May 2017

SMD is seeking subject matter experts to serve as mail-in and panel reviewers for the following programs:
Emerging Worlds
Solar System Observations
Planetary Data Archiving, Restoration, and Tools
Cassini Data Analysis Program
The New Frontiers Data Analysis Program
OSIRIS REx Participating Scientists Program
Exoplanet Research Program
ROSES-2017 Heliophysics Programs

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The successful candidate must have a Ph.D. in Planetary Sciences or in a related discipline, and at least 10 years of experience in the field. The candidate must be a U.S. Citizen or Legal Permanent Resident, and be able to pass a detailed government background investigation. The successful candidate will be expected to design and conduct research in planetary science, propose for and receive external funding for research, support and advise post-doctoral fellows and/or graduate students, seek involvement with spacecraft missions if appropriate, and participate with NASA and the science community in review panels, analysis and advisory groups, etc. We are particularly interested in hearing from prospective candidates who have expertise beyond that of our existing staff scientists.

For more information about the position, please contact the LPI Director, Dr. Louise Prockter at prockter@lpi.usra.edu. Applicants should submit a letter of interest, a curriculum vita with a list of publications, a brief (maximum three pages) statement of research interests, and a list of three references to: https://usracareers.silkroad.com/

Further information on current research and facilities at the LPI can be found on our website at: http://www.lpi.usra.edu

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Application Deadline: May 25, 2017

To honor the memory and the outstanding figure of Paolo Farinella (1953-2000), an extraordinary scientist and person, a prize has been established in recognition of significant contributions given in the fields of interest of Paolo, which span from planetary sciences to space geodesy, fundamental physics, science popularization, security in space, weapons control and disarmament. The prize has been proposed during the “International Workshop on Paolo Farinella, the scientist and the man”, held in Pisa in 2010, and is supported by the following Italian Institutions: University of Pisa, ASI, INAF, IFAC-CNR.

The seventh Paolo Farinella Prize is devoted to planetary sciences and specifically to studies on the “Physics and dynamics of the inner planets of the solar system and their satellites”.

The award ceremony will be hosted by the European Planetary Science Congress (EPSC) meeting in Riga, Latvia (September 17-22, 2017).

The rules, call and the nomination forms can be found at: http://www.europlanet-eu.org/nominations-for-the-7th-paolo-farinella-prize-now-open/

Nominations must be sent by email not later than May 25th, 2017, to dimartino@oato.inaf.it and david.lucchesi@iaps.inaf.it

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Application Deadline: June 2, 2017

The goal of the Lloyd V. Berkner Space Policy Internship is to provide promising undergraduate and graduate students with the opportunity to work in the area of civil space research policy in the nation’s capital, under the aegis of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Space Science Board. The autumn program is open to undergraduate and graduate students. The deadline for applications is June 2, 2017. Candidate(s) selected will be contacted no later than July 7.

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Application Deadline: June 15, 2017

The Simons Foundation is now accepting applications for postdoctoral fellowships to support research on fundamental problems in marine microbial ecology. The foundation is particularly interested in applicants with training in different fields who want to apply their experience to understanding the role of microorganisms in shaping ocean processes and vice versa, including applicants with experience in modeling or theory development.

Applicants should have received their Ph.D. or equivalent degree within two years of the fellowship’s start date and may be citizens of any country. Awards can only be issued to nonprofit research universities or research institutions in the U.S.

The submission deadline is June 15, 2017, 5:00 p.m. EDT.

Please email program inquires to lifesciences@simonsfoundation.org and administrative inquires to lifegrants@simonsfoundation.org.

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Application Deadline: June 30, 2017

The Rita Allen Foundation and WGBH Boston are pleased to announce the Rita Allen Fellowship for Science Communication. This new program will provide a year’s support for one fellow to study the field of science media, experiment with successful media formats and work to expand science literacy in the general public. The fellow will embed at WGBH, one of the pre-eminent science media producers in the US and home to the flagship public media science series NOVA.

The goal of the Rita Allen Fellowship is to identify ways to expand how and to whom science news and information are communicated. It also aims to discover new information by experimenting with best practices that will provide all science media producers with tools to reach new audiences more effectively.

