA's scientific balloon program has seen a dramatic increase in
the demand to test more sophisticated equipment and experiments.
Because of the flexibility and flight longevity of the program, a
steady stream of new instrumentation can be tested on scientific
balloons. Each year, the NASA BPO accepts applications from scientific
researchers and students requesting support. The applications that are
selected are chosen based on scientific and technical merit; however,
many are not selected due to the high demands at the existing launch
sites. Therefore, NASA BPO proposes to increase the number of launches
each year by 10 to a total of 41 possible launches by adding a launch
site to meet new science mission desires, i.e., larger payload
(physical size, shape, and weight) and longer afloat times.
The Draft Supplemental PEA addresses the environmental impacts
associated with balloon launch, flight, and recovery operations; the
construction and operation of a proposed new facility in Burns, Oregon;
the construction and operation of a proposed new tracking station in
Idaho Falls, Idaho; and proposed facility improvements at the existing
Fort Sumner, New Mexico and Palestine, Texas BPO launch facilities.
Although balloons are typically launched from the launch site
facilities, their flight paths are wind-driven, and they could land in
adjacent states. An analysis of past flights launched from Fort Sumner
and Palestine indicates that the majority of balloons and payloads are
recovered from Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. Only a handful of
balloons or payloads have landed in the neighboring states of Oklahoma,
Kansas, and Colorado. Models conducted for future flights from Burns
indicate that balloons and payloads would overfly and may be recovered
from Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming,
Colorado, and Utah.
In preparing the Draft Supplemental PEA, NASA requested input from
over 425 potentially interested parties, including those in federal,
state, and tribal governments. During this process, several commenters
offered support of the proposal; most did not comment. Therefore, NASA
has assessed the potential effects of the proposal and the No Action
Alternative on physical, biological, and economic resources and has
tentatively concluded those impacts are not significant.
Electronic Access
The Draft Supplemental PEA may be viewed at the following
locations:
(a) Harney County Library, Burns OR (541-573-6670);
(b) Fort Sumner Public Library, Fort Sumner NM (575-355-2832); and
(c) Palestine Public Library, Palestine TX (903-729-4121).
Limited hard copies of the Draft Supplemental PEA are available, on
a first request basis, by contacting the email addresses indicated
herein. The Draft Supplemental PEA will be available for public review
online at the following address: https://www.nasa.gov/goddard/memd/nepa/NASA-Balloon-SPEA.
Authority: National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended
(42 United States Code [U.S.C.] 4321-4370) (NEPA); 14 Code of Federal
Regulations (CFR) 1216.3, Procedures for Implementing the National
Environmental Policy Act; and NASA Procedural Requirement (NPR) 8580.1
Implementing the National Environmental Policy Act.
Nicola Fox,
Associate Administrator, Science Mission Directorate, National
Aeronautics and Space Administration.
[FR Doc. 2025-08389 Filed 5-12-25; 8:45 am]
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