Astronomical Sciences Technology and Instrumentation (ATI)
The Astronomical Sciences Technologies and Instrumentation (ATI) program provides individual investigator and collaborative research grants to develop new technologies and instrumentation for use in ground-based astronom...
Who can apply: Federal-level applicants (see eligibility for details).
Issued by: National Science Foundation.
About: The Astronomical Sciences Technologies and Instrumentation (ATI) program provides individual investigator and collaborative research grants to develop new technologies and instrumentation for use in ground-based astronomy and astrophysics…
The “key facts” mode pulls structured fields directly from the official source posting (amount, deadline, eligibility tags). The AI mode adds a short plain-English narrative on top, generated from the same source. Always verify with the agency before applying.
AI-generated. Always verify with the official source.
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 Technologies and Instrumentation (ATI) program provides individual investigator and collaborative research grants to develop new technologies and instrumentation for use in ground-based astronomy and astrophysics. The program seeks the development of innovative, potentially transformative technologies and instruments, even at high technical risk. Supported categories include (but are not limited to): advanced technology development, concept feasibility studies, and specialized instrumentation to enable new observations that are difficult or impossible to obtain with existing means. Proposals may include hardware and/or software development and/or analysis to enable new types of astronomical observations. Access to the ATI-supported technology and instrumentation development efforts by the astronomical community is viewed as an important metric of success. An annual Principal Investigators (PI) meeting is planned to disseminate information between the funded research efforts. Important Considerations: The ATI program is anticipated to be especially competitive in Fiscal Year 2027. For this reason, please note the following guidance. Multiple submissions by the same lead PI, whether as part of a collaborative project or not, are strongly discouraged. PIs who already have an active MPS Astronomical Sciences award that is not set to expire in the upcoming fiscal year should contact their cognizant Program Officer before considering submitting a proposal for another concurrent award. As stated in the Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (Chapter IV.E), previously declined proposals may be resubmitted only after substantial revisions to take into account major comments or concerns from the prior review. Resubmissions that have not been sufficiently revised may be returned without review. NSF recognizes that some research projects within this program may require more than three years to realize transformative research outcomes. Such proposals should include strong justification for the longer duration and the associated resources needed to undertake the project. Collaborative proposals that leverage the unique contributions of different groups are welcome but must be well justified. Program Design: The ATI program provides both individual investigator and collaborative research grants to develop new technologies and instrumentation for use in ground-based astronomy and astrophysics research. Proposals may request support for advanced technology development, concept feasibility studies, and instrumentation to enable new observations that are difficult to obtain with existing means. Proposals that principally deploy existing or off-the-shelf instrumentation should demonstrate an innovative use of such instrumentation. The ATI program funds technology and instrument development projects that support the study of astronomical sources from ground-based observatories operating from optical through radio wavebands of the electromagnetic spectrum. A broad range of technologies are of relevance, including (but not limited to): high contrast adaptive optics systems, extreme-precision radial velocity techniques, high resolution multiplexed spectroscopy detectors, telescopes and antennae, optics and optical devices, and correlators and elements of radio cameras. Suitable proposal topics include innovative hardware, software and/or analysis methods applicable to research supported by MPS Astronomical Sciences. Proposed developments may only have ancillary relevance to space-based projects. Proposals focused on studying the effects of the Sun on Earth’s atmosphere and near-Earth space environment, including the impact on telecommunications and other human activity, may be more suitable for the Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences Program (AGS). In all cases, proposals must adequately demonstrate the astronomical context of the work, or they may be returned without review.
Our specialists will check your eligibility, prepare the application, and walk you through every step — for free.
Create a free account →
Who can apply
The Astronomical Sciences Technologies and Instrumentation (ATI) program provides individual investigator and collaborative research grants to develop new technologies and instrumentation for use in ground-based astronomy and astrophysics. The program seeks the development of innovative, potentially transformative technologies and instruments, even at high technical risk. Supported categories include (but are not limited to): advanced technology development, concept feasibility studies, and specialized instrumentation to enable new observations that are difficult or impossible to obtain with existing means. Proposals may include hardware and/or software development and/or analysis to enable new types of astronomical observations. Access to the ATI-supported technology and instrumentation development efforts by the astronomical community is viewed as an important metric of success. An annual Principal Investigators (PI) meeting is planned to disseminate information between the funded research efforts. Important Considerations: The ATI program is anticipated to be especially competitive in Fiscal Year 2027. For this reason, please note the following guidance. Multiple submissions by the same lead PI, whether as part of a collaborative project or not, are strongly discouraged. PIs who already have an active MPS Astronomical Sciences award that is not set to expire in the upcoming fiscal year should contact their cognizant Program Officer before considering su
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.
Read the agency's eligibility checklist before you start — it's almost always shorter than the full NOFO and will tell you in 90 seconds whether to keep going.
Need help getting in touch with the right agency contact?
Create a free account and our specialists will guide you through the application end-to-end.
