Fusion Energy Sciences
Advisory Committee
The
Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory
Committee (FESAC) has been
Chartered
pursuant to Section 14(a)(2)(A) of
the Federal Advisory Committee Act,
Public Law 92-463, and Section
101-6.1015, Title 41 Code of Federal
Regulations. The committee provides
independent advice to the Director
of the Office of Science on complex
scientific and technological issues
that arise in the planning,
implementation, and management of
the Fusion Energy Sciences program.
A new charter was signed in
August
2007, and will be in effect for 2
years. The
charter was modified on November 6,
2008.
The substantive change in this
revision is that the Secretary of
Energy has delegated to the Under
Secretary for Science the authority
to nominate, appoint, renew the term
of, and terminate the service of
members of the Committee. In
addition, the modified charter
recognizes that the Office of
Science and the National Nuclear
Security Administration have
recently implemented a joint program
of research in the field of High
Energy Density Laboratory Plasmas.
When the Committee is asked to deal
with issues related to this joint
program, it will do so in the manner
described in the Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) attached to the
Charter.
The
Committee members are drawn from
universities, national laboratories,
and private firms.
Some members may be or have been
engaged in
fusion research
activities while others may be
engaged in other scientific or
engineering endeavors whose
expertise is thought to be relevant
to the Committee’s planned areas of
involvement. FESAC, like all Office
of Science advisory committees, is a
committee of experts. By definition,
experts must provide their services
to the Department as Special
Government Employees (SGE). A SGE is
a special class of uncompensated
Government Employee who is chosen to
provide expert advice in support of
the Department’s mission for no more
than 60 days in any period of 365
consecutive days.
A list of current FESAC
members can be
found at
Members
and
links to a brief biography of each
member can be found at Members Bios.
The
current members were appointed
during 2008, and will serve a
two year term.
The
Director of the Office of Science
charges the committee to provide
advice and recommendations on
various issues of concern to the
fusion energy sciences program. The
Committee conducts its business in
public meetings, and submits reports
containing its advice and
recommendations to the Department.
Notices
of upcoming FESAC meetings are
provided in the Federal Register at
least two weeks before the scheduled
date of the meeting.
Current
FESAC
Charge(s)
-
FESAC has been
charged to
establish a Committee of
Visitors (COV) that will assist
FESAC in assessing the efficacy
and quality of the process used
by OFES to solicit, review,
recommend, monitor and document
awards and declinations, and the
breadth, depth, and quality of
the resulting program
portfolio. FESAC with help from
the COV will provide an
evaluation of the program’s
national and international
standing. The COV will
review all elements of the
Fusion Energy Sciences program
and report its final results to
DOE by the end of November 2009. The
selection of COV members is on
going and the list of members
will appear here when it is
completed.
Scheduled FESAC Meetings
No FESAC meetings are scheduled. A
meeting may be held sometime during
the summer, but the next meeting
that is certain to occur will take
place in November 2009 to deal with
the completion of the Committee of
Visitors’ Report.
FESAC Meetings and Documents Dates
Generally, reports written by FESAC
are published by the Department of
Energy and given a DOE/SC report
number. Reports from FESAC
contain the charge to the committee,
the letter from the FESAC Chair to
the Under Secretary for Science
transmitting the report from FESAC
on the charge, and any comments that
FESAC may have on the report if it
were produced by the Panel.
Reports on the Fusion Energy
Sciences Program not produced by
FESAC may generally be found on the
Program
News
page.
Meeting Date
|
Agenda/ Presentations |
Minutes |
Reports/Charge/Response |
January 13,2009 |
X |
X |
During this meeting
FESAC completed its
charge on HEDLP
science and
transmitted the
resulting
Betti Report,
“Advancing the
Science of High
Energy Density
Laboratory Plasmas"
to DOE with this
letter.
|
November 6-7, 2008 |
X |
X |
During this meeting
FESAC (a) completed the
charge on Toroidal
Alternates by accepting
the
TAP
Panel
Report
that it sent to DOE via
a transmittal
letter ,
(b) heard a presentation
on the Low Temperature
Plasma Workshop
report,
(d) heard a presentation
on a
white paper
on Fusion Diagnostics
Development Needs, and
(e) heard a presentation
on the
NRC
Report
on the Review of
the DOE Plan for U.S.
Participation in ITER.
FESAC also sent a
letter to DOE
concerning funding for
the ITER project.
FESAC also sent a
letter of
appreciation to Dr.
Orbach for his seven
years of dedicated
service to the Office of
Science. |
February 19-20, 2008 |
X |
X |
This meeting was held
and possible new charges
dealing with developing
goals, agreeing on the
scientific and technical
issues, and
opportunities for
research on Alternate
Concepts and HEDLP were
discussed. The new
charges will be posted
above when and if they
are signed by the Under
Secretary for Science.
