NSF 08-549: CubeSat-based Science Missions for Space Weather and Atmospheric Research

Program Solicitation

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Document History

Posted: February 28, 2008

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Program Solicitation
NSF 08-549

National Science Foundation

Directorate for Geosciences
Division of Atmospheric Sciences

Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):

Revision Notes

A revised version of the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG), NSF 09-1, was issued on October 1, 2008 and is effective for proposals submitted on or after January 5, 2009. Please be advised that the guidelines contained in NSF 09-1 apply to proposals submitted in response to this funding opportunity. Proposers who opt to submit prior to January 5th, 2009, must also follow the guidelines contained in NSF 09-1.

One of the most significant changes to the PAPPG is implementation of the mentoring provisions of the America COMPETES Act. Each proposal that requests funding to support postdoctoral researchers must include, as a separate section within the 15-page project description, a description of the mentoring activities that will be provided for such individuals. Proposals that do not include a separate section on mentoring activities within the Project Description will be returned without review (see the PAPP Guide Part I: Grant Proposal Guide Chapter II.C.2.d for further information).

Summary Of Program Requirements

General Information

Program Title:

Synopsis of Program:

Cognizant Program Officer(s):

Therese Moretto Jorgensen, telephone: (703) 292-8518, email: tjorgens@nsf.gov

Applicable Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number(s):

47.050 --- Geosciences

Award Information

Anticipated Type of Award: Standard Grant or Continuing Grant

Estimated Number of Awards: 3 to 6

Anticipated Funding Amount: $900,000 annually, pending availability of funds.

Eligibility Information

Organization Limit:

PI Limit:

Limit on Number of Proposals per Organization:

Limit on Number of Proposals per PI:

Proposal Preparation and Submission Instructions

A. Proposal Preparation Instructions

Letters of Intent: Not Applicable

Preliminary Proposal Submission: Not Applicable

Full Proposals:
- Full Proposals submitted via FastLane: NSF Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide, Part I: Grant Proposal Guide (GPG) Guidelines apply. The complete text of the GPG is available electronically on the NSF website at:
  https://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=gpg.
- Full Proposals submitted via Grants.gov: NSF Grants.gov Application Guide: A Guide for the Preparation and Submission of NSF Applications via Grants.gov Guidelines apply (Note: The NSF Grants.gov Application Guide is available on the Grants.gov website and on the NSF website at:
  https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/policydocs/grantsgovguide607.pdf)

B. Budgetary Information

Cost Sharing Requirements: Cost Sharing is not required under this solicitation.

Indirect Cost (F&A) Limitations: Not Applicable

Other Budgetary Limitations: Not Applicable

C. Due Dates

Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):

May 28, 2008

February 10, 2009

February 10, Annually Thereafter

Proposal Review Information Criteria

Merit Review Criteria: National Science Board approved criteria. Additional merit review considerations apply. Please see the full text of this solicitation for further information.

Award Administration Information

Award Conditions: Additional award conditions apply. Please see the full text of this solicitation for further information.

Reporting Requirements: Standard NSF reporting requirements apply.

Agency Contacts

Other Information

I. Introduction

"Space weather" refers to conditions on the sun and in the space environment that can influence the performance and reliability of space-borne, Earth-based, and planetary technological systems and endanger human life or health. Adverse conditions in the space environment can cause disruption to satellite operations, communication, aviation, navigation, electric power distribution grids, and space travel leading to a variety of socioeconomic losses.The National Space Weather Program (NSWP) is a multi-agency Federal program that promotes basic research focused on space weather. A recent high-level panel assessing the NSWP recommended the creation of a small satellite program to address space weather goals. Further information about NSWP objectives can be obtained from the National Space Weather Program Strategic Plan and Implementation Plan. Both of these documents are available online through the program website at http://www.nswp.gov .

An effective National Space Weather Program requires a strong commitment to basic research in many areas of space-related science. Emphasis is on understanding the fundamental physical processes that affect the state of the Sun, solar wind, magnetosphere, ionosphere, and upper atmosphere, while focusing on answering research questions that will improve the ability to specify and predict conditions in the space environment.

Lack of essential observations from space is currently a major limiting factor in space weather research. Recent advances in sensor and spacecraft technologies make it feasible to obtain key measurements from low-cost, small satellite missions. A particularly promising aspect of this development is the prospect of obtaining multi-point observations in space that are critical for addressing many outstanding problems in space science. Space-based measurements from small satellites also have great potential to advance discovery and understanding in other areas of atmospheric sciences.

