Opportunity Information: Apply for 06 573
Apply for 06 573
- The National Science Foundation in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Leadership Class System Acquisition Creating a Petascale Computing Environment for Science and Engineering" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 47.080 Office of Cyberinfrastructure.
- This funding opportunity was created on Jul 13, 2010 and posted on Jun 12, 2006.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Preliminary Proposal Due Date(s) (required) September 08, 2006 Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p.m. proposers local time) February 02, 2007. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- The funding agency has allocated a total of $20,000,000.00 to eligible and selected applicants.
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $20,000,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).
- Proposals may only be submitted by the following Institutions of higher education, non profit, non academic organizations directly associated with educational or research activities, and FFRDCs are eligible to submit proposals. For profit organizations may also participate in proposals, but only as sub awardees to a submitting organization. An eligible organization may submit only one preliminary proposal to this competition. A full proposal may only be submitted by an organization invited to do so after the required preliminary proposals have been reviewed. There is no restriction on the number of preliminary proposals or full proposals in which an organization may appear as a sub awardee. Collaborative projects may only be submitted as a single preliminary proposal and a single full proposal, in which a single award is being requested. The involvement of partner organizations should be supported through sub awards administered by the submitting organization.
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Opportunity Summary:
This National Science Foundation (NSF) grant opportunity, titled "Leadership Class System Acquisition - Creating a Petascale Computing Environment for Science and Engineering" (NSF 06-573), was designed to accelerate US academic research by funding the acquisition and deployment of a new, state-of-the-art petascale high performance computing (HPC) system. NSF framed the effort as part of its 2006-2011 HPC strategy: building a world-class computing environment for science and engineering by combining the strongest available computing assets and making them broadly accessible to the research and education community. The central idea is that a single leadership-class system, run as a national resource, can enable breakthrough work in fields where progress is limited by computing power, memory capacity, and the ability to move and analyze massive datasets.
At the heart of the solicitation is the push toward "petascale" performance, meaning computing capability approaching 10^15 floating point operations per second (petaflops) sustained on real scientific and engineering applications, not just peak theoretical benchmarks. NSF emphasized that the target users are researchers tackling problems that are computationally challenging in multiple ways: they may require extremely high sustained throughput, very large memory footprints, or the ability to process and store enormous amounts of data. The solicitation highlights that this kind of platform unlocks simulations and analyses that are otherwise impractical, including multiscale simulations (where phenomena at different spatial or temporal scales must be modeled together) and coupled or multiphysics problems (where multiple processes interact simultaneously, such as climate-atmosphere-ocean coupling, complex materials behavior, or large-scale biological and chemical systems).
The opportunity specifically sought proposals from organizations willing to serve as an HPC Resource Provider. In NSF terms, that means an institution (or a group led by one primary submitting institution) that will not only purchase the system, but also deploy it, operate it reliably, and deliver it as a production-quality, community-facing service for the broad science and engineering research and education community. The expectation was not just hardware procurement, but a complete capability: professional operations, user support, data management, software environment, and policies that make the system usable and productive for a wide range of disciplines. NSF also stressed that the resulting resource should be community-driven and actively engage researchers and educators, implying outreach, allocation processes, support for application onboarding and optimization, and other mechanisms that help the community actually achieve petascale science rather than merely having access to large hardware.
NSF laid out what it considered the characteristics of a competitive system. It should enable frontier research across a range of computationally intensive applications; incorporate robust and reliable system software needed to achieve high sustained performance; provide stability and usability appropriate for a national production service; and function as an actively managed community resource rather than a locally focused machine. A notable element of the solicitation is the emphasis on a strong acquisition process guided by real scientific requirements. Rather than defining success purely by vendor specifications, NSF indicated that the desired capabilities would be defined in terms of performance on "model problems," reflecting an outcomes-based approach where system value is measured by how well it runs representative scientific workloads.
From a funding and administrative standpoint, the solicitation was issued by NSF's Office of Cyberinfrastructure under CFDA 47.080, categorized as discretionary funding for science and technology research and development, using the grant instrument. NSF expected to make a single award, with an estimated total funding amount of $20,000,000 and an award ceiling of $20,000,000, and it did not require cost sharing or matching. The competition was structured in two stages: a required preliminary proposal due September 8, 2006, followed by a full proposal deadline of February 2, 2007, but only for organizations invited after preliminary review. Eligibility was limited to institutions of higher education, nonprofit and non-academic organizations directly associated with educational or research activities, and federally funded research and development centers (FFRDCs). For-profit organizations could participate only as subawardees under an eligible submitting organization. Each eligible organization could submit only one preliminary proposal as the lead, though it could participate as a subawardee on multiple proposals. Collaborative efforts were allowed but had to be submitted as a single proposal requesting a single award, with partner roles supported through subawards administered by the lead organization.
Overall, this opportunity was about establishing a leadership-class national computing capability by funding one provider to acquire and operate a petascale system that could deliver sustained, real-world application performance at the petaflops scale. NSF positioned the system as enabling a step change in what researchers can simulate, analyze, and discover, while making clear that success depends as much on robust software, operational maturity, and community engagement as it does on raw compute power.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the title of this NSF grant opportunity?
The opportunity is titled "Leadership Class System Acquisition - Creating a Petascale Computing Environment for Science and Engineering" (NSF 06-573).
What is the main purpose of this solicitation?
The solicitation is intended to accelerate US academic research by funding the acquisition and deployment of a new, state-of-the-art petascale high performance computing (HPC) system that would be operated as a national resource for the broad science and engineering research and education community.
How does NSF position this effort within its broader strategy?
