NASA is offering this grant to U.S. investigators for fundamental physics research on the International Space Station (ISS). This grant is for the purpose of supporting participation in planned European Space Agency (ESA) activities, specifically the Space Optical Clock (SOC), Quantum Weak Equivalence Principle (QWEP), and Atomic Clock Ensemble in Space (ACES) projects. This initiative aims to address the limitations of existing theories like General Relativity and Quantum Mechanics, explore dark energy and dark matter, and seek new physics through meticulously designed, high-precision experiments on the ISS. Leveraging recent advancements in measurement precision, this grant enables groundbreaking research. Proposals must clearly connect to the ESA SOC, QWEP, and ACES ISS projects. All U.S. institutions are eligible to apply.
Opportunity ID: 109553
General Information
| Document Type: | Grants Notice |
| Funding Opportunity Number: | NNH11ZTT001N |
| Funding Opportunity Title: | Research Opportunities in Fundamental Physics |
| Opportunity Category: | Discretionary |
| Opportunity Category Explanation: | – |
| Funding Instrument Type: | Grant |
| Category of Funding Activity: | Science and Technology and other Research and Development |
| Category Explanation: | – |
| Expected Number of Awards: | 5 |
| Assistance Listings: | 43.003 — Exploration |
| Cost Sharing or Matching Requirement: | No |
| Version: | Synopsis 1 |
| Posted Date: | Jul 29, 2011 |
| Last Updated Date: | – |
| Original Closing Date for Applications: | Sep 07, 2011 |
| Current Closing Date for Applications: | Sep 07, 2011 |
| Archive Date: | Sep 09, 2011 |
| Estimated Total Program Funding: | – |
| Award Ceiling: | – |
| Award Floor: | – |
Eligibility
| Eligible Applicants: | Others (see text field entitled “Additional Information on Eligibility” for clarification) |
| Additional Information on Eligibility: | Selection under this NRA will be to Principal Investigators from U.S. institutions only. No international proposals are allowed but U.S. Principal Investigators may invite non-U.S. collaborators to be part of their proposal. Proposals submitted by non-U.S. institutions are not eligible. |
Additional Information
| Agency Name: | National Aeronautics and Space Administration |
| Description: | Description This NRA solicits fundamental physics research proposals from U.S. investigators to participate in planned European Space Agency (ESA) research activities on the International Space Station (ISS). These ESA activities are the Space Optical Clock (SOC) project, the Quantum Weak Equivalence Principle (QWEP) project, and the Atomic Clock Ensemble in Space (ACES) project. This solicitation (NRA NNH11ZTT001N), entitled, “Research Opportunities in Fundamental Physics,” will be available on or about August 1, 2011. This solicitation will be found by opening the NASA Research Opportunities homepage at http://nspires.nasaprs.com/ and then linking through the menu listings “Solicitations” to “Open Solicitations.” Fundamental physics is standing at the precipice of dramatic discoveries. Last century�s major scientific insights represented by the theories of general relativity and quantum mechanics are known to be mutually incompatible. The lack of a theory to unify all natural forces including gravity indicates the incompleteness of the Standard Model and General Relativity. In addition, there is clear evidence for dark energy and dark matter from astrophysical observations. While NASA�s Science Mission Directorate plans to study dark matter and dark energy through observational means, and to seek clues to when General Relativity might fail through studies of physics in the strong gravity environment near black holes, the establishment of new physical understanding beyond current known theories remains elusive. Nonetheless, the new physics is expected to lead to breakdowns of the well-established theories with verifiable experimental consequences. Recent technology advancement in optical clocks, atom interferometers and Bose Einstein Condensates has demonstrated a radical improvement in measurement precision, putting experimentalists within striking range of reaching the experimental sensitivity where breakdown of these theories may occur and important new discoveries made. It is clear that laboratory physics can contribute greatly to this quest for