NASA Seeks Feedback on Civil Space Technology Shortfalls
Agency Is Refining Its Strategy for Prioritizing Technology Investments
NASA is inviting the public to contribute to the prioritization of technology shortfalls critical to civil space by February 20, 2026. The feedback will help shape the future of space technology.
NASA has identified a list of 32 technology shortfalls – technology areas requiring further development to meet future exploration, science, and other mission needs. Each one of the shortfalls includes a subset of a specific functions requiring development, all of which must be achieved to overcome that shortfall.
This prioritization framework will guide NASA’s evaluation of current technology development efforts and may inspire new investments within NASA or spark innovative partnerships. Understanding and prioritizing the most important and impactful efforts allows NASA to appropriately direct available resources to best support mission needs for NASA and the nation.
NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) leads the development, demonstration, and infusion of transformational technologies that enhance NASA’s efforts to explore the unknown in space, benefit life on Earth, and solve critical stakeholder needs.
STMD’s investment strategy informs its portfolio to:
Align with the Presidential Administration and the NASA Administrator’s priorities, including NASA’s Moon to Mars Strategy and Objectives
Focus on investments that support science priorities identified in the Decadal Surveys
Foster creation and growth of the space economy through partnering with industry and supporting small business innovation
Engage NASA’s workforce to deliver innovative solutions to the nation’s toughest technology challenges
Encourage transformative, cross-cutting technologies that benefit NASA as well as other government agencies
Empower a broad community of innovators and academia through emphasis on early-stage investments
In spring 2024, STMD kicked off a new collaborative process to better integrate the community’s most pervasive technical challenges to further guide NASA’s space technology development and investments. STMD published a document overviewing 187 shortfalls – technology areas requiring further development to meet future exploration, science, and other mission needs – and asked the aerospace community to rate their importance.
In July, STMD released the 2024 Civil Space Shortfall Ranking document, integrating the input received from NASA mission directorates and centers, small and large industry organizations, other government agencies, academia, and other interested individuals. STMD will use the integrated ranked list and annual updates as one of several investment decision-making factors. The results will also inform the development of technology roadmaps.
The 2026 effort builds on NASA’s previous shortfall ranking experience and leverages the feedback provided by stakeholders to streamline the process by consolidating the shortfalls into 32 broader, integrated categories. Each shortfall includes a subset of specific needs to provide further definition and context. This restructuring maintains the original content’s depth while creating a more efficient and accessible feedback mechanism for participants.
The agency is collecting feedback through Feb. 20, 2026 about which shortfalls are most important to the aerospace community.
NASA is encouraging all U.S. businesses, organizations, agencies, and individuals with a vested interest in space technology to review the shortfall list and descriptions and submit feedback.