National space policy emphasizes the need to develop a strong workforce and to ensure continued US leadership in space understanding and utilization. This new NSF initiative is designed to address these needs. Specifically, the small satellite program will invest in facilities and instrumentation that support transformative technologies and will promote the development of a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) workforce for the 21st Century.

II. Program Description

The overarching goal of the program is to execute small scientific satellite missions to advance space weather and atmospheric research. Equally important, it will provide essential opportunities to train the next generation of experimental space scientists and aerospace engineers. The program will support the development, construction, launch, and operation of small satellite systems as well as the distribution and analysis of the science data from the missions.

To facilitate launch of the satellites as secondary payloads, the focus of the program is on CubeSat-based satellites to be launched in California Polytechnic’s standardized CubeSat deployment system, the Poly Picosatellite Orbital Deployer (P-POD). CubeSat and P-POD design specifications and guidance are open-source community standards and can be found at:
http://www.cubesat.org . Under this program it is expected that 2 to 4 P-PODS will be launched every year, starting in 2009, accommodating at least as many individual satellite missions. Proposed missions are expected to fully comply with accepted CubeSat standards and proposals must clearly state and justify any deviations therefrom. Specifically, it is incumbent on proposals to clearly demonstrate that the proposed satellites can be launched by P-POD. If deviations are desired proposers should contact a cognizant NSF Program Officer before preparing a proposal for submission.

Awards funded through this solicitation are for science missions to include design, construction, testing and operation of satellites as well as data distribution and scientific analysis. To be considered for an award, proposals must describe complete science missions, including all of the above components. Leverage of other funding sources is allowed and encouraged. In the case that only partial funding for a mission is sought through this solicitation, a complete description of the mission is still required for the proposal and the proposal will be evaluated based on the full mission. The forming of appropriate collaborations that cover all the necessary areas of expertise within space science as well as aerospace engineering is also strongly encouraged. Emphasis of this solicitation is on space weather research but proposals for missions within other areas of atmospheric sciences will also be considered.

Launch of the P-PODS will be as auxiliary payloads on DOD, NASA, or commercial launches. This will be arranged directly by NSF and is not part of this solicitation. Likewise the integration of satellites into P-PODS and final testing of the fully integrated payloads to satisfy the requirements of the launch provider will also be handled by NSF independently of this solicitation. Awards made in the first year (2008) are expected to be for missions that will be ready for launch in late 2009.

NSF will assist with frequency allocation and licensing for space and ground systems as needed.

Additional technical information relevant to the program is posted on the NSF program web-site at
https://www.nsf.gov/geo/atm/uars/cubesat/cubesat_info.doc and will be updated as new information becomes available. This includes information on possible future launch opportunities; manifested launch opportunities; orbital information; requirements for launch qualification testing; and telemetry licensing and specification.

Education and workforce development are important aspects of the program. Therefore, to be eligible for an award proposals must include training opportunities for students as well as significant student participation in all aspects of the proposed projects.

III. Award Information

Typical awards from this competition are expected to be $100,000 - $300,000 per year for 3 to 4 years, not to exceed a total of $900,000. NSF expects to fund approximately 3 to 6 awards depending on the quality of submissions and the availability of funds. Approximately $900,000 will be available for the competition every year. Anticipated start date of the first set of awards is September 2008. The program budget, number of awards and average award size/duration are subject to the availability of funds.

IV. Eligibility Information

The categories of proposers eligible to submit proposals to the National Science Foundation are identified in the Grant Proposal Guide, Chapter I, Section E.

Organization Limit:

PI Limit:

Limit on Number of Proposals per Organization:

Limit on Number of Proposals per PI:

V. Proposal Preparation And Submission Instructions

A. Proposal Preparation Instructions

Full Proposal Preparation Instructions: Proposers may opt to submit proposals in response to this Program Solicitation via Grants.gov or via the NSF FastLane system.

Full proposals submitted via FastLane: Proposals submitted in response to this program solicitation should be prepared and submitted in accordance with the general guidelines contained in the NSF Grant Proposal Guide (GPG). The complete text of the GPG is available electronically on the NSF website at:
https://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=gpg. Paper copies of the GPG may be obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse, telephone (703) 292-7827 or by e-mail from pubs@nsf.gov. Proposers are reminded to identify this program solicitation number in the program solicitation block on the NSF Cover Sheet For Proposal to the National Science Foundation. Compliance with this requirement is critical to determining the relevant proposal processing guidelines. Failure to submit this information may delay processing.

