# EARLY STAGE INNOVATIONS (ESI26)

Source: https://welltoldgrants.com/grants/nnh26ztr001n-26esi-b2-early-stage-innovations-esi26/  
Official notice: https://www.grants.gov/search-results-detail/363066

> NASA Headquarters offered grants of up to $750,000 to the applicants described in the notice. It expected to make about 24 awards. Applications closed on August 13, 2026.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Opportunity number | NNH26ZTR001N-26ESI-B2 |
| Agency | NASA Headquarters |
| Status | Forecast |
| Deadline | August 13, 2026 |
| Award ceiling | $750,000 |
| Award floor | not stated |
| Expected awards | 24 |
| Total funding | not stated |
| Cost sharing | not required |
| Assistance Listings | 43.012 |

## Who can apply

- Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)

Private institutions of higher education, Public or State controlled institutions of higher education

## What the grant funds

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Headquarters has released the solicitation Early Stage Innovations (ESI), as an appendix to the Research and Technology Mission Directorate (RTMD) umbrella NASA Research Announcement (NRA) titled "Space Technology Research, Development, Demonstration, and Infusion 2026 (SpaceTech REDDI 2026).”. The solicitation is available by opening the NSPIRES homepage at https://nspires.nasaprs.com/, selecting “Open” under "Solicitations," and searching "Early Stage Innovations (ESI26)” under Keywords, or directly via https://solicitation.nasaprs.com/NNH26ZTR001N-26ESI_B2. Through ESI26, Space Technology Research Grants (STRG) Program within RTMD solicits proposals from U.S. institutions of higher education (IHEs) for innovative, early-stage space technology research of high priority to NASA. Proposals are sought on specific space technologies that are currently at low Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs). The solicitation exclusively seeks proposals that are primarily responsive to civil-space needs and use cases and not terrestrial and/or non-civil-space applications. The solicitation exclusively seeks proposals that are responsive to one of the following eight topics: Acceleration of Computational Fluid Dynamics of High-Enthalpy Hypersonic Flows Using Advanced Numerics and Machine Learning Advancements in Autonomous Maintenance and Manufacturing Technologies for the Moon and Mars Computational Techniques for the Design and Characterization of Oxidation-Resistant Refractory Alloys for Aerospace Applications Entry-Induced Fracture Modeling of Thermal Protection Materials Experimental Characterization of Supersonic Retropropulsion Flows at Subscale Innovative and Adaptive Filtering Approaches for Onboard Autonomous Spacecraft Navigation Large Surface Area Electrospray Thruster Robotic Construction and Outfitting for Surface Power Grids on the Moon and Mars Only U.S. IHEs are eligible to submit proposals to this Appendix. The Principal Investigator (PI) must be either a tenured faculty member or an untenured faculty member on the tenure track from the proposing IHE. Teaming and collaboration are permitted, subject to the restrictions described in the solicitation. The financial and programmatic support for ESI comes from the STRG Program within RTMD. Awards are planned to start in June 2027.

## Questions people ask

### Is NNH26ZTR001N-26ESI-B2 still open?

No. It closed on August 13, 2026.

### Who can apply for EARLY STAGE INNOVATIONS (ESI26)?

NASA Headquarters accepted applications from the applicants described in the notice. The notice adds further conditions, so read its eligibility section.

### What is the deadline for EARLY STAGE INNOVATIONS (ESI26)?

Closed August 13, 2026. Applications are no longer accepted; the program's newer notices are on this page when there are any.

### How much funding is available?

Awards of up to $750,000 each.

### Who has won Space Technology grants before?

The largest recipients over five fiscal years were Georgia Tech Research Corp, The Regents of the University of Colorado, University of Texas at Austin. The program made 939 awards worth $327 million in that time.