Exploration (43.003)
Exploration (Assistance Listing 43.003) is run by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. It awarded $354 million in 208 grants from fiscal 2021 to 2025, about $1.7 million per award on average. No funding opportunity is open on Grants.gov right now.
The typical award was $221,093. Half of the 208 awards fell between $85,683 and $734,500, and they ranged from $5,000 to $99.7 million.
- Awarded, FY 2021 to 2025$354 million
- Grant awards208
- Typical award$221,093
- Awarded in FY 2025$86.7 million
- Size rank453 of 1824
- Type of assistanceCooperative agreements, cooperative agreements (discretionary grants), project grants, project grants (cooperative agreements or contracts), project grants (cooperative agreements), project grants (discretionary), project grants (fellowships), project grants (for specified projects), project grants (including individual awards), project grants (including travel grants), direct payments for specified use, direct payments for specified use (cooperative agreements), use of property, facilities, and equipment, provision of specialized services, dissemination of technical information, training
Key findings
- Annual funding rose from $62.9 million in fiscal 2021 to $86.7 million in fiscal 2025.
- It is the 453rd largest of 1,824 federal grant programs by five-year awards.
- The 20 largest recipients received 86% of the money.
- Awards went to recipients in 36 states and territories.
What the program funds
The Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate (ESDMD) defines and manages systems development for programs critical to the NASA’s Artemis campaign and planning for NASA’s Moon to Mars exploration approach in an integrated manner. ESDMD manages the human exploration system development for lunar orbital, lunar surface, and Mars exploration. ESDMD leads the human aspects of the Artemis activities as well as the integration of science into the human system elements. ESDMD is responsible for development of the lunar and Mars architectures. Programs in the mission directorate include Orion, Space Launch System, Exploration Ground Systems, Gateway, Human Landing System, and Extravehicular Activity (xEVA)and Human Surface Mobility.
Open opportunities
No opportunity under this program is open or forecast on Grants.gov right now. Programs often post once a year, so the funding history below shows what to expect.
Rules from the program listing
Who can apply
Categories of organizations that may be eligible for NASA grants and cooperative agreements include: • Institutions of Higher Education (IHE) – A two- or four-year university or college (including U.S. community colleges), public or private, accredited to confer degrees beyond that of the K-12 grade levels. 29 • Educational Institutions – Non-higher-education entities, such as K-12 education groups or institutions of informal education, are classified as Educational Institutions.2 • Non-profit Organization – An organization that: o Is operated primarily for scientific, engineering, educational, research, or similar purposes in the public interest; o Is not organized primarily for profit; o Uses net proceeds to maintain, improve, or expand the organization’s operations; and o Is not an IHE. Non-profit organizations generally exclude (i) colleges and universities; (ii) hospitals; and (iii) state, local, and Federally recognized Indian tribal governments. • For-profit Entity – An organization of any size that is organized primarily for profit. • Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) – FFRDCs are under a broad charter by a Government agency for performing, analyzing, or conducting research for the United States Government. NASA sponsors JPL as the Agency’s sole FFRDC, and JPL is not an eligible applicant to receive a NASA-funded grant or cooperative agreement as a recipient or subrecipient3 .
What the money can and cannot pay for
Although NASA’s statutory authority extends beyond research awards, the Agency primarily issues grants and cooperative agreements to support research and research-related activities. Such activities include, but are not limited to, education, travel, conferences, and training. Information on both active and closed NASA grants and cooperative agreements is publicly available at USAspending.gov. Applicants and recipients must refer to the applicable Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) and award terms and conditions for program-specific requirements and additional details.
Matching requirements
This program has no statutory formula. Matching requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing. MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.
Deadlines
Applicants should review funding opportunity announcement for specific deadlines and other key dates.
Award range and average, in the agency's words
The range in award value depends on the research opportunity’s objectives and the number of meritorious proposals accepted. Awards will generally range from under $100K per year for focused, limited efforts (e.g., data analysis) to $1.5 M per year for extensive activities (e.g., development of scientific hardware) and will be made as a grant, cooperative agreement, or contract.
Examples of funded projects
Fiscal Year2022: Through the release of a Cooperative Agreement Notice (CAN) every two or three years, NASA ESDMD jointly with Science Mission Directorate (SMD) announces opportunities for the submission of multi-institutional, team-based proposals for research to support NASA’s goals in lunar and planetary science and human exploration. Research intended to contribute to human exploration should yield results and products that increase overall utilization efficiency and effectiveness for Artemis mission planning, implementation, and operations teams. For FY 2022 CAN-4, the lunar focus included the following research areas relevant to ESDMD : Traverse Planning, Characterization of Shadowed and Permanently Shadowed Regions (PSRs),Lunar Sample Collection and Sample Handling Operations, Characterizing Physical/Chemical Regolith or Dust Properties, Automated Laboratory Systems ,Planetary Protection.Fiscal Year2023: Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (SSERVI) Continues. In FY 2023 NASA awarded a total of $7.5 M for new awards, from this solicitation at up to $1.5M per Team per year for each of the five years of the award.Fiscal Year2024: Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (SSERVI) – ContinuesFiscal Year2025: Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (SSERVI) Continues. NASA continued to fund existing teams for the duration of their award.Fiscal Year2026: Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (SSERVI) Continues.
Funding history and past recipients
From fiscal 2021 to 2025, Exploration (43.003) awarded$354 million across 208 grant awards, an average of $1.7 million per award.
Who usually wins
State and local governments received 51% of the money, nonprofits 44% and colleges and universities 3.0%.
| Recipient type | Awards | Amount | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| State and local governments | 48 | $181 million | 51% |
| Nonprofits | 109 | $156 million | 44% |
| Colleges and universities | 34 | $10.8 million | 3.0% |
| Small businesses | 7 | $4.7 million | 1.3% |
| Businesses | 6 | $1.6 million | 0.5% |
| Other | 4 | $820,274 | 0.2% |
By state
20 states have a page for this program: those that received at least $1 million or 10 awards.
| State | Awards | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Maryland | 10 | $168 million |
| Texas | 28 | $93.2 million |
| California | 24 | $12.0 million |
| Colorado | 12 | $10.1 million |
| Massachusetts | 16 | $8.6 million |
| New York | 7 | $8.4 million |
| Florida | 12 | $8.2 million |
| District of Columbia | 6 | $7.3 million |
| Virginia | 8 | $5.6 million |
| Georgia | 8 | $4.9 million |
| Pennsylvania | 8 | $4.4 million |
| Rhode Island | 1 | $3.5 million |
| New Mexico | 1 | $2.4 million |
| Louisiana | 2 | $2.2 million |
| Utah | 2 | $2.0 million |
| Wisconsin | 5 | $2.0 million |
| Illinois | 7 | $1.9 million |
| Arizona | 6 | $1.8 million |
| Ohio | 6 | $1.6 million |
| New Hampshire | 2 | $1.1 million |
| North Carolina | 8 | $943,698 |
| Michigan | 6 | $898,575 |
| Washington | 1 | $617,000 |
| Arkansas | 1 | $417,654 |
| Alabama | 6 | $348,958 |
| Iowa | 2 | $325,588 |
| New Jersey | 1 | $250,000 |
| South Carolina | 1 | $214,177 |
| Indiana | 2 | $163,631 |
| Tennessee | 3 | $154,336 |
| West Virginia | 1 | $105,152 |
| Nevada | 1 | $104,839 |
| Mississippi | 1 | $70,313 |
| North Dakota | 1 | $45,225 |
| Kentucky | 1 | $24,456 |
| Minnesota | 1 | $233 |