Elizabeth Christopherson, President of the Rita Allen Foundation, says, “The Rita Allen Fellowship for Science Communication will explore the state of science journalism today and propose new and innovative approaches for improving popular understanding of science.” She calls science literacy “a cornerstone of our democracy.”

More information about the Rita Allen Fellowship for Science Communication will be added here over the next few months, or you can contact program coordinator Judith Vecchione.

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Application Deadline: September 30, 2018

NASA and The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) are pleased to announce the Cycle 25 Call for Proposals for Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Observations and funding for Archival Research and Theoretical Research programs. Participation in this program is open to all categories of organizations, both domestic and foreign, including educational institutions, profit and nonprofit organizations, NASA Centers, and other Government agencies.

Cycle 25 will extend from October 1, 2017 to September 30, 2018. We will accept proposals for the following instruments: ACS, COS, FGS, STIS, and WFC3.

This solicitation for proposals will be open through April 07, 2017 8:00pm EDT. The Astronomer’s Proposal Tools (APT), which is required for Phase I Proposal Submission will be made available/released for Cycle 25 Phase I use during the last week of January 2017. Results of the selection will be announced by the end of June 2017.

Questions can be addressed to the STScI Help Desk (email: help@stsci.edu; phone: 410-338-1082).

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This community announcement is an advance notice of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate (SMD) plan to release a Program Element Appendix (PEA) for the Third Stand Alone Missions of Opportunity Notice (SALMON-2) for instrument investigations for a Europa lander mission. This opportunity will solicit proposals describing the full lifecycle development and operation of instrument investigations. Proposed investigations will be evaluated and selected through a two-step competitive process, with approximately 10 proposals selected for Step 2. The Step 2 Phase A Concept Study will be capped at approximately twelve months and a $1.5M (FY2018) budget per investigation. At the conclusion of these studies, NASA may downselect some concept studies to complete Phase A and subsequent mission phases.

Investigations will be limited to those addressing the following science objectives (listed in order of decreasing priority):

1. Search for evidence of life on Europa,
2. Assess the habitability of Europa via in situ techniques uniquely available to a lander mission
3. Characterize surface and subsurface properties at the scale of the lander.

NASA has yet to decide on the scope and implementation of a possible Europa lander mission. Current law directs NASA to plan for a Europa lander mission. However, the Administration’s FY 2018 budget request does not support a Europa lander mission. All instrument investigations proposed in response to this PEA must focus on Europa and be compatible with a mission that lands on the surface and operates for approximately one month. NASA will hold an in depth workshop to provide the most current information available on the mission concept to proposers and allow them to pose questions directly (both in pubic and in private) to mission developers. This multiday workshop will take place in summer 2017.

Participation in this PEA will be open to foreign and domestic organizations (with the exception that foreign Principal Investigators and team members may not receive NASA funds, if selected). However, the following organizations will be prohibited from submitting proposals in response to the PEA: the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Cornell Technical Services (CTS), and Arctic Slope Regional Corporation. These organizations will provide substantial support to the development and execution of the PEA. In particular, JPL personnel will support the development of the AO and documents in the Program Library, assess the accommodation of proposed instrument investigations, provide technical support to teams during Step 2, and participate in site visits during the Step-2 evaluation.

The time frame for the solicitation is intended to be:

Release of final PEA – NLT August 2017 (target)
Mission Workshop – Summer 2017
Preproposal conference – ~3 weeks after final PEA release
Proposals due – ~90 days after PEA release
Selection for competitive Phase A studies – June 2018 (target)
Concept study reports due – June 2019 (target)
Down-selection – September 2019 (target)
Launch readiness date – TBD

NASA has not approved the issuance of the Europa Lander Instrument Investigation PEA and this notification does not obligate NASA to issue the PEA and solicit proposals. Any costs incurred by prospective investigators in preparing submissions in response to this notification or the planned Europa Lander Instrument Investigation PEA are incurred completely at the submitter’s own risk.

Further information will be posted on the Europa Lander Acquisition Page at http://europalander.larc.nasa.gov/ as it becomes available. Questions may be addressed to Dr. Curt Niebur, Europa Program Scientist, Planetary Science Division, Science Mission Directorate, NASA, Washington, DC 20546; Tel.: (202) 358-0390; Email: curt.niebur@nasa.gov.

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