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In a growing international effort to better understand the details of the combustion processed which govern our energy conversion systems, new experimental methods of ever-increasing sophistication are required and are being developed. Many of these methods rely on laser-based spectroscopy while in turn require considerable supporting data on spectroscopy of combustion species in a variety of environments. The DOE program at the Sandia Combustion Research Facility provides one source for this effort, with a broad range of applications from sample flames to operating engines. This paper will discuss the spectroscopic needs of our current activity and will project the future needs dictated by the use of alternate fuels.