SECOND STAND ALONE MISSION OF OPPORTUNITY NOTICE ANNOUNCEMENT OF OPPORTUNITY INCLUDING A PROPOSAL OPPORTUNITY FOR THE EARTH SYSTEM SCIENCE PATHFINDER PROGRAM EARTH VENTURE INSTRUMENT 1 | Apply Online

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1) What is SALMON 2 (NNH12ZDA006O)?

SALMON 2 is a NASA Headquarters funding solicitation called the "Second Stand Alone Missions of Opportunity Notice" (SALMON 2), identified as NNH12ZDA006O. It is an omnibus Announcement of Opportunity (AO), meaning it functions as a standing container that NASA can use to release multiple, separate proposal opportunities over time through future amendments.

2) What does it mean that SALMON 2 is an omnibus Announcement of Opportunity?

It means SALMON 2 is designed to remain in place as a continuing solicitation framework. Rather than being a single, one-time call, it can be amended to add new, distinct proposal opportunities (often provided as appendices) as NASA rolls them out over time.

3) What NASA organizations does SALMON 2 aim to support?

The stated intent is to support mission and technology objectives across several parts of NASA, including the Science Mission Directorate (SMD), the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate (HEOMD), and the Office of the Chief Technologist (OCT).

4) What happened to SALMON 1 (NNH08ZDA009O)?

When SALMON 2 launched on February 7, 2012, the earlier omnibus announcement SALMON 1 (NNH08ZDA009O) was formally closed. Its closing date was amended to February 7, 2012, and NASA indicated that no further appendices would be added to SALMON 1.

5) What specific opportunity was included in the initial SALMON 2 release?

The initial SALMON 2 release included one specific proposal opportunity: Earth Venture Instrument 1 (EVI-1), which is part of NASA's Earth System Science Pathfinder (ESSP) Program.

6) What is Earth Venture Instrument 1 (EVI-1)?

EVI-1 is a call focused on Principal Investigator (PI) led Earth science investigations that require the development of a spaceflight instrument. NASA is seeking complete, end-to-end investigations that combine a compelling Earth science question or hypothesis with a plan to design, build, and deliver an instrument that can fly in space.

7) What kind of work is NASA looking for under EVI-1?

NASA described interest in full investigations where the proposing team not only defines the science objectives, but also proposes to develop a spaceflight instrument to make the necessary measurements. The expectation is that the investigation is integrated: the science and the instrument development are part of a single, coherent plan.

8) Does EVI-1 restrict proposals to specific Earth science topics?

No. The solicitation explicitly allows proposals across any of the science focus areas within NASA's Earth Science program, rather than limiting submissions to a narrow topic area.

9) How does NASA expect the instrument to be used or deployed?

NASA anticipated that instruments developed under EVI-1 would be deployed on a satellite that NASA selects. The resulting measurements would then be used to conduct innovative, integrated investigations aimed at pressing Earth system science problems.

10) When did the SALMON 2 / EVI-1 solicitation open and close?

For the EVI-1 appendix under SALMON 2, the solicitation opened on February 7, 2012 and closed on May 8, 2012.

11) Was a Notice of Intent (NOI) required, and when was it due?

A Notice of Intent to propose was due March 22, 2012. The notice indicated that this is typically used by NASA for planning proposal review workload and logistics.

12) Was there a preproposal conference?

NASA planned a preproposal conference in mid-March 2012 in the Washington, DC area. The notice pointed proposers to the ESSP Earth Venture information site for details.

13) Who was eligible to participate?

Participation was described as broadly open and unrestricted, covering essentially all categories of organizations, both U.S. and non-U.S. The notice specifically included universities and other educational institutions, private industry, nonprofit organizations, Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs), NASA Centers, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), and other government agencies.

14) Are non-U.S. organizations allowed to submit?

Yes. The eligibility description stated that participation was broadly open and included both U.S. and non-U.S. organizations.

15) What type of award instrument was expected?

The award instrument type was identified as a cooperative agreement under a discretionary funding opportunity, aligned with research and development activities.

16) Is cost sharing or matching required?

No cost sharing or matching requirement was stated in the information provided.

17) What CFDA number was associated with this opportunity?

The listing referenced CFDA 43.001 (Science).

18) Where could applicants access the full Announcement of Opportunity and appendices?

The full text of the Announcement of Opportunity and its appendices were made available electronically through NSPIRES (nspires.nasaprs.com) and via a NASA short link page for SALMON 2.

19) Who was the point of contact for questions about EVI-1?

Questions specific to the EVI-1 solicitation were directed to Dr. Kenneth Jucks, the EVI-1 Program Scientist within NASA's Earth Science Division at NASA Headquarters.

20) Was there a specific email subject line requested for questions?

Yes. Proposers were asked to use an email subject line indicating "EVI 1 AO" when sending questions.

21) What should applicants do if they have technical difficulty accessing the announcement?

For technical difficulty accessing the announcement, NASA provided a general support contact: NAIS Support.

22) Is this solicitation a procurement contract opportunity?

No. NASA noted that the notice constitutes a NASA Research Announcement under FAR 6.102(d)(2). That places it within federal acquisition and competition rules for research announcements, rather than being a standard procurement contract solicitation.

23) Does SALMON 2 only include EVI-1?

The initial SALMON 2 release included EVI-1, but SALMON 2 itself is an omnibus container intended to support multiple, separate proposal opportunities over time through future amendments.