Roles and Needs of Laboratory Astrophysics in NASA's Space and Earth
  Science Mission
  Laboratory astrophysics and complementary theoretical calculations are the
foundations of astronomy and astrophysics and will remain so into the
foreseeable future. The mission enabling impact of laboratory astrophysics
ranges from the scientific conception stage for airborne and space-based
observatories, all the way through to the scientific return of these missions.
It is our understanding of the under-lying physical processes and the
measurements of critical physical parameters that allows us to address
fundamental questions in astronomy and astrophysics. In this regard, laboratory
astrophysics is much like detector and instrument development at NASA. These
efforts are necessary for the success of astronomical research being funded by
NASA. Without concomitant efforts in all three directions (observational
facilities, detector/instrument development, and laboratory astrophysics) the
future progress of astronomy and astrophysics is imperiled. In addition, new
developments in experimental technologies have allowed laboratory studies to
take on a new role as some questions which previously could only be studied
theoretically can now be addressed directly in the lab. With this in mind we,
the members of the AAS Working Group on Laboratory Astrophysics (WGLA), have
prepared this White Paper on the laboratory astrophysics infrastructure needed
to maximize the scientific return from NASA's space and Earth sciences program.
