NASA

National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Agency overview
Formed	July 29, 1958; 262 years ago
Preceding agency	National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
Jurisdiction	United States Federal Government
Headquarters	Washington, D.C.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA /ˈnæsə/) is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for civilian space exploration.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower established NASA in 1958 with a distinctly civilian (rather than military) orientation encouraging peaceful applications in space science. The National Aeronautics and Space Act was passed on July 29, 1958, disestablishing NASA's predecessor, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). The new agency became operational on October 1, 1958.

Since that time, most US space exploration efforts have been led by NASA, including the Apollo Moon landing missions, the Skylab space station, the Space Shuttle, International Space Station, and was a major supporter of the Mars Corporation. Currently, NASA is supporting human exploration of nearby star systems, and facilitating first contact with Alien species.

NASA science is focused on better understanding the origin of life, exploring bodies throughout the Local Bubble with robotic and human missions, and researching astrophysics topics, such as the Big Bang, through the Great Observatories and associated programs. NASA shares data with various national and international organizations such as from the NOAA.

Ships

NASA has been the only space agency to operate warp capable spacecraft using the White-Alcubierre Drive. NASA has built 25 Interstellar Vehicles (IV hull designation) in total over the last century, ceasing production for 40 years during the Mexican American Cold War, when the agencies budget was drastically cut, and exploration was limited to only existing ships, chiefly the aging Antares and Surya-class spacecraft which are set to begin being retired in 2164. Currently the agency is testing its newest spacecraft the Constellation-class, which is planned to have the largest production run of any warp capable spacecraft of a total of 30 ships, more than every previous warp ship combined.

The first crewed warp ship, IV-101 Enterprise measured 170 meters in length compared to the 400 meter long Constellation, however these ships are dwarfed by subluminal spacecraft due to the constraints of warp-field volumes. Prior to advances made in the Surya, warp ship design severely limited the amount of mass that could be moved at faster-than light speeds.

Vehicle Designation	Ship Class	Name	First Flight	Last Flight	Status
IV-101	Enterprise	Enterprise	2063	2086	Retired
IV-102	Hyperion	Independence	2065	2099	Retired
IV-103	Hyperion	Constitution	2065	2067	Destroyed
IV-104	Hyperion	Challenger	2065	2096	Retired
IV-105	Hyperion	Atlantis	2065	2101	Retired
IV-106	Hyperion	Discovery	2065	2101	Retired
IV-201	Theia	Columbia	2082	2138	Refitted in 2105. Currently Retired.
IV-202	Theia	Endeavour	2082	2112	Destroyed
IV-203	Theia	Explorer	2082	2138	Retired
IV-204	Theia	Adventure	2082	2138	Retired
IV-205	Theia	Intrepid	2082	2138	Retired
IV-206	Theia	Odyssey	2082	2152	Retired
IV-301	Athena	Antares	2089	2152	Retired
IV-302	Athena	Aquarius	2089	2152	Retired
IV-303	Athena	Opportunity	2089	2153	Retired
IV-304	Athena	Spirit	2089	2153	Retired
IV-305	Athena	Enterprise II	2089	2154	Retired
IV-401	Surya	Falcon	2101		In service. Refitted in 2129.
IV-402	Surya	Beagle III	2101		In service. Refitted in 2129.
IV-403	Surya	Endurance	2101	2158	Refitted in 2129. Destroyed
IV-501	Unity	Constitution II	2140		In service
IV-502	Unity	Liberty	2140		Unknown
IV-503	Unity	Independence	2140		In service
IV-504	Unity	Pilgrim	2140		In service
IV-601	New Voyager	Constellation	2160		Prototype
IV-602	New Voyager	Enterprise III	Planned 2161		Under Construction
IV-603	New Voyager	Casper	Planned 2161		Under Construction
IV-604	New Voyager	Kitty Hawk	Planned 2161		Under Construction

Interstellar Exploration

For more, see Timeline of space exploration or List of Sophonts

Since the Prometheus missions proved the feasibility of faster-than-light travel and the IV-101 Enterprise's inaugural flight to Alpha Centauri, NASA has been given a mandate to explore interstellar space. Until 2091, this mandate limited crewed exploration to the Local Bubble, the 500 ly cavity in the interstellar medium of the Orion Arm of the Milky Way containing humanity's closest celestial neighbors. However, after the beginning of the Tel-ma Relief Effort, and improvements in technology, NASA began to expand its exploration radius roughly increasing the limit to the Gould Belt. This change in policy also gave priority to discovering alien civilizations and making contact with them, rather than giving First Contact missions equal priority with missions of astronomical research.

NASA's efforts to make contact with Sophonts has over time come to prioritize contact with post-neolithic civilizations. Based on robotic and crewed exploration over the last century, it is estimated that of the 300 million stars within 5000 light years of Earth, around 6,500 host Sophonts that have reached a neolithic or paleolithic level of development. There has been some debate as to what priority should be given to expansive Soilworks building civilizations often mistakenly referred to as Wood Age civilizations, as these societies leave few records of their existence that can survive even a few decades of exposure to the elements. NASA has planned to reverse its longstanding policy with the Constellation-class interstellar vehicle enters full production, which will allow the agency to devote more resources to contacting these societies.