This dataset provides a synthesis of the National Academies of Sciences 2017 Earth Science Decadal Survey mission most and very important objectives for the Surface Biology and Geology Earth Observing system consisting of a global visible to shortwave infrared imaging spectrometer and a multi-spectral thermal infrared radiometer. These objectives are traced to performance criteria used for assessing hundreds of potential architecture variants in an architecture study outlined in a paper titled: "Designing an Observing System to Study the Surface Biology and Geology (SBG) of the Earth in the 2020s".