The materials presented
and discussed can be
found by clicking on the
Agenda. |
October 23-24, 2007 |
X |
X |
FESAC considered,
discussed, and accepted
three Panel reports to
complete the open
charges with which it
has been dealing. Each
report had been
transmitted to DOE via
the letter indicated: "Greenwald
Report"- "Priorities, Gaps, and
Opportunities: Towards a
Long-Range Strategic
Plan for Magnetic Fusion
Energy" and
Letter; the "Fusion Simulation
Project (FSP) Panel
Report", and
Letter; the
"Report of the National
Compact Stellarator
Experiment Review
Committee", and
Letter.
|
July 16-17, 2007 |
X |
X |
The FESAC met to hear
interim reports on the
two charges on which
they are now working.
They heard additional
reports as shown on the
agenda. No final
reports came from this
meeting but will result
from the October 2007
meeting. |
March
1-2, 2007 |
X |
X |
The FESAC met to
complete its work on
evaluating the FES
programs progress
toward reaching it
performance goals as
stated in the
Program Assessment
Rating Tools.
The
final Report
on this charge is
now available.
A new charge was
presented to FESAC
which can be read
here. PART
Letter;
Charge;
Attachment
|
June 1, 2006 |
X
|
X |
FESAC met to discuss the
plan developed by the
U.S. Burning Plasma
Organization (USBPO) for
the participation of
U.S. scientists in ITER. 10
Year Plan
Letter;
Attachment;
DOE Response |
|
|
|
The first round of the
Committee of Visitors
reviews has been
completed and a report
has been published that
is a compilation of the
three CoV reports issued
during this first round.
The report titled,
Compilation of Reports
from the First Round of
Committee of Visitors'
Reviews of the Fusion
Energy Sciences Program,
DOE/SC-0098, October
2006 is available
here. |
February 28-March 1,
2006 |
X
|
X |
FESAC
discussed and accepted
the report of its third
Committee of Visitors
that dealt with Tokamak
research, Diagnostics
and Enabling R&D.
The
report, the
transmittal letter, and
the
DOE response to the
report are available by
clicking the underlined
words. FESAC also
discussed and accepted
the report of its panel
dealing with program's
progress toward
achieving its PART
Measures. The
report
and the
transmittal letter
are
available by clicking
the underlined words. |
July 19, 2005 |
X
|
X |
FESAC met to discuss the
Facilities Panel Report;
Panel
Members;
Charge.
The
report was approved and
transmitted to DOE in a
letter from Hazeltine to
Orbach. Status
reports on the ITER
project and the Burning
Plasma Physics committee
were also heard.
Reports:
Volume I;
Volume II |
April 7-8, 2005 |
X
|
X |
Panel on Program
Priorities:
Panel Members
(FESAC Priorities
Panel
website)
Charge;
Transmittal Letter;
Report.
Committee of Visitors: Transmittal
Letter;
Report;
DOE Response; Milestone
Assessment
Letter. |
July 26-27, 2004 |
X
|
X |
The efforts of the
Program Priorities Panel
and its subpanels were
discussed.
Report;
Charge |
March 29-30, 2004
|
X
|
X |
"Review
of the Inertial
Fusion Energy Program",
DOE/SC-0087, March 2004.
Charge;
DOE Response
"Fusion in the Era of
Burning Plasma Studies:
Workforce Planning
for 2004-2014",
Report
DOE/SC-0086 March 2004.
Charge;
DOE Response
"Report
from the Committee of
Visitors on its
Review of the Processes
and Procedures used to
Manage the Theory and
Computations Program",
DOE/SC-0085, March 2004.
Charge
DOE Response |
November 17-18, 2003
|
X
|
X |
No Written Report |
July 31-August 1, 2003
|
X
|
X |
The
letter
from Richard Hazeltine,
FESAC Chair, to Dr.
Raymond L. Orbach,
Director, Office of
Science, dated August 8,
2003 is the response
from FESAC to the charge
to review the Fusion
Energy Sciences
program's performance
measures.
Charge
"Non-Electric
Applications of Fusion,"
DOE/SC-076 July 2003, Charge |
March 5-6, 2003
|
X
|
X |
"A
Plan for the Development
of Fusion Energy",
DOE/SC-0074, March 2003.
Letter
from Hazeltine to Orbach
presenting the views of
FESAC on the FY 2004
President's Budget
Request. Transmittal
letter
endorsing the
development report.
Charge |
November 25, 2002
|
X
|
X |
"Report
of the FESAC Panel on
Integrated Simulation
and Optimization of
Magnetic Fusion Systems",
November 2, 2002,
DOE/SC-0073.
Transmittal,
Charge
"Preliminary
Report
on
A Plan for the
Development of Fusion
Energy", November
2002. Transmittal
Letter,
Hazeltine to Orbach
endorsing the 35 year
fusion development plan.
FESAC.
Letter,
September 13, 2002,
endorsing the assumption
that, given continued
scientific and technical
accomplishment and
sufficiently increased
funding, it is possible
to put electricity
generated using fusion
on the commercial
utility grid within 35
years.
