The Astronomical Sciences Innovations program (Astro-Innovations) supports a small number of larger astronomical activities. This program is formally divided into four subcategories: 1) limited-term, self-contained scien...
Who can apply: Federal-level applicants (see eligibility for details).
Issued by: National Science Foundation.
About: The Astronomical Sciences Innovations program (Astro-Innovations) supports a small number of larger astronomical activities. This program is formally divided into four subcategories: 1) limited-term, self-contained science projects; 2)…
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Who can apply — at a glance
Eligible applicants:
see the Eligibility tab for the criteria from the official announcement.
Where:
Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, District of Columbia.
Award:
amount not specified by the source.
Matching funds:
not required.
Deadline type: Fixed.
Compiled from the official listing's structured fields — always verify with the funder before applying.
The Astronomical Sciences Innovations program (Astro-Innovations) supports a small number of larger astronomical activities. This program is formally divided into four subcategories: 1) limited-term, self-contained science projects; 2) longer-term mid-scale facilities; 3) development investments for future mid-scale and large-scale projects; and 4) community open access capabilities. Astro-Innovations will emphasize both strong scientific merit and a well-developed plan for student training and involvement of a comprehensive workforce in instrumentation, facility development, or data management. Suitable proposal topics include all areas of research supported by MPS Astronomical Sciences. Proposals focused on studying the Sun’s effects on Earth’s atmosphere and near-Earth space environment, including impacts on telecommunications and other human activity, may be more suitable for the Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences Program (AGS). Prospective Principal Investigators (PIs) are strongly encouraged to contact the cognizant Program Officer(s) for this program prior to developing a proposal, in order to determine suitability for the program and to determine whether current fiscal year budgets will allow for the program. Important Considerations: We encourage submissions from NSF Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs) as well as collaborative groups. We expect a single organization to accept overall management responsibility. Collaborative proposals are allowed via sub-awards or separately submitted linked proposals. The Astro-Innovations program is anticipated to be especially competitive in Fiscal Year 2027. For this reason, please note that multiple submissions from any given lead institution are strongly discouraged. Program Design: The Astro-Innovations program is intended to complement the NSF-wide Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) program and bridge the gap to the Mid-Scale Research Infrastructure (Mid-scale RI) program. The Astro-Innovations program provides additional opportunities beyond the NSF-wide programs and emphasizes the categories of support that others do not address. Astro-Innovations differs from other programs in allowing science use and operations and is not limited to infrastructure development. Astro-Innovations will support proposals in the following four categories: Science Projects: Self-contained, limited-term projects with well-defined construction and science utilization phases. Facilities: Construction or operation of facilities. Development Investments: Design and development for future mid-scale and large-scale facilities. Open Access Capabilities: New instruments for existing telescopes, both national and private, in return for community access. Provision of observing time for community access on existing telescopes ( providing open access nights in return for partial support of operational costs of a facility). Data analysis projects that permit or increase public access to data resources. All proposers to the Astro-Innovations program are urged to indicate which of the four categories best fits their projects. The budgets for each of the four categories will be flexible, and distribution across categories will depend on proposal pressure and programmatic considerations. Astro-Innovations awards may not be issued in all or any category in a given year pending availability of funds. Some projects may undergo a management review, generally involving a reverse site visit with specialist reviewers, before funds are awarded. Program elements: This program encourages investigators to solve the most pressing problems, such as those called out in the decadal surveys, using new concepts. Strong proposals will show the project's value and benefit to the community.
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Who can apply
The Astronomical Sciences Innovations program (Astro-Innovations) supports a small number of larger astronomical activities. This program is formally divided into four subcategories: 1) limited-term, self-contained science projects; 2) longer-term mid-scale facilities; 3) development investments for future mid-scale and large-scale projects; and 4) community open access capabilities. Astro-Innovations will emphasize both strong scientific merit and a well-developed plan for student training and involvement of a comprehensive workforce in instrumentation, facility development, or data management. Suitable proposal topics include all areas of research supported by MPS Astronomical Sciences. Proposals focused on studying the Sun’s effects on Earth’s atmosphere and near-Earth space environment, including impacts on telecommunications and other human activity, may be more suitable for the Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences Program (AGS). Prospective Principal Investigators (PIs) are strongly encouraged to contact the cognizant Program Officer(s) for this program prior to developing a proposal, in order to determine suitability for the program and to determine whether current fiscal year budgets will allow for the program. Important Considerations: We encourage submissions from NSF Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs) as well as collaborative groups. We expect a single organization to accept overall management responsibility. Collaborative proposals a
Geographic eligibility
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
District of Columbia
How to apply
We don't have application instructions on file yet — head straight to the official source.
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