Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board & Commission on Engineering and Technical Systems 
From Earth to Orbit [PDF ebook] 
An Assessment of Transportation Options

If the United States hopes to continue as a leader in space, it must invest now in better earth-to-orbit technology by replacing obsolete launch facilities while also developing a new class of more robust and reliable vehicles.From Earth to Orbit provides strategies to reduce launch costs while increasing the reliability and resiliency of vehicles. It also recommends continued improvements for the Space Shuttle Orbiter and its subsystems and the development of a Space Transportation Main Engine (STME).