PCOS Science Goals
Expand our knowledge of dark energy
The discovery that the expansion of space is accelerating presents one of the most important scientific problems of our time. The implication that the universe is dominated by an unknown entity, now called "dark energy," that counters the attractive force of gravity, may revolutionize our understanding of cosmology and fundamental physics. Although observations with ground-based and orbital assets—including HST, Chandra, and WMAP—have confirmed the acceleration, we know very little about the most basic properties of dark energy. There is currently no theory based on known physics that can quantitatively explain dark energy. Quantum physics over-predicts the amount of observed dark energy by a factor of 10120. Empirical observations are critical to distinguishing whether dark energy is consistent with Einstein's Cosmological Constant, whether it is due to a dynamic quintessence field that changes over space and time, or whether it is simply a failure of Einstein's General theory of Relativity at cosmic scales. Because it seems to control the expansion of the Universe, we cannot predict the fate of the Universe—Will the Universe last forever?—without understanding the physical nature of dark energy.
![The European Space Agency LISA observatory The European Space Agency LISA observatory](https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/web/20201218004009im_/https://pcos.gsfc.nasa.gov/images/lisa_spacecraft_connected_by_lasers.png)
PCOS News
Program News and Announcements
4 December 2020
Payloads and Research Investigations on the Surface of the Moon (PRISM) Step-2 Due Date. Step-2 proposals now due
3 February 2021. Step-1 proposal due date unchanged as
11 December 2020 »
Details.
4 December 2020
Release of Final text and Due Dates for ROSES Post-COVID Recovery program. Requests received by
4 January 2021 will be processed first. Final due date is
5 March 2021. »
Details.
4 December 2020
NICER seeks panel members for Cycle 3 proposal review »
Details.
4 December 2020
NASA Science seeking volunteer proposal reviewers in Earth and Space Science »
Details.
9 November 2020
SMD Community Town Hall on Tues 17 November to discuss updates to the Agency-wide science program. »
Details.
6 November 2020
NASA Fundamental Physics Program Virtual Town Hall on
3 December 2020, to discuss research priorities in advance of the Biological and Physical Sciences Division Decadal Survey. »
Details.
5 November 2020
Call for proposals for Payloads and Research Investigations on the Surface of the Moon (PRISM). Step-1 Proposals are due
11 December 2020. »
Details.
28 October 2020
Call for proposals on Open-Source Tools, Libraries, and Frameworks. »
Details.
28 October 2020
Revised Text and Due Date for NuSTAR General Observer Program Cycle 7. »
Details.
22 Oct 2020
Principal Investigator Launchpad workshop in Summer 2021, targeted toward researchers developing their first flight mission concepts. »
Details.
21 October 2020
Revised submission date: Applications Sought for PhysPAG Executive Committee. Submissions now due
November 6. »
Details.
14 October 2020
Astrophysics Explorers Announcement of Opportunity Community Announcement »
Details.
17 September 2020
NASA announces major revisions in Astrophysics Research and Analysis opportunity. Due dates remain unchanged. »
Details.
29 July 2020
Community Announcement: Intention to Amend ROSES-20 via a Future Appendix for Payloads and Research Investigations on the Surface of the Moon (PRISM). »
Details.
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