The heads of NASA's Exploration Systems and Space Operations directorates said they had been asked by NASA Administrator Charles Bolden to formulate a plan, to be submitted by early 2011, for combining the two organizations, SPACE.com reported Thursday.

"With the upcoming retirement of the Space Shuttle and the likely transition away from the Constellation Program, planning is underway … to create a new directorate to manage the integrated human spaceflight portfolio for the Agency," Doug Cooke and Bill Gerstenmaier wrote in a Dec. 20 to agency employees.

Cooke is the administrator for NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate and Gerstenmaeir hold the same position in the Space Operations Mission Directorate.

Plans will be submitted for the best organizational structure consistent with the goals outlined in the NASA Authorization Act of 2010, their memo said.

"Such a new organization would manage the International Space Station, Commercial Crew and Cargo, Space Launch System and Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle Programs, among others currently existing within the two directorates," the memo said.

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