Charge |
September 11-12, 2002
|
X
|
X |
"A
Burning Plasma Program
Strategy to Advance
Fusion Energy",
DOE/SC-0060, September
2002. Transmittal
Letter
endorsing the report of
the Burning Plasma
Strategy Panel.
Charge |
February 27-28, 2002
|
X
|
X |
|
August 1-2, 2001 (PPPL)
|
X
|
X
|
"Review
of
Fusion Theory and
Computing Program",
DOE/SC-0037, August
2001. Panel Chair:
John Sheffield.
Charge
"Review
of Burning Plasma
Physics", DOE/SC-0041,
September 2001. Charge |
May 15-16, 2001
|
X
|
X |
Letter,
Hazeltine to Decker,
June 7, 2001,
recommending that the
National Compact
Stellarator, Experiment
(NCSX) be designated as
a Proof-of-Principle
Experiment. The
Letter
from Hazeltine to Decker
dated May 21, 2001
providing a detailed
response by FESAC to the
NRC report. |
February 27-28, 2001
|
X
|
X |
No Written Report |
November 14-15, 2000
|
X
|
X |
Letter,
Hazeltine to
Dresselhaus,
December 5, 2000, FESAC
reaction to NRC Report.
Charge
|
July 18-19, 2000 (GA,
San Diego) |
|
|
Report
of the Integrated
Program Planning
Activity for the DOE
Fusion Energy Sciences
Program", DOE/SC-0028,
December 2000,
Letter.
Panel Chair: Charles
Baker.
Charge |
Earlier Reports from FESAC and Its
Predecessors
Below is a listing of earlier
FESAC reports. In general,
these reports contain the letter
from DOE charging FESAC to do a
task, and the letter from FESAC
to DOE transmitting the report
requested in the Charge Letter.
Title |
Report Number/Date |
Letter asking the Advanced
Scientific Computing
Advisory Committee to
establish a Panel on high
performance computing needs
and capabilities.
|
August
24, 2001 |
Summary of Opportunities in
the Fusion Energy Sciences
Program |
June 1999;
November 1999 |
Priorities and Balance
within the Fusion Energy
Sciences Program |
September 1999 |
Report of the Panel on
Criteria, Goals, and Metrics |
October 1999 |
FESAC Reports on Review of
the Fusion Materials
Research Program, Review of
the Proposed
Proof-of-Principle Programs,
Review of the Possible
Pathways for Pursuing
Burning Plasma Physics, and
Comments on the ER
Facilities Roadmap |
DOE/ER-0727
July 1998 |
"Review of the Strategic
Plan for International
Collaboration on Fusion
Science and Technology
Research" |
DOE/ER-0723
January 23, 1998
|
Recommendations on the
Nature and Level of
U.S. Participation in the
International Thermonuclear
Experimental Reactor
Extension of the Engineering
Design Activities |
DOE/ER-0720
January 1998 |
Review of the International
Thermonuclear Experimental
Reactor (ITER) Detailed
Design Report |
DOE/ER-0700
April 1997 |
Advice and Recommendations
to the U.S. Department of
Energy on the FY 1997 Fusion
Energy Sciences Budget |
DOE/ER-0694
November 1996
|
Strategic Plan for the
Restructured U.S. Fusion
Energy Sciences Program |
DOE/ER-0684
August 1996 |
Advice and Recommendations
to the U.S. Department of
Energy on Inertial Fusion
Energy and Alternative
Concepts |
DOE/ER-0690,
July 22, 1996
|
The Fusion Science
Research Plan for the Major
U.S. Tokamaks |
DOE/ER-0680,
May 1996
|
A Restructured Fusion
Energy Sciences Program |
January 1996
|
The Report of the U.S.
Program of Fusion Energy
Research and Development,
The President's Committee of
Advisors on Science and
Technology (PCAST)
|
July 1995
|
Advice and Recommendations
to the U.S. Department of
Energy In Response to Charge
Letter of September 1, 1992 |
DOE-ER-0593T
April 1993
|
FEAC Advice and
Recommendations to the
Department of Energy In
Partial Response to the
Charge Letter of September
24, 1991: Part E |
DOE-ER-0571T
November 1992
|
FEAC Report on Program
Strategy for U.S. Magnetic
Fusion Energy Research |
DOE-ER-0572T
September 1992
|
FEAC Advice and
Recommendations to the
Department of Energy In
Partial Response to the
Charge Letter of September
24, 1991: Part D |
DOE-ER-0555T
June 1992
|
FEAC Advice and
Recommendations to the
Department of Energy In
Partial Response to the
Charge Letter of September
24, 1991: Part C |
DOE-ER-0554T
April 1992
|
FEAC Advice and
Recommendations to the
Department of Energy In
Partial Response to the
Charge Letter of September
24, 1991: Part B |
DOE-ER-0553T
March 1992
|
FEAC Advice and
Recommendations to the
Department of Energy In
Partial Response to the
Charge Letter of September
24, 1991: Part A |
DOE-ER-0552T
October 1991
|
Fusion Policy Advisory
Committee (FPAC) Final
Report |
DOE-S-0081
September 1990
|
|