*****SCIENCE GOALS/OBJECTIVES***** THE OBJECTIVES OF THIS PROPOSAL ARE TO (1) SEARCH FOR THE SPECTRAL SIGNATURES OF H2O HYDRATED SILICATES ANHYDROUS SILICATES AND/OR ORGANICS ON THE SURFACE OF OUTER MAIN BELT ASTEROIDS SPANNING HELIOCENTRIC DISTANCES 2.5<A<4.0 AU (2) FURTHER INVESTIGATE THE DISTRIBUTION OF THESE MATERIALS IN THIS REGION AND (3) TEST THE CURRENT THERMAL AND DYNAMICAL MODELS FOR THE ORIGIN AND EVOLUTION OF THESE BODIES (E.G. GRIMM AND MCSWEEN 1993 WALSH ET AL. 2011). WITH THE INCREASED NUMBER OF OBSERVED ASTEROIDS AND CAREFULLY ANALYZED THEIR SPECTRA THIS PROPOSED WORK WILL ALSO LEAD TO A CLASSIFICATION (TAXONOMY) OF OUTER MAIN BELT ASTEROIDS ON THE BASIS OF THE 3- M BAND IN THE 2.5<A<4.0 AU REGION ALLOWING A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE NATURE AND DISTRIBUTION OF VOLATILES IN THIS REGION. *****METHODOLOGY***** TO INVESTIGATE THE 3- M BAND IN THE OUTER MAIN REGION WE WILL COLLECT REFLECTANCE SPECTRA OF ASTEROIDS USING THE PRISM (0.8-2.5 M) AND THE LONG WAVELENGTH CROSS DISPERSED (LXD: 1.9-4.2 M) MODES OF THE SPEX SPECTROGRAPH/IMAGER AT THE NASA IRTF AND GEMINI NORTH TELESCOPES. WE ARE ALSO PLANNING TO SUBMIT OBSERVING PROPOSALS TO USE THE GNIRS SPECTROMETER (1-5 M) AND THE NIRI IMAGER (1-5 M) AT GEMINI NORTH. ASTEROID SPECTRA WILL BE ACQUIRED AND ANALYZED USING THE METHODOLOGY DESCRIBED IN TAKIR AND EMERY (2012). *****RELEVANCE***** THIS PROPOSAL IS RELEVANT TO THE PLANETARY ASTRONOMY PORTION OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM OBSERVATIONS PROGRAM FOR OBSERVATIONS OVER THE ENTIRE RANGE OF WAVELENGTHS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO THE UNDERSTANDING OF THE NATURE AND EVOLUTION OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM AND ITS INDIVIDUAL CONSTITUENTS WE PROPOSE TO OBSERVE OUTER MAIN BELT ASTEROIDS (2.5<A<4.0 AU) IN ORDER TO CHARACTERIZE THE NATURE AND THE DISTRIBUTION OF WATER-AND HYDROXYL MINERALS AS WELL AS ORGANICS ON THE SURFACES OF THESE ASTEROIDS. THE PROPOSED RESEARCH IS IMPORTANT TO CONSTRAIN MANY QUESTIONS RELATED TO THE ABUNDANCE AND THE DISTRIBUTION OF WATER AND ORGANIC MATERIALS IN THE EARLY SOLAR SYSTEM AND THEIR SIGNIFICANT ROLES IN THE EVOLUTION OF THE COSMOCHEMISTRY OF A NUMBER OF DIVERSE SOLAR SYSTEM BODIES.