Full proposals submitted via Grants.gov: Proposals submitted in response to this program solicitation via Grants.gov should be prepared and submitted in accordance with the NSF Grants.gov Application Guide: A Guide for the Preparation and Submission of NSF Applications via Grants.gov. The complete text of the NSF Grants.gov Application Guide is available on the Grants.gov website and on the NSF website at:
(https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/policydocs/grantsgovguide607.pdf) . To obtain copies of the Application Guide and Application Forms Package, click on the Apply tab on the Grants.gov site, then click on the Apply Step 1: Download a Grant Application Package and Application Instructions link and enter the funding opportunity number, (the program solicitation number without the NSF prefix) and press the Download Package button. Paper copies of the Grants.gov Application Guide also may be obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse, telephone (703) 292-7827 or by e-mail from pubs@nsf.gov.

In determining which method to utilize in the electronic preparation and submission of the proposal, please note the following:

Collaborative Proposals. All collaborative proposals submitted as separate submissions from multiple organizations must be submitted via the NSF FastLane system. Chapter II, Section D.3 of the Grant Proposal Guide provides additional information on collaborative proposals.

Supplemental instructions

The following instructions supplement the NSF GPG and the NSF Grants.gov Application Guide guidelines. Proposals not following these instructions are subject to return without review

Cover Page:

Proposal titles should begin with the word "CubeSat".

Project Description:

Proposals should include a description of the science objectives and measurements planned for the proposed mission.
Proposals should include a description of the relevance of the proposed research mission to current space weather research goals or to key outstanding science questions within the applicable field of research.
Proposals should include a description of orbital requirements for the mission and should discuss the potential impacts on the science objectives of all possible orbit scenarios.
Proposals should include a description of the technical approach of the instruments, various spacecraft subsystems (such as micro-controller, power, attitude control system, and communication), and mission operations, including ground station(s) and data distribution.
Proposals should include a detailed description of the technological readiness or heritage of the proposed technical approaches.
Any deviations from accepted CubeSat standards must be clearly stated and justified, and the proposal must clearly demonstrate that the deviations will not pose a problem for launching the satellite by P-POD. Deviations should not be considered without prior consultation with a cognizant NSF Program Officer.
Proposals should include a description of the student training opportunities and student involvement that the project will offer as well as any other educational activities that the proposal will support.

Special Information and Supplementary Documentation:

The following special information must be provided as a Supplementary Document. This information is not considered part of the 15-page project description limitation but should not exceed a total of 5 pages.

A detailed management plan including a description of the risk reduction approach being adopted.
A detailed project schedule.
A satellite and subsystem environmental testing plan that conforms to the CubeSat standard and a plan for how to meet additional testing requirements that may be issued by the launch provider.
A description of reviews planned during development and test.

B. Budgetary Information

Cost Sharing: Cost sharing is not required under this solicitation.

C. Due Dates

Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposer's local time):

May 28, 2008

February 10, 2009

February 10, Annually Thereafter

D. FastLane/Grants.gov Requirements

For Proposals Submitted Via FastLane:

Detailed technical instructions regarding the technical aspects of preparation and submission via FastLane are available at: https://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/a1/newstan.htm. For FastLane user support, call the FastLane Help Desk at 1-800-673-6188 or e-mail fastlane@nsf.gov. The FastLane Help Desk answers general technical questions related to the use of the FastLane system. Specific questions related to this program solicitation should be referred to the NSF program staff contact(s) listed in Section VIII of this funding opportunity.

Submission of Electronically Signed Cover Sheets. The Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) must electronically sign the proposal Cover Sheet to submit the required proposal certifications (see Chapter II, Section C of the Grant Proposal Guide for a listing of the certifications). The AOR must provide the required electronic certifications within five working days following the electronic submission of the proposal. Further instructions regarding this process are available on the FastLane Website at:
https://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/fastlane.jsp.
For Proposals Submitted Via Grants.gov:

Before using Grants.gov for the first time, each organization must register to create an institutional profile. Once registered, the applicant's organization can then apply for any federal grant on the Grants.gov website. The Grants.gov's Grant Community User Guide is a comprehensive reference document that provides technical information about Grants.gov. Proposers can download the User Guide as a Microsoft Word document or as a PDF document. The Grants.gov User Guide is available at:
http://www.grants.gov/CustomerSupport. In addition, the NSF Grants.gov Application Guide provides additional technical guidance regarding preparation of proposals via Grants.gov. For Grants.gov user support, contact the Grants.gov Contact Center at 1-800-518-4726 or by email: support@grants.gov. The Grants.gov Contact Center answers general technical questions related to the use of Grants.gov. Specific questions related to this program solicitation should be referred to the NSF program staff contact(s) listed in Section VIII of this solicitation.

