TO: The Puerto Rico Scientific Community

RE: 2027 NASA EPSCoR Basic Research Pre-Proposal Competition

NASA has released a new NASA EPSCoR Basic Research Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO No. NNH27ZHA001C).

Faculty responding to this NOFO are expected to collaborate closely with NASA researchers on projects addressing one or more of NASA's current Research Focus Areas. These collaborations are intended to strengthen research partnerships among NASA EPSCoR jurisdictions, NASA research centers, commercial partners, and other organizations.

Each NASA EPSCoR jurisdiction may submit up to TWO proposals in response to this NOFO. Accordingly, Puerto Rico NASA EPSCoR is conducting a competitive pre-proposal selection process to identify the projects that will represent Puerto Rico in the national competition. Interested research teams are invited to submit their pre-proposals to the Puerto Rico NASA EPSCoR Office.

The pre-proposals will be evaluated by the Technical Advisory Committee based on their scientific and technical merit and alignment with the following NASA EPSCoR objectives:

• Contribute to the development of research capabilities in NASA EPSCoR jurisdictions in areas of strategic importance to NASA's mission.
• Enhance the ability of NASA EPSCoR jurisdictions to secure research funding from sources outside the NASA EPSCoR program.
• Develop and strengthen partnerships among NASA research centers, academic institutions, and industry.
• Contribute to the research infrastructure and economic development of the jurisdiction.
• Address research priorities identified in NASA's current Research Focus Areas (see Appendix 1 of the NOFO).

Template: This template outlines the information required to complete the Submittable application form.

The PIs of the two selected pre-proposals will be invited to develop and submit full proposals to NASA, each requesting $750,000 in NASA funding, with a required institutional cost share of $375,000 (a 2:1 NASA-to-institutional funding ratio). Each PI is responsible for securing the required matching funds from their home institution.

Submission: Pre-proposals are due by 5:00 PM on Wednesday, December 16, 2026, via Submittable.  

For more information contact: Dr. Gerardo Morell, PR NASA EPSCoR Director, email: gerardo.morell@upr.edu 

Technical Support: For technical questions or problems with the Submittable platform, technical support is available Monday-Friday, 9 am - 5 pm MST and can be reached at support@submittable.com or 855-467-8264