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Ocean Drilling (NSF) - Frequently Asked Questions

What is the NSF "Ocean Drilling" grant opportunity?

This NSF opportunity supports U.S. participation in the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP), an international scientific ocean drilling effort aimed at answering major questions about Earth history, climate and environmental change, crustal and mantle processes, and subseafloor observatories. The opportunity was listed under Funding Opportunity Number PD 05 5720 and later replaced by PD 14 5720.

What is IODP and what kinds of science does it target?

IODP is an international program that uses scientific ocean drilling to address high-priority Earth science questions. The described science themes include reconstructing Earth history, understanding climate and environmental change, investigating crustal and mantle processes, and establishing/using subseafloor observatories.

Why does IODP require multiple drilling capabilities?

The program description explains that meeting IODP science goals depends on having different types of platforms: (1) a heavy drillship for very deep holes into sediments and ocean crust, (2) a lighter drillship for broadly distributed high-resolution coring (especially valuable for climate and environmental records), and (3) Mission Specific Platforms (MSPs) for locations where conventional drillships are not well suited, such as Arctic environments or shallow-water regions.

Which platforms are referenced, and what are their roles?

The opportunity describes three main operational approaches: the heavy drillship Chikyu for very deep drilling, the lighter drillship JOIDES Resolution for high-resolution coring across broad regions, and Mission Specific Platforms (MSPs) for challenging settings like the Arctic or shallow-water areas where standard drillships may not operate effectively.

Who provides and operates the heavy drillship Chikyu?

Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) provides the heavy drillship Chikyu ("Earth"). It is operated for IODP by the Center for Deep Earth Exploration (CDEX) within JAMSTEC (Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology).

Who provides and operates the JOIDES Resolution?

The JOIDES Resolution is provided by NSF and operated under contract through the U.S. Implementing Organization, described as an alliance involving the Consortium for Ocean Leadership, Texas A&M University, and Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University.

What does the notice say about upgrades to the JOIDES Resolution?

The notice indicates that after early operations in 2004-2006, the JOIDES Resolution was being rebuilt to improve laboratory space, functionality, and berthing.

Who manages Mission Specific Platforms (MSPs) and who operates them?

For MSP expeditions, the ECORD Managing Agency (EMA) serves as the primary provider, and the European Science Operator (ESO) operates the platforms.

Who is responsible for overall IODP program-level management?

Overall program-level management is handled by IODP Management International (IODP MI) under a contract with NSF.

What types of projects is NSF emphasizing for funding under this opportunity?

NSF emphasizes work that directly enables or accompanies drilling, rather than projects that are purely post-cruise analyses. The opportunity highlights interest in: investigations of potential drilling regions (often via regional geological and geophysical field studies), feasibility and early development of downhole instruments and techniques, downhole geophysical and geochemical experiments, and expedition-focused research proposals designed to meet the objectives of specific drilling expeditions.

What are "investigations of potential drilling regions" in this context?

These are typically regional geological and geophysical field studies and related efforts used to evaluate and justify potential drilling areas and to provide the context needed to meet IODP science objectives.

Does this opportunity support development of drilling-related tools and methods?

Yes. The description specifically calls out feasibility and early development of downhole instruments and techniques, as well as downhole geophysical and geochemical experiments.

What are Expedition Objective Research (EOR) awards?

EOR awards are intended to provide substantial support tied to a particular expedition. They are designed to start during the period between approval of an expedition's sampling plan by the co-chief scientists and the end of the sample moratorium period.

When should EOR proposals be submitted?

The notice encourages prospective applicants to align EOR submissions with the NSF Ocean Sciences (OCE) proposal target dates of February 15 and August 15, which recur annually.

Is NSF interested only in proposals tied to already-scheduled expeditions?

No. The opportunity states NSF will also consider proposals that help define longer-term future drilling objectives.

What kinds of proposals generally do not fit this particular opportunity?

The notice is clear that projects that are primarily post-cruise studies are typically expected to be submitted through other NSF programs that match the subject matter. This opportunity is mainly meant for pre-drilling preparation, drilling-concurrent science, drilling-enabling instrumentation and methods, and expedition-specific research tightly coupled to IODP plans and timelines.

If a project is mainly post-cruise analysis, where should it go instead?

The notice indicates that primarily post-cruise projects are generally expected to be submitted through other NSF programs aligned with the topic, such as Marine Geology and Geophysics, other Earth Sciences programs, Polar Programs, and related tracks.

What additional support mechanisms are mentioned besides standard research awards?

The opportunity points to support available through the NSF-sponsored JOI U.S. Science Support Program, which includes multiple forms of community and expedition-related support beyond standard research grants.

What does the JOI U.S. Science Support Program support?

As described in the notice, this program covers: community planning (including workshops and drilling concept development), participation in the IODP scientific advisory structure, support for U.S. scientists sailing on expeditions and cross-cutting follow-up studies needed by most participants, site surveys and data syntheses to provide drilling context, education and outreach, downhole instrumentation development, dissemination of IODP results, and support for the U.S. Science Advisory Committee (USSAC) as a bridge between the U.S. research community and NSF.

What is the role of the U.S. Science Advisory Committee (USSAC) in the context of this opportunity?

The notice describes USSAC as a bridge between the U.S. research community and NSF, supported as part of the JOI U.S. Science Support Program.

What is the CFDA listing and NSF category for this opportunity?

The opportunity is listed under CFDA 47.050 (Geosciences) and described as an NSF discretionary grant opportunity in the Science and Technology and other Research and Development category.

Is cost sharing required?

No cost sharing requirement is stated in the provided summary.

Who is eligible to apply?

The summary indicates broadly "unrestricted" eligibility, meaning it is open to any type of applicant organization, subject to any limits described in the full text of the announcement.

What were the key dates for this opportunity as listed in the archive?

The posting date is March 24, 2009. The archived listing shows an original closing date of August 15, 2009, with recurring annual target dates thereafter of February 15 and August 15. The record was archived on May 13, 2014 when it was replaced.

Does the listing specify the number of awards or total funding available?

No. The summary fields show expected award count and total funding as 0, which typically indicates that funding levels and the number of awards depend on appropriations, program priorities, and proposal pressure rather than a fixed set-aside amount.

How should applicants think about aligning their work with IODP?

The opportunity is presented as a pathway for researchers to plug into expedition planning and execution by developing site survey evidence that justifies drilling, creating and testing downhole tools and experiments that can operate during drilling, and proposing expedition-linked research that directly advances prioritized IODP science goals.

Where does the notice direct applicants for expedition information and participation pathways?

The notice points to IODP and operator websites for expedition information and participation pathways, including IODP (for expedition participation), IODP Management International, the U.S. Implementing Organization, CDEX/JAMSTEC for Chikyu operations, and ESO for MSP operations.

What makes a proposal "tightly coupled" to IODP plans and timelines?

Based on the description, the strongest fit is work that enables drilling or is designed to operate during drilling and/or is explicitly expedition-focused (including EOR proposals) with timing and activities linked to expedition planning elements such as sampling plans, moratorium windows, and expedition-specific objectives.