Climate Modeling Simulating Climate at Regional Scale | Apply Online

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What agency is offering this grant opportunity?

This opportunity was offered by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), through the Office of Science (SC) and its Office of Biological and Environmental Research (BER).

What is the focus of the research being funded?

The funding is focused on research to improve climate modeling at regional scales, with an emphasis on enabling high-fidelity regional simulations and improving how models represent regional climate variability and regional climate change.

Why is DOE seeking work on regional climate modeling?

The announcement notes that climate science made strong progress over the prior decade in simulating global and large-scale climate change, but models still struggle with many of the most important aspects of regional climate variability and regional climate change. The program aims to close the gap between reliable broad-scale trends and accurate, actionable information for specific regions affecting people, infrastructure, ecosystems, and water resources.

What kinds of improvements are proposals expected to target?

Proposals are expected to strengthen underlying modeling science to capture regional processes more realistically, including better representation of mechanisms driving regional differences in temperature, precipitation, extremes, and variability.

Is ultra-high spatial resolution a key theme of this opportunity?

Yes. A key theme is pushing toward ultra-high spatial resolution modeling, which may require new approaches to represent fine-scale physical processes, resolve complex terrain and coastlines, and improve interactions among the atmosphere, land, oceans, and ice at the regional scales where impacts are determined.

Does the opportunity encourage high-risk, high-payoff ideas?

Yes. DOE explicitly encouraged high-risk, high-payoff ideas and signaled interest in innovative directions that go beyond incremental improvements, as long as the applicant explains how the approach could plausibly produce major breakthroughs in regional climate modeling, particularly at very high spatial resolutions.

Is the goal mainly to tune existing models?

No. The intent described in the opportunity is not merely better tuning of existing systems, but research that can change what is possible in regional simulation capability. Examples mentioned include new model formulations, advanced numerical methods, improved coupling strategies, novel downscaling approaches, or other creative solutions that materially improve realism and predictive usefulness at regional scales.

What is the Funding Opportunity Number for this program?

The Funding Opportunity Number is DE PS02 09ER09 15.

What CFDA program is associated with this opportunity?

The opportunity is under CFDA 81.049, the Office of Science Financial Assistance Program.

What type of grant opportunity is this?

It was described as a discretionary grant opportunity in the Science and Technology and other Research and Development category.

Was cost sharing or matching required?

No. The announcement stated that no cost sharing or matching was required.

Who was the program manager, and why was an advance abstract requested?

The program manager was Dr. Anjuli S. Bamzai. Applicants were requested to email a title page and abstract in advance to streamline peer review and manage conflicts of interest.

Where were applicants asked to email the title page and abstract?

Applicants were asked to email the title page and abstract to anjuli.bamzai@science.doe.gov.

What subject line was requested for the advance abstract email?

The requested subject line was "DE PS02 09ER09 15 Abstract".

When was the advance abstract recommended to be submitted?

It was recommended for submission by mid-April 2009, ahead of the full proposal deadline.

What was the full application closing date?

The full application closing date was April 27, 2009.

When was the opportunity posted and created?

The opportunity was posted and created on March 26, 2009.

When was the opportunity archived, and what does that imply?

It was archived on July 26, 2010, indicating it was a time-limited call tied to the 2009 submission cycle.

Who was eligible to apply?

Eligibility was broadly open to domestic entities, subject to standard federal restrictions described in the announcement.

Which entities were not eligible to apply?

The announcement specified that other federal agencies were not eligible, Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) contractors were excluded, and certain nonprofit 501(c)(4) organizations that engaged in lobbying activities after December 31, 1995 were not eligible.

What support contacts were provided for administrative or technical issues?

For access or technical issues, the announcement listed the IIPS HelpDesk (iipshelpdesk@e-center.doe.gov) and Deborah Greenawalt (Deb.Greenawalt@science.doe.gov).

What regional climate aspects does the opportunity highlight as important?

The opportunity highlights improving representation of regional differences in temperature and precipitation, as well as extremes and variability, and improving the realism of processes and interactions that control regional outcomes.

What kinds of Earth system interactions were emphasized for improvement?

The opportunity emphasized improving how models handle interactions among the atmosphere, land, oceans, and ice at spatial scales relevant to regional impacts.

Does the announcement specify a particular modeling approach as required?

No specific single approach was stated as required. The opportunity described several possible directions (for example, new formulations, numerical methods, coupling strategies, and downscaling approaches) and emphasized innovation and major potential advances.