NASA Science Mission Directorate: Explorer Science Missions of Opportunity

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Science Mission Directorate (SMD) is releasing an Astrophysics Explorer Science Missions of Opportunity (MO) Program Element Appendix (PEA) (NNH12ZDA006O-APEXMO) as Amendment 3 to the NASA Second Stand Alone Missions of Opportunity Notice (SALMON-2) Announcement of Opportunity (NNH12ZDA006O). The Explorer Program conducts Principal Investigator (PI)-led space science investigations relevant to SMD’s astrophysics and heliophysics programs. Astrophysics Explorer investigations must address NASA’s goals to discover the origin, structure, evolution, and destiny of the Universe and search for Earth-like planets.

This solicitation will be open from September 14, 2012, through December 14, 2012. Upon the release date, the full text of the PEA will be available electronically at http://nspires.nasaprs.com/ . A preproposal workshop will be held on September 28, 2012; see http://soma.larc.nasa.gov/astrophysics/ for details.

NASA will release simultaneously a solicitation for Explorer U.S. Participating Investigators (Explorer USPI) (NNH12ZDA001N-APEXUSPI) as Appendix D.11 of the Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Sciences 2012 (ROSES-12) NASA Research Announcement (NNH12ZDA001N).

Participation is open to all categories of organizations or institutions, U.S. or non-U.S., including educational, industrial, and not-for-profit institutions, Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs), University Affiliated Research Centers (UARCs), NASA Centers, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), and other Government agencies.

NASA solicits MO science investigations that are defined in the SALMON-2 AO as Partner MOs, New Missions Using Existing Spacecraft, or Small Complete Mission MOs, including investigations requiring flight on Ultra-Long Duration Balloons (ULDB) or the International Space Station. Partner MOs for which the parent mission is either of ESA’s Euclid or JUICE missions are not solicited.

The PI-managed mission cost cap for an Explorer MO is $60M, or $30M for an ULDB mission, in Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 dollars. The currently approved Explorer Program planning budget is sufficient to select and execute one MO at $60M, or two MOs if both are ULDB missions or other proposed investigations well below the $60M PI-managed cost cap.

The selection process will be done in one step, with no competitive downselect.

Comments and questions may be addressed in writing or by E-mail to the Astrophysics Explorer Program Scientist: Dr. Wilton T. Sanders, Astrophysics Division, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC 20546-0001, E-mail: wilton.t.sanders@nasa.gov (subject line to read “Astrophysics Explorer MO”). Responses to all inquiries will be answered by E-mail and also posted to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) location of the Explorer Program Acquisition website at http://soma.larc.nasa.gov/astrophysics/ ; anonymity of persons/institutions who submit questions will be preserved.