WASHINGTON, Nov. 29 (UPI) -- Two former Apollo astronauts joined 22 other experts Tuesday during the first meeting of the newly restructured NASA Advisory Council.
The council provides guidance and policy advice to the administrator of the U.S. space agency. Former senator and Apollo astronaut Harrison "Jack" Schmitt will be the council's new chairman.
Other members of the restructured council include former Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong; retired Air Force Gen. Lester Lyles, former commander of the Air Force Materiel Command at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio; and Charles Kennel, director of the Scripps Institute of Oceanography.
NASA said the council was restructured to meet its needs as it prepares to take astronauts back to the moon and on to Mars and other solar system destinations.
The council now includes subject matter experts in five key areas: exploration, science, aeronautics, human capital, and audit and finance, NASA said.
