NASA Research Announcement: Use of the NASA Physical Sciences Informatics System Appendix B Released
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has released Appendix B of the NASA Research Announcement (NRA) NNH15ZTT001N, entitled “Use of the NASA Physical Sciences Informatics System.” This NRA solicits ground-based research proposals from established researchers and graduate students to generate new scientific insights by utilizing experimental data residing in NASA’s Physical Sciences Informatics (PSI) system (http://psi.nasa.gov), an online database of past and current physical science International Space Station flight experiments. The proposals submitted in response to this NRA must present a compelling case on how the experimental data from the PSI system will be used to promote the advancement of further research. Proposers must show a clear path from the scientific data obtained from the PSI system to the proposed investigation. In addition, the project must address an important problem in the proposed area of research and advance scientific knowledge or technology.
The main NRA will remain open for two years, with multiple opportunities to propose planned to be provided through a series of appendices (A, B, C, etc.) This announcement is for the release of the second of the appendices, Appendix B, which solicits proposals in the five research areas for which experimental data will available in the PSI by the Appendix B proposal due date: Combustion Science, Complex Fluids, Fluid Physics, Fundamental Physics and Materials Science. The Appendix specifically solicits proposals that utilize data from eligible investigations in the PSI. The eligible investigations at the time of the release of the Appendix are provided in the Appendix document and also listed in the paragraph below. The Appendix will be amended, if necessary, with an updated list of eligible investigations before the proposal due date of March 17, 2016.
At the time of the release of the Appendix, the following investigations are eligible for this NRA. For Combustion Science, the investigations include DAFT (Dust and Aerosol Measurement Feasibility Test), DAFT-2 (Dust and Aerosol Measurement Feasibility Test-2), FLEX (Flame Extinguishment Experiment), SAME (Smoke Aerosol Measurement Experiment), SAME-R (Smoke Aerosol Measurement Experiment Reflight), and SPICE (Smoke Point in Coflow Experiment). For Complex Fluids, the investigations include ACE-M1 (Advanced Colloids Experiment-Microscopy – 1), BCAT-3 (Binary Colloidal Alloy Test – 3), BCAT-4 (Binary Colloidal Alloy Test – 4), BCAT-5 (Binary Colloidal Alloy Test – 5), BCAT-6 (Binary Colloidal Alloy Test – 6), InSPACE-3 (Investigating the Structure of Paramagnetic Aggregates from Colloidal Ellipsoids–3), InSPACE-3+ (Investigating the Structure of Paramagnetic Aggregates from Colloidal Ellipsoids–3+), PHaSE (Physics of Hard Spheres Experiment), SHERE (Shear History Extensional Rheology Experiment), SHERE II (Shear History Extensional Rheology Experiment II), and SHERE-R (Shear History Extensional Rheology Experiment Reflight). For Fluid Physics, the investigations include CCF (Capillary Channel Flow), CFE (Capillary Flow Experiment), CVB (Constrained Vapor Bubble), MABE (Microheater Array Heater Boiling Experiment), and NPBX (Nucleate Pool Boiling Experiment). For Fundamental Physics, the eligible investigation is GRADFLEX (Gradient Driven Fluctuation Experiment). For Materials Science, the investigations include CSLM (Coarsening in Solid-Liquid Mixtures), CSLM-2 (Coarsening in Solid-Liquid Mixtures – 2), CSLM-2R (Coarsening in Solid-Liquid Mixtures – 2 Reflight), CSLM-3 (Coarsening in Solid-Liquid Mixtures – 3), ISSI (In-Space Soldering Investigation), and PFMI (Pore Formation and Mobility Investigation).
The solicitation is applicable to researchers in all categories of U.S. and non-U.S. organizations, including educational institutions, industry, nonprofit organizations, NASA Centers and other U.S. Government agencies. The NRA is soliciting proposals from two types of investigators: 1) established researchers, and 2) graduate students (with advisors) from accredited U.S. postsecondary institutions and programs. The proposals from graduate students must be submitted by their advisor. Eligibility requirements and further instructions for both types of investigators are provided in the NRA. Principal Investigators (PIs) may collaborate with investigators from universities, Federal Government laboratories, the private sector, state and local government laboratories, and other countries.
The full text of the solicitation is available on the NASA Research Opportunities homepage at http://nspires.nasaprs.com under menu listing “Open Solicitations.” The direct link to the main NRA is http://tinyurl.com/NRA-NNH15ZTT001N. The direct link to the Appendix B webpage is http://tinyurl.com/NASA-15PSI-B. Questions with regard to responding to this NRA may be addressed to the contacts referenced in the full solicitation document.
Notices of Intent for Appendix B are due on February 9, 2016, and they must be submitted electronically via NSPIRES (http://nspires.nasaprs.com/). Proposals are due on March 17, 2016, and they must be submitted electronically by an authorized official of the proposing organization using either NSPIRES (http://nspires.nasaprs.com/) or Grants.gov (http://www.grants.gov). 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 are provided in the NRA. Each electronic proposal system places requirements on the registration of principal investigators and other participants (e.g. co-investigators). Potential applicants are urged to access these sites well in advance of the proposal due date to familiarize themselves with their structure and to register in the systems.
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.
