Management and Operation of the National Geophysical Observatory for Geoscience (NGEO)

NSF hereby solicits proposals to manage and operate one or more components of the National Geophysical Observatory for Geoscience (NGEO).  NGEO would comprise a distributed, multi-user, national facility for the development, deployment, management, and operational support of modern geodetic, seismic, and related geophysical instrumentation and services to serve national goals in basic research and education in the Earth sciences.  In addition, NGEO would support mission goals of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for global real-time earthquake, volcano, and tsunami observations, early warning and hazard mitigation efforts, nuclear test ban verification, precise positioning and timing, and other Earth observation needs.  NGEO would also support commercial and international groups that depend on NGEO capabilities for an increasingly wide range of applications.

Awardee(s) would work closely with NSF and the scientific community to ensure that NGEO facility capabilities support, sustain, and advance frontier science. In cooperation with NSF and within available resources, the Awardee(s) would plan and execute a viable, coherent, and inclusive program to support multi-user research and education, consistent with guidance and oversight by the scientific community.

Proposals should describe how the proposing institution(s) would: (1) provide observing capabilities and scientific data; (2) support the needs of NSF-funded, peer-reviewed research and education projects; (3) foster an integrated program of education, workforce development, and outreach; (4) develop, manage, and maintain facility capabilities; (5) manage and develop a skilled and diverse workforce; and (6) establish appropriate partnerships with universities, industry, private organizations, other Federal agencies, and the international community to support the NGEO mission.

NSF anticipates that successful proposal(s) for NGEO management and operations would be awarded as cooperative agreement(s), or a master cooperative agreement with cooperative support agreements.  Any such award(s) would commence 1 October 2018 and would have a duration of ten years contingent on the availability of funds and the successful outcome of comprehensive external reviews of Awardee(s) performance and facility success.  As necessary, the Awardee(s) will define and execute a budgeted, scheduled, and tracked project plan to manage any transition from the current to the proposed model of NGEO management and operations. Any such transition period would commence with a transition award, under this cooperative agreement, on or after 1 April 2018 and conclude no later than 12 months thereafter.