Research Opportunities in Fundamental Physics: NASA/NSF Partnership on Science of Dusty Plasmas: Utilizing the ISS PK-4 Facility

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and National Science Foundation (NSF) have released a Research Announcement NNH16ZTT002N, entitled “Research Opportunities in Fundamental Physics – NASA/NSF Partnership on Science of Dusty Plasmas: Utilizing the PK-4 Facility on board the International Space Station.” The Announcement solicits science research proposals from U.S. investigators for research that can be performed on or is directly related to the joint European Space Agency and Russian Federal Space Agency Plasma Krystall-4 (PK-4) experimental facility on board the International Space Station (ISS) and for ground investigations related to potential follow-on microgravity experiments in the field of dusty plasma physics. The PK-4 facility is a science-laboratory-style payload for performing a large variety of experiments with complex plasmas (a.k.a. dusty plasmas).

This joint NASA/NSF Research Announcement solicits research proposals with strong microgravity relevance in the following areas:

1) Flight research (dedicated experiments, data analysis, and theory/modeling development) that will utilize the PK-4 facility on the ISS to understand the physics of: a) Microscopic properties of complex plasmas; b) Macroscopic properties of complex plasmas; c) Generic properties of strongly-coupled many-body systems; d) other topics related to dusty plasmas.

2) Ground research that will enhance the current PK-4-related research and also lead to new microgravity science and instrumentation beyond PK-4 in the areas of: a) Data analysis, theory/modeling development, and development of new experimental tools and diagnostics; b) Development of new microgravity dusty plasma science experiments beyond PK-4.

This Research Announcement is a joint solicitation by NASA and NSF. Proposals selected from this solicitation may be funded entirely by one agency or by both agencies.

This Research Announcement is applicable to researchers in all categories of U.S. institutions, including educational institutions, industry, nonprofit organizations, NASA Centers, and other Government agencies. Proposals including international participation are eligible, provided that the participation is within the requirements and policies described in the solicitation.

Proposals are due by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time, August 19, 2016. Proposals must be submitted electronically by an authorized official of the proposing organization. Proposers may use either NSPIRES ( http://nspires.nasaprs.com/) or Grants.gov ( http://www.grants.gov) for proposal submission. Every organization that intends to submit a proposal in response to this Research Announcement 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 Research Announcement. 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.

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 solicitation is http://tinyurl.com/NNH16ZTT002N. Questions with regard 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 and NSF reserve the right to determine the appropriate award instrument for each proposal selected pursuant to this announcement.