Arctic Natural Sciences Program

PROGRAM GUIDELINES


08-597  Program Solicitation

SYNOPSIS

The Arctic Natural Sciences (ANS) Program supports research in glaciology and in the atmospheric, biological, earth, and ocean sciences. This program provides core support for disciplinary research in the Arctic and coordinates its support of arctic research with the Directorates for Geosciences, Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Social and Behavioral, and Biological Sciences. Areas of special interest include marine and terrestrial ecosystems, arctic atmospheric and oceanic dynamics and climatology, as well as arctic geological and glaciological processes.

For information regarding field support for proposals with field components, please see Proposal Preparation and Submission Instructions in the Arctic Research Opportunities announcement and the Arctic Research Support and Logistics web page.

Atmospheric Sciences

Research in arctic atmospheric sciences focuses on arctic climate and meteorology, including atmosphere-sea and atmosphere-ice interactions. Research on past climates and atmospheric gases preserved in snow and ice is encouraged. The program also supports research on stratospheric and tropospheric processes.

For upper atmospheric and space physics, proposals often are considered jointly with the Division of Atmospheric Sciences in the Geosciences Directorate and OPP’s Antarctic Aeronomy and Astrophysics Program when conjugate studies are proposed.

Biological Sciences

OPP supports projects that emphasize understanding of the adaptation of organisms to the arctic environment. Biological studies in the Arctic include research in freshwater, marine, and terrestrial biology, and ecology. 

Earth Sciences

Although the Arctic Natural Sciences Program supports a range of terrestrial and marine geology and geophysics project, of greatest interest are projects that will bring a better understanding of the arctic geological processes, which will improve our ability to interpret the geologic record of environmental change in the polar regions, particularly in the Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic with special emphasis on the Quaternary. Understanding the processes responsible for the evolution of permafrost and its consequent effects and a better understanding and reconstruction of the plate tectonic history of the Arctic Ocean remain  priorities, as well. 

Glaciology

Glaciology projects generally focus on the history and dynamics of all naturally-occurring forms of snow and ice, including seasonal snow, glaciers, and the Greenland ice sheet. The Arctic Natural Sciences Program also supports modeling of mass balance, glacial geology, and remote sensing studies of ice sheets.

Ocean Sciences

The Arctic Natural Sciences Program supports ocean science projects that advance knowledge of the structure and processes of the Arctic Ocean and adjacent seas and their interactions with their boundaries, including the arctic sea-ice cover. Areas of special interest are

• low-temperature life processes;
• the formation, movement, and mixing of arctic water masses;
• the dynamics of sea ice; 
• and the role of the Arctic Ocean and adjacent seas in global climate.

Proposals concerned with the interdependencies of chemical and physical processes and marine organisms and productivity are encouraged.

THIS PROGRAM IS PART OF

Arctic Research Opportunities

Abstracts of Recent Awards Made Through This Program

News