NASA Astrobiology Institute: Collaborative Research for Astrobiology Advancement

One component of the Astrobiology Program is the NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI). The Mission of the NASA Astrobiology Institute is to advance the field of astrobiology by:
carrying out, supporting, and catalyzing collaborative interdisciplinary research in astrobiology; training the next generation of astrobiology researchers; providing scientific and technical leadership on astrobiology investigations for current and future space missions; exploring new approaches using modern information technology to conduct interdisciplinary and collaborative research among widely-distributed investigators; and supporting Education and Public Outreach by providing scientific content for K-12 education programs, teaching undergraduate classes, and communicating directly with the public.

NASA announces, through the release of this Cooperative Agreement Notice (CAN), an opportunity for the submission of team-based proposals for membership in the NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI). Proposals should clearly articulate an innovative, interdisciplinary, astrobiology research program, together with plans to advance the full scope of NAI objectives as defined, above, in the Institute’s Mission Statement.

A wide array of NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) flight missions incorporate astrobiology goals and objectives. For this reason, with this solicitation NASA is seeking both proposals responding to the long-term goals and objectives given in the Astrobiology Roadmap and proposals focused on ensuring that the astrobiology science portfolio is prepared to respond to the challenge of planning and implementing these missions. Accordingly, proposals that place emphasis on research that will help prepare for current or future flight programs directed at astrobiological targets are encouraged.

Proposals will be considered equally responsive to this solicitation whether they address a single Roadmap goal or several Roadmap goals – provided that the proposal consists of an interdisciplinary approach to conducting the research. Proposals that address a single question should bring integrated, interdisciplinary expertise and methodology to bear on the question. Proposals consisting of projects addressing questions across the scope of the Astrobiology Roadmap must demonstrate credible, scientific connections among the projects.

Participation in this solicitation is open to all categories of organizations, domestic and non-U.S., including industry, educational institutions, nonprofit organizations, NASA centers, and other Government agencies. Proposals involving multiple organizations should be submitted by a single Principal Investigator (PI) through the business office of the PI’s institution which becomes the Lead Institution. The intent of this solicitation is to provide funding to U.S. institutions; non-U.S. organizations are eligible to propose, but are not eligible to receive research funding from NASA (see Section 3.3).

NASA’s Astrobiology Program (see http://astrobiology.nasa.gov/) is managed within the Science Mission Directorate (SMD) at NASA Headquarters (HQ) and supports awards for individual investigator research, instrument and technology development and testing, and small flight payloads and satellites, as well as the NASA Astrobiology Institute. More information on the strategic priorities and research/technology investments of the Science Mission Directorate can be found in the 2010 Science Plan for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, available at http://science.nasa.gov/about-us/science-strategy/.