new physics in the 21st century by utilizing carefully conceived experiments with unprecedented resolution on the ISS, such as the planned ESA SOC, QWEP and ACES projects. Proposers must show a clear connection between their proposed activities to the planned ESA SOC, QWEP and ACES ISS projects. Proposals, including Step-1 proposals that do not provide this clear connection will be evaluated as �not relevant Proposals submitted in response to this NRA will use a two-step process. Only PIs submitting Step-1 proposals determined to be relevant to the solicited research of this NRA will be invited to submit full Step-2 proposals. Step-1 proposals will be due on or around September 7, 2011, and Step-2 proposals will be due on or around November 4, 2011. Proposals must be submitted by an authorized official of the proposing organization. Proposals must be submitted electronically. Step-1 Proposers can use either NSPIRES (see URL above) or Grants.gov (http://www.grants.gov ) for proposal submission. Invited Step-2 Proposals must be submitted electronically via the NSPIRES proposal data system. All categories of U.S. institutions are eligible to submit proposals in response to this NRA. Principal Investigators (PIs) may collaborate with investigators from universities, Federal Government laboratories, the private sector, state and local government laboratories and other countries. Every organization that intends to submit a proposal in response to this NRA must be registered with NSPIRES, and such registration must identify the authorized organizational representative(s) who will submit the electronic proposal. Instructions on how to register in NSPIRES is described in the NRA. Each electronic proposal system places requirements on the registration of principal investigators and other participants (e.g. co-investigators). Potential proposers and proposing organizations are urged to access the system(s) well in advance of the proposal due date(s) of interest to familiarize themselves with its structure and enter the requested information. Questions in regards to responding to this NRA may be addressed to the contacts referenced in the full solicitation document. This is a broad agency announcement as specified in FAR 6.102 (d)(2). Notwithstanding the posting of this opportunity at FedBizOpps.gov, nspires.nasaprs.com, or Grants.gov, NASA reserves the right to determine the appropriate award instrument for each proposal selected pursuant to this announcement. Points of Contact For programmatic information for the NASA Fundamental Physics NRA: Dr. Francis Chiaramonte Program Executive NASA Headquarters Email: francis.p.chiaramonte@nasa.gov Phone: 202-358-0693 For technical information for the NASA Fundamental Physics NRA: Dr. Ulf Israelsson NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Email: ulf.e.israelsson@nasa.gov Phone: 818-354-9255 For contract information for the Fundamental Physics NRA Margaret Easter Contracting Officer 818-354-5354 margaret.b.easter@jpl.nasa.gov |
| Link to Additional Information: | Click on the following link to see the full text of the announcement for this funding opportunity. |
| Grantor Contact Information: | If you have difficulty accessing the full announcement electronically, please contact:
Name: Francis Chiaramonte
Title: Program Executive Phone: 202-358-0693 Fax: 202-358-3091 Email:francis.p.chiaramonte@nasa.gov |
Version History
| Version | Modification Description | Updated Date |
|---|---|---|
Related Documents
There are no related documents on this grant.
Packages
| Agency Contact Information: | Name: Francis Chiaramonte Title: Program Executive Phone: 202-358-0693 Fax: 202-358-3091 Email: francis.p.chiaramonte@nasa.gov |
| Who Can Apply: | Organization Applicants |
| Assistance Listing Number | Competition ID | Competition Title | Opportunity Package ID | Opening Date | Closing Date | Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 43.003 | 11FPSTEP1 | 11FPStep1 Proposals | PKG00067830 | Jul 29, 2011 | Sep 07, 2011 | View |
Package 1
Mandatory forms
109553 RR_SF424_1_2-1.2.pdf
109553 NASA_OtherProjectInformation-1.0.pdf
109553 Nasa_PIandAORSupplementalDataSheet-1.0.pdf
109553 RR_KeyPersonExpanded_1_2-1.2.pdf
109553 RR_OtherProjectInfo_1_2-1.2.pdf
Optional forms
109553 NASA_SeniorKeyPersonSupplementalDataSheet-1.0.pdf
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