Association of Space Explorers USA
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
The Association of Space Explorers (ASE) is the international professional and educational association of men and women who have flown in Earth orbit. ASE's mission is to apply the unique perspective of its members to: promote the global benefits of space science, exploration and international cooperation; to educate and inspire future generations, and; to foster better stewardship of our home planet.
- Income
- $288,370
- Spending
- $212,975
- Spent on programs
- 57%
- Reserves
- 31 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 92%
- Employees
- 1
- Volunteers
- 14
- Highest pay
- $109,308, executive director/secreta
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Strong: 93 out of 100. Higher than 71% of charities in its peer group (science, $250k to $1m).
Reserves
35 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 31.0 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 0% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 26% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 14% on the year before.
Spending floor
8 of 1557% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 0 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Good: 86 out of 100. Higher than 75% of charities in its peer group (science, $250k to $1m).
Independent board
25 of 259 of 9 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
0 of 5Reports no independent review process for its chief executive's pay.
Independent check of accounts
6 of 15Its accounts were not audited or reviewed by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (3)
- $78,639 spent. Professional Forum:Annual Planetary Congress: The annual planetary Congress allows the members to work towards the organization's mission and vision by providing broad and deep professional technical interchanges among the members and attendees. Valuable exchanges of information and expertise are created by astronaut reunions. Presentations are delivered to the general public at the annual Congress. The organization provides online accessible information with weekly interchange through the ASE downlinks. Member/Astronaut appearances at schools and other public forums provide a platform for promoting the benefits of space science and exploration.Astronaut Reunions: ASE organizes and hosts annual European astronaut reunions and biennial astronaut reunions for NASA astronauts in Houston, Texas. The reunions provide networking and professional development opportunities for active government astronauts, former government astronauts and commercial space travelers. Universal Astronaut Insignia: ASE representing the desire of the international community of space travelers to establish a single, commonly recognized insignia for all who fly into space, conceived, designed and approved a universal astronaut insignia. All space travelers who are certified by a recognized space launch provider as having traveled to space are eligible to wear the universal astronaut insignia. The insignia consists of ascending and descending chevrons crowned with a 5-point star, representing the journey to space and the return to Earth. A circlet encompassing the chevrons is added to astronaut insignia awarded for flight into Earth orbit and beyond. Registry of Space Travelers: ASE, exercising its historical role representing the international astronaut community, curates an official, universal Registry of Space Travelers, the recognized official index of individuals who have flown to space and the sequential order in which they flew.
- $34,006 spent. Education: Celebrating Diversity from Space: Operating under a federal grant from the ISS National Laboratory/Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS), ASE recently completed "Celebrating Diversity from Space", an educational program for under-represented youth in Boys & Girls Clubs. Students explored diversity at three levels: 1) EARTH's global diversity for its physical features and human geography; 2) ASTRONAUTS whose diverse backgrounds, experience and expertise are essential for success of ISS; and 3) local COMMUNITY of each Boys & Girls Club, where students celebrated rich diversity among themselves, their neighborhoods and families. All three realms have the common theme - diversity is an essential element of success. The program emphasized hands-on and inquiry-based learning. Each club created a 30-minute video, conveying these core concepts, working directly with astronauts. The ISS National Lab provided two essential assets: 1) wealth of photographs taken by the ISS astronauts as they orbit Earth, showcasing rich complexity; 2) the experiences of astronauts themselves, as diverse crews, working as a team, managing complex tasks, and solving problems with creativity and collaboration. This project built on extensive prior work of "Windows On Earth" to establish the archive of photos and video creation tools. The 10 participating astronauts are members of Association of Space Explorers and have all flown in space.Community Days: At each Planetary Congress, ASE members dedicate a full day for outreach with the local and national communities in the country where the Congress is being hosted. The astronauts and cosmonauts reach thousands of students, teachers, parents, and members of the general public to inspire and promote education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. ASE member astronauts also engage with students and teachers throughout the year in the USA with school and university visits and lectures, as well as via partnerships with other educational organizations.
- $9,354 spent. Planetary Stewardship:Windows on Earth: Windows on Earth features the vast collection of photos and movies taken by astronauts on the ISS. ASE, with support from NASA and the Crew Earth Observation facility, established and maintain ASE's own image library, provide a friendly public front-end (WindowsOnEarth.org), and use these photos in creative ways. Since 2005, this work has been funded by a series of NSF and NASA grants, creating museum exhibits, curriculum guides, teacher training and innovative technical development. Now ASE will take some bold steps to greatly expand public access and educational use of these resources, through an ambitious partnership with the University of California San Diego (UCSD) and its Supercomputer Center (SDSC). It builds on prior collaborations with UCSD, and their enthusiasm and expertise to take Windows on Earth to new levels of access and the potential for much larger reach. This partnership will also provide some powerful new tools for ASE members, as the original astronauts, artists and scientists who took these photos of Earth.Earth Music Theater: ASE manages an archive of images and photos of Earth taken by astronauts (from NASA, all images are in the public domain). ASE works with over 40 musicians, who provide their music for these movies. ASE works with the musicians to select Earth views that align with the music. ASE posts all movies at no cost on the Earthmusicheater.org website and ASE social media channels. ASE also partners with UCTV (University of California TV) to broadcast new movies each Friday. Similarly, the musicians can freely post their movie(s) for public enjoyment. ASE also works with musicians to do live performances of Earth music, at venues around the world, including Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, Boston Music of Science, BachFest Leipzig Germany, Imax in Leonberg Germany, and multiple other venues.Space Traffic Management / Orbital Debris: ASE's Committee on Space Traffic Management / Orbital Debris works with the United Nations Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS) and other stakeholders to develop best practices for the management and mitigation of space debris objects. In addition to UN COPUOS, the Committee engages with international space agencies, the Hague Institute for Global Justice, The Paris Peace Forum, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics and other nonprofit organizations to promote the continued reduction of space debris, to Improve access to timely and accurate data on space objects down to the lethal debris limit and to improve information sharing on a routine basis to strengthen global space traffic coordination mechanisms.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2024, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.
On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.
Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2024.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since June 1986.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated October 21, 2026.
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