NSF frames the effort as part of its 2006-2011 HPC strategy to build a world-class computing environment for science and engineering by combining strong computing assets and making them broadly accessible to the research and education community.
What does NSF mean by "leadership-class" in this context?
In this context, "leadership-class" refers to a single, national-scale computing system intended to deliver extremely high capability for research problems that are limited by computing power, memory capacity, and the need to move and analyze massive datasets.
What does "petascale" performance mean in this solicitation?
Petascale performance is described as computing capability approaching 10^15 floating point operations per second (petaflops) sustained on real scientific and engineering applications, not just peak theoretical performance on benchmarks.
Why does the solicitation emphasize sustained performance on real applications?
NSF emphasizes sustained performance because the goal is to enable real scientific and engineering outcomes. The solicitation prioritizes capability demonstrated on representative workloads rather than relying only on vendor-provided peak specifications.
What kinds of research problems are considered target use cases?
The solicitation targets computationally challenging research problems that may require extremely high sustained throughput, very large memory footprints, or the ability to process and store enormous amounts of data. It highlights multiscale simulations and coupled/multiphysics problems as examples.
What are examples of coupled or multiphysics problems mentioned?
Examples noted include climate-atmosphere-ocean coupling, complex materials behavior, and large-scale biological and chemical systems where multiple processes interact simultaneously.
Who is expected to apply as the primary applicant?
Proposals are sought from organizations willing to serve as an HPC Resource Provider, meaning an institution (or a group led by one primary submitting institution) that will acquire, deploy, and operate the system as a production-quality national resource.
What does NSF mean by an "HPC Resource Provider"?
An HPC Resource Provider is expected to do more than buy hardware. The provider is responsible for deploying the system, operating it reliably, and delivering it as a community-facing service, including professional operations, user support, data management, and a usable software environment.
Is this grant primarily for hardware procurement?
No. While acquisition is a major element, NSF’s expectations include a complete operational capability: stable production service, robust system software, user support, data management, community engagement, and policies that make the system broadly usable and productive.
What does NSF mean by a "production-quality" national service?
It means the system should be stable and usable as a national resource, supported by professional operations and a robust software environment, rather than being a locally focused or experimental installation.
How is community engagement expected to be addressed?
NSF indicates the resource should be community-driven and actively engage researchers and educators. This implies mechanisms such as outreach, allocation processes, and support for onboarding and optimizing applications so users can achieve meaningful petascale science.
How does NSF define a competitive system in this solicitation?
NSF describes competitive characteristics as enabling frontier research across computationally intensive applications, incorporating robust and reliable system software for high sustained performance, providing stability and usability suitable for a national production service, and being actively managed as a community resource.
What is meant by defining capabilities through "model problems"?
NSF emphasizes an outcomes-based acquisition approach where desired capabilities are defined in terms of performance on representative scientific workloads ("model problems"), rather than solely by vendor specification sheets.
What NSF office issued this solicitation?
The solicitation was issued by NSF’s Office of Cyberinfrastructure.
What is the CFDA number associated with this opportunity?
The CFDA number listed is 47.080.
What type of funding mechanism is used?
The solicitation uses the grant instrument and is categorized as discretionary funding for science and technology research and development.
How many awards did NSF expect to make?
NSF expected to make a single award.
What is the estimated total funding amount?
The estimated total funding amount is $20,000,000.
What is the award ceiling?
The award ceiling is $20,000,000.
Is cost sharing or matching required?
No cost sharing or matching is required according to the solicitation summary provided.
How is the competition structured (stages and deadlines)?
The competition is structured in two stages: a required preliminary proposal due September 8, 2006, followed by a full proposal deadline of February 2, 2007, but only for organizations invited to submit a full proposal after preliminary review.
Is a preliminary proposal required?
Yes. A preliminary proposal is required as the first stage of the competition.
Who is eligible to submit as the lead organization?
Eligibility is limited to institutions of higher education, nonprofit and non-academic organizations directly associated with educational or research activities, and federally funded research and development centers (FFRDCs).
Can for-profit organizations apply as the lead?
No. For-profit organizations may participate only as subawardees under an eligible submitting organization.
Can an organization submit more than one proposal as the lead?
No. Each eligible organization may submit only one preliminary proposal as the lead.
Can an organization participate in multiple proposals in other roles?
Yes. An organization may participate as a subawardee on multiple proposals.
Are collaborative proposals allowed?
Yes. Collaborative efforts are allowed, but they must be submitted as a single proposal requesting a single award, with partner roles supported through subawards administered by the lead organization.
Is the system intended to be locally focused or national in scope?
It is intended to be national in scope. NSF emphasizes operation as a national resource that is broadly accessible to the science and engineering research and education community.
What is the core idea behind funding a single leadership-class system?
The core idea is that a single leadership-class system, run as a national resource, can enable breakthroughs in fields where progress is constrained by computing power, memory, and data movement/analysis at massive scale.
Beyond compute power, what other capabilities are emphasized?
The solicitation stresses that success depends on robust software, operational maturity, reliable service delivery, data management, user support, and community engagement, not just raw hardware performance.
What kind of users is the resulting resource meant to serve?
The resulting resource is meant to serve a broad range of researchers and educators across science and engineering disciplines, particularly those with applications requiring high sustained throughput, large memory, and/or massive data processing and storage.
What is the intended impact of establishing a petascale national computing capability?
The intended impact is a step change in what researchers can simulate, analyze, and discover by enabling simulations and analyses that would otherwise be impractical at smaller scales, especially for multiscale and coupled/multiphysics problems.
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