Welcome to the NSF/CASIS Feasibility Review Form. The International Space Station (ISS) U.S. National Laboratory is managed by the Center for Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS), under a cooperative agreement with NASA.
The Division of Chemical, Bioengineering and Environmental Transport (CBET) in the Engineering Directorate of the National Science Foundation (NSF) is partnering with the ISS National Laboratory to solicit research projects in the general field of transport phenomena that can utilize the ISS National Laboratory for research that will benefit life on Earth. U.S. entities including academic investigators, commercial companies, nonprofit independent research labs, and academic-commercial teams are eligible to apply.
The purpose of this solicitation is to attract proposals that make use of the ISS National Laboratory for research projects in the fields related to the NSF Transport Phenomena Cluster and Nanoscale Interaction programs. Responsive proposals will describe utilization of the ISS National Laboratory for development and testing of:
- Fluid dynamics
- Particulate and multiphase processes
- Combustion and fire systems
- Thermal transport processes
- Nanoscale interactions
The two-step process below provides potential offerors with an easy, efficient submission process.
- 1
ISS National Laboratory Feasibility Review Form Submissions
Feasibility Review Form submissions were due January 10, 2020. The ISS National Laboratory will respond with the status of the review within 3 weeks after submission of the form.
Offerors should consult with the ISS National Laboratory Operations team (Ops@ISSNationalLab.org) for feedback regarding feasibility and compliance with flight requirements and capabilities.
- 2
NSF Full Proposal Submissions
The submission window for full proposals closes on March 2, 2020.
Offerors who have submitted Feasibility Review Forms that pass initial review will be invited to submit a full proposal for evaluation by NSF. Documentation from the ISS National Laboratory confirming approval to submit a proposal must be provided when full proposals are submitted to FastLane or Grants.gov.
For information on the full proposal please see NSF 20-501
Flight Hardware Information
For overview information regarding available flight hardware of particular interest to transport research, please see the ISS Hardware Information document. An expanded listing of flight hardware and research facilities for support of physical science investigations on the ISS is provided by NASA (Space Station Research Facilities).
Offerors are strongly encouraged to use existing flight hardware and facilities rather than proposing to develop new platforms. The ISS National Laboratory Operations (Ops@ISSNationalLab.org) team can answer questions regarding facility availability and capabilities.
Offerors are also encouraged to work with an Implementation Partner—a commercial service provider experienced in payload development and integration. Implementation Partners can be a key ally to support and facilitate translation of ground-based research to flight experiments, and many ISS National Laboratory facilities are owned and/or operated by Implementation Partners. For more information about Implementation Partners, go here.
Additional Information
Awardees under this solicitation will need to execute a User Agreement with the ISS National Laboratory in order to conduct research on the ISS. A template agreement has been developed to streamline the process.
We thank you for your interest in conducting research on the International Space Station U.S. National Laboratory! For general questions regarding this solicitation, contact us at info@ISSNationalLab.org.
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