Earth System Model Development and Analysis | DE FOA 0001862

Opportunity Information: Apply for DE FOA 0001862

The Earth System Model Development and Analysis funding opportunity (DE-FOA-0001862) is a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science grant program aimed at improving how scientists understand and simulate the Earth system. Its central goal is to deepen process-level and system-level understanding of how the Earth varies and changes over time, including the interactions and feedbacks that connect major components like the atmosphere, oceans, land, biogeochemistry, and the cryosphere. A key theme is strengthening global coupled Earth system modeling so that simulations are more informative, more credible, and better constrained by real-world observations.

A major focus of the FOA is advancing the design, evaluation, diagnosis, analysis, and improvement of sophisticated coupled Earth system models, with particular emphasis on DOE's Energy Exascale Earth System Model (E3SM). E3SM is positioned as the primary model for supported work, either used by itself or alongside other advanced Earth system models. The FOA highlights E3SM as a full Earth system model built with advanced software and intended to run on DOE high-performance computing resources, including high-resolution configurations suited to investigating energy-relevant grand challenge research questions. The timeline referenced in the announcement notes E3SM version 1 (v1) being released in FY 2018, with versions v2 and v3 under development for release during FY 2021 through FY 2024, signaling that the program is interested both in near-term science using the newly released model and in development work that influences future generations of the system.

The FOA supports new projects that connect directly with ongoing DOE efforts, either by collaborating with the E3SM project itself (under the Earth System Modeling activity) or by working with Science Focus Area analysis efforts associated with the Regional and Global Model Analysis (RGMA) activity. For projects centered on E3SM v1, the FOA encourages a "hierarchy of models" approach. In practice, that means investigators can combine the full coupled model with simpler or more targeted configurations to isolate key processes and better understand how different Earth system components interact. The intent is to probe feedbacks across multiple systems, such as how ocean variability affects atmospheric circulation, how land and vegetation processes influence water and energy cycling, how biogeochemical changes alter climate-relevant fluxes, or how ice and snow processes feed back onto global climate patterns.

For proposals oriented toward E3SM v2 and v3, the emphasis shifts more toward active model development and improvement. These projects are expected to contribute to E3SM's evolution by rigorously testing model behavior, identifying and diagnosing important biases, determining why those biases occur, and helping correct problems that materially affect the coupled system. In other words, the FOA is not only funding scientific analysis that uses E3SM outputs, but also targeted development work that improves the model's fidelity and reliability in ways that matter for coupled Earth system behavior.

Administratively, this opportunity is a discretionary grant in the Science and Technology and other Research and Development category (CFDA 81.049), offered by the DOE Office of Science. The original closing date listed is March 21, 2018, and the award ceiling is stated as $350,000. Eligibility is broad in the sense that most applicant types can apply, but with notable exclusions. Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) contractors, other federal agencies, and certain nonprofit organizations classified under section 501(c)(4) that engaged in lobbying activities after December 31, 1995 are not eligible to apply as lead applicants. At the same time, other federal agencies, their FFRDC contractors, and DOE national laboratories may participate as collaborators on a team, but they cannot serve as the lead applicant. The FOA also clarifies team structure expectations: team members that are neither other federal agencies nor DOE national laboratories should be included as subawards under the lead applicant rather than applying separately as independent co-leads.

Overall, the opportunity is structured to expand the scientific and technical ecosystem around E3SM by funding research that either (1) uses E3SM and related model hierarchies to uncover and explain Earth system processes and feedbacks, especially when anchored in observational evidence, or (2) directly strengthens the next versions of E3SM by diagnosing and fixing impactful coupled-model biases. The underlying outcome DOE is pushing toward is a more capable, better evaluated, and more trustworthy Earth system modeling framework that can address large-scale, energy-relevant scientific questions using cutting-edge computing.

• The Office of Science in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Earth System Model Development and Analysis" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 81.049.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2017-11-28.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2018-03-21. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $350,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for DE FOA 0001862

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