Submitting the Proposal: Once all documents have been completed, the Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) must submit the application to Grants.gov and verify the desired funding opportunity and agency to which the application is submitted. The AOR must then sign and submit the application to Grants.gov. The completed application will be transferred to the NSF FastLane system for further processing.

VI. NSF Proposal Processing And Review Procedures

Proposals received by NSF are assigned to the appropriate NSF program where they will be reviewed if they meet NSF proposal preparation requirements. All proposals are carefully reviewed by a scientist, engineer, or educator serving as an NSF Program Officer, and usually by three to ten other persons outside NSF who are experts in the particular fields represented by the proposal. These reviewers are selected by Program Officers charged with the oversight of the review process. Proposers are invited to suggest names of persons they believe are especially well qualified to review the proposal and/or persons they would prefer not review the proposal. These suggestions may serve as one source in the reviewer selection process at the Program Officer's discretion. Submission of such names, however, is optional. Care is taken to ensure that reviewers have no conflicts of interest with the proposal.

A. NSF Merit Review Criteria

All NSF proposals are evaluated through use of the two National Science Board (NSB)-approved merit review criteria: intellectual merit and the broader impacts of the proposed effort. In some instances, however, NSF will employ additional criteria as required to highlight the specific objectives of certain programs and activities.

The two NSB-approved merit review criteria are listed below. The criteria include considerations that help define them. These considerations are suggestions and not all will apply to any given proposal. While proposers must address both merit review criteria, reviewers will be asked to address only those considerations that are relevant to the proposal being considered and for which the reviewer is qualified to make judgements.

Examples illustrating activities likely to demonstrate broader impacts are available electronically on the NSF website at: https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/gpg/broaderimpacts.pdf.

NSF staff also will give careful consideration to the following in making funding decisions:

Additional Review Criteria:

Relevance of the proposed research to space weather Proposals will be evaluated according to their relevance to current space weather research goals or to key outstanding science questions within other areas of atmospheric sciences.

Student training Proposals will be evaluated according to the student training opportunities they offer and to the degree of student involvement in the various aspects of the proposed missions.

Technical feasibility Proposals will be evaluated according to their degree of technological readiness or heritage, or the degree to which they make use of emerging technologies. Proposals will also be evaluated according to their compliance with CubeSat and P-POD standards.

Management plan Proposals will be evaluated according to the soundness of their plans for management, scheduling, and risk reduction during the satellite development and operations phases of the mission, respectively.

B. Review and Selection Process

Proposals submitted in response to this program solicitation will be reviewed by Ad hoc Review and/or Panel Review, or technical evaluation in collaboration with NASA and/or DOD.

Additional technical evaluation After completion of the initial review and selection process, proposals being considered for funding may be subject to further technical evaluations performed in collaboration with NASA and/or DOD. The purpose of this additional review is to assess the feasibility of the proposed approach for mission implementation (technical, management, schedule, and cost). Specifically, the objective is to identify any deficiencies that could substantially affect the proposer’s ability to meet the technical objectives of the proposal within the proposed cost and schedule.

Orbital requirement Proposals being considered for funding will also be evaluated according to the availability of suitable launch opportunities that meet the orbital requirements of the proposed science mission.

Reviewers will be asked to formulate a recommendation to either support or decline each proposal. The Program Officer assigned to manage the proposal's review will consider the advice of reviewers and will formulate a recommendation.

After scientific, technical and programmatic review and consideration of appropriate factors, the NSF Program Officer recommends to the cognizant Division Director whether the proposal should be declined or recommended for award. NSF is striving to be able to tell applicants whether their proposals have been declined or recommended for funding within six months. The time interval begins on the deadline or target date, or receipt date, whichever is later. The interval ends when the Division Director accepts the Program Officer's recommendation.

A summary rating and accompanying narrative will be completed and submitted by each reviewer. In all cases, reviews are treated as confidential documents. Verbatim copies of reviews, excluding the names of the reviewers, are sent to the Principal Investigator/Project Director by the Program Officer. In addition, the proposer will receive an explanation of the decision to award or decline funding.

In all cases, after programmatic approval has been obtained, the proposals recommended for funding will be forwarded to the Division of Grants and Agreements for review of business, financial, and policy implications and the processing and issuance of a grant or other agreement. Proposers are cautioned that only a Grants and Agreements Officer may make commitments, obligations or awards on behalf of NSF or authorize the expenditure of funds. No commitment on the part of NSF should be inferred from technical or budgetary discussions with a NSF Program Officer. A Principal Investigator or organization that makes financial or personnel commitments in the absence of a grant or cooperative agreement signed by the NSF Grants and Agreements Officer does so at their own risk.

VII. Award Administration Information

A. Notification of the Award

Notification of the award is made to the submitting organization by a Grants Officer in the Division of Grants and Agreements. Organizations whose proposals are declined will be advised as promptly as possible by the cognizant NSF Program administering the program. Verbatim copies of reviews, not including the identity of the reviewer, will be provided automatically to the Principal Investigator. (See Section VI.B. for additional information on the review process.)

B. Award Conditions

An NSF award consists of: (1) the award letter, which includes any special provisions applicable to the award and any numbered amendments thereto; (2) the budget, which indicates the amounts, by categories of expense, on which NSF has based its support (or otherwise communicates any specific approvals or disapprovals of proposed expenditures); (3) the proposal referenced in the award letter; (4) the applicable award conditions, such as Grant General Conditions (GC-1); * or Federal Demonstration Partnership (FDP) Terms and Conditions * and (5) any announcement or other NSF issuance that may be incorporated by reference in the award letter. Cooperative agreements also are administered in accordance with NSF Cooperative Agreement Financial and Administrative Terms and Conditions (CA-FATC) and the applicable Programmatic Terms and Conditions. NSF awards are electronically signed by an NSF Grants and Agreements Officer and transmitted electronically to the organization via e-mail.

*These documents may be accessed electronically on NSF's Website at
https://www.nsf.gov/awards/managing/general_conditions.jsp?org=NSF. Paper copies may be obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse, telephone (703) 292-7827 or by e-mail from pubs@nsf.gov.

More comprehensive information on NSF Award Conditions and other important information on the administration of NSF awards is contained in the NSF Award & Administration Guide (AAG) Chapter II, available electronically on the NSF Website at
https://www.nsf.gov/publications/pub_summ.jsp?ods_key=aag.

Special Award Conditions:

Once a suitable launch opportunity for the selected science mission has been identified and manifested by NSF, Principal Investigators will be responsible for satisfying the environmental testing requirements at the satellite level, including the provision of specific documentation, appropriate for that particular launch vehicle.
As soon as a launch date has been set, a schedule for completion, testing, and delivery of the payload within the given time-frame must be submitted by the Prinicpal Investigators and approved by a cognizant NSF Program Officer.
During the design, building, and testing phase of the mission it is expected that awardees will have regular dialogue and/or status reviews with cognizant NSF Program Officers to ensure satisfactory progress and the timely completion of the payload.
Principal Investigators will ensure the on-time delivery of their payload along with any required documentation for P-POD integration and testing prior to launch.
Principal Investigators will participate in the timely resolution of any problems encountered during P-POD integration and testing.

C. Reporting Requirements

For all multi-year grants (including both standard and continuing grants), the Principal Investigator must submit an annual project report to the cognizant Program Officer at least 90 days before the end of the current budget period. (Some programs or awards require more frequent project reports). Within 90 days after expiration of a grant, the PI also is required to submit a final project report.

Failure to provide the required annual or final project reports will delay NSF review and processing of any future funding increments as well as any pending proposals for that PI. PIs should examine the formats of the required reports in advance to assure availability of required data.

PIs are required to use NSF's electronic project-reporting system, available through FastLane, for preparation and submission of annual and final project reports. Such reports provide information on activities and findings, project participants (individual and organizational) publications; and, other specific products and contributions. PIs will not be required to re-enter information previously provided, either with a proposal or in earlier updates using the electronic system. Submission of the report via FastLane constitutes certification by the PI that the contents of the report are accurate and complete.

VIII. Agency Contacts

General inquiries regarding this program should be made to:

Therese Moretto Jorgensen, telephone: (703) 292-8518, email: tjorgens@nsf.gov

For questions related to the use of FastLane, contact:

FastLane Help Desk, telephone: 1-800-673-6188; e-mail: fastlane@nsf.gov.

For questions relating to Grants.gov contact:

Grants.gov Contact Center: If the Authorized Organizational Representatives (AOR) has not received a confirmation message from Grants.gov within 48 hours of submission of application, please contact via telephone: 1-800-518-4726; e-mail: support@grants.gov.

IX. Other Information

The NSF Website provides the most comprehensive source of information on NSF Directorates (including contact information), programs and funding opportunities. Use of this Website by potential proposers is strongly encouraged. In addition, MyNSF (formerly the Custom News Service) is an information-delivery system designed to keep potential proposers and other interested parties apprised of new NSF funding opportunities and publications, important changes in proposal and award policies and procedures, and upcoming NSF Regional Grants Conferences. Subscribers are informed through e-mail or the user's Web browser each time new publications are issued that match their identified interests. MyNSF also is available on NSF's Website at
https://www.nsf.gov/mynsf/.

Grants.gov provides an additional electronic capability to search for Federal government-wide grant opportunities. NSF funding opportunities may be accessed via this new mechanism. Further information on Grants.gov may be obtained at http://www.grants.gov.

About The National Science Foundation

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent Federal agency created by the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended (42 USC 1861-75). The Act states the purpose of the NSF is "to promote the progress of science; [and] to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare by supporting research and education in all fields of science and engineering."

NSF funds research and education in most fields of science and engineering. It does this through grants and cooperative agreements to more than 2,000 colleges, universities, K-12 school systems, businesses, informal science organizations and other research organizations throughout the US. The Foundation accounts for about one-fourth of Federal support to academic institutions for basic research.

NSF receives approximately 40,000 proposals each year for research, education and training projects, of which approximately 11,000 are funded. In addition, the Foundation receives several thousand applications for graduate and postdoctoral fellowships. The agency operates no laboratories itself but does support National Research Centers, user facilities, certain oceanographic vessels and Antarctic research stations. The Foundation also supports cooperative research between universities and industry, US participation in international scientific and engineering efforts, and educational activities at every academic level.

Facilitation Awards for Scientists and Engineers with Disabilities provide funding for special assistance or equipment to enable persons with disabilities to work on NSF-supported projects. See Grant Proposal Guide Chapter II, Section D.2 for instructions regarding preparation of these types of proposals.

The National Science Foundation has Telephonic Device for the Deaf (TDD) and Federal Information Relay Service (FIRS) capabilities that enable individuals with hearing impairments to communicate with the Foundation about NSF programs, employment or general information. TDD may be accessed at (703) 292-5090 and (800) 281-8749, FIRS at (800) 877-8339.

The National Science Foundation Information Center may be reached at (703) 292-5111.

The National Science Foundation promotes and advances scientific progress in the United States by competitively awarding grants and cooperative agreements for research and education in the sciences, mathematics, and engineering.

To get the latest information about program deadlines, to download copies of NSF publications, and to access abstracts of awards, visit the NSF Website at https://www.nsf.gov

Location:	4201 Wilson Blvd. Arlington, VA 22230
For General Information (NSF Information Center):	(703) 292-5111
TDD (for the hearing-impaired):	(703) 292-5090
To Order Publications or Forms:
Send an e-mail to:	pubs@nsf.gov
or telephone:	(703) 292-7827
To Locate NSF Employees:	(703) 292-5111

Privacy Act And Public Burden Statements

The information requested on proposal forms and project reports is solicited under the authority of the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended. The information on proposal forms will be used in connection with the selection of qualified proposals; and project reports submitted by awardees will be used for program evaluation and reporting within the Executive Branch and to Congress. The information requested may be disclosed to qualified reviewers and staff assistants as part of the proposal review process; to proposer institutions/grantees to provide or obtain data regarding the proposal review process, award decisions, or the administration of awards; to government contractors, experts, volunteers and researchers and educators as necessary to complete assigned work; to other government agencies or other entities needing information regarding applicants or nominees as part of a joint application review process, or in order to coordinate programs or policy; and to another Federal agency, court, or party in a court or Federal administrative proceeding if the government is a party. Information about Principal Investigators may be added to the Reviewer file and used to select potential candidates to serve as peer reviewers or advisory committee members. See Systems of Records, NSF-50, "Principal Investigator/Proposal File and Associated Records," 69 Federal Register 26410 (May 12, 2004), and NSF-51, "Reviewer/Proposal File and Associated Records, " 69 Federal Register 26410 (May 12, 2004). Submission of the information is voluntary. Failure to provide full and complete information, however, may reduce the possibility of receiving an award.

An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, an information collection unless it displays a valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number. The OMB control number for this collection is 3145-0058. Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 120 hours per response, including the time for reviewing instructions. Send comments regarding the burden estimate and any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to:

Suzanne H. Plimpton
Reports Clearance Officer
Division of Administrative Services
National Science Foundation
Arlington, VA 22230

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