NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration Follow this link to skip to the main content + Contact NASA
Kepler Guest Observer Program

Guest Observer Proposal Preparation - Summary

Step-by-step Instructions for the Submission of a Kepler Guest Observer Proposal
  1. If new to the NASA Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Review and Evaluation System, NSPIRES, register on their website.

  2. Familiarize yourself with the NASA Research Announcement (NRA) Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Sciences Announcement 2012 (ROSES-2012). This document provides an overview of the NRA process and is a compilation of most solicitations within NASA's Science Mission Directorate. Not all of this document is required reading.

  3. Read the Cycle 5 Kepler Research Announcement. New amendments to the Kepler NRA are publicized at NSPIRES. Check this page regularly.

  4. Compile the material required for your proposal. The generic content of the proposal is described in Sec 2.3 of the NRA Guide. Page limits and proposal content within the NRA Guide are amended within Sec 3.4 of the Cycle 5 Kepler NRA. We describe the content of the proposal here. Briefly, proposers will need to:

    1. Understand the scope of the Guest Observer Program.
    2. Familiarize yourself with the technical documentation for the mission.
    3. Develop and justify a science concept for new observations within the fixed Kepler field of view.
    4. Identify appropriate targets for the proposed observations using the Kepler Target Search page as the primary (but not exclusive) source list. This search page provides for the construction of short or long target lists based upon e.g. celestial cone searches, magnitude, color, temperature and surface density.
    5. Optionally, conduct a series of target checks to ensure that the proposed targets can be observed efficiently by Kepler.
    6. Determine if a standard pixel mask will be sufficient for your proposed observations (true for almost all situations), or whether a custom or dedicated pixel mask may be required.
    7. Complete the Target Table, as an integral component of the proposal and as a separate submission to the Guest Observer Office.
    8. Provide the administrative elements of the proposal including a detailed budget with justification, proposer biographical information, and a statement of current and pending support.

  5. Submit the proposal to NSPIRES before 23:59 EST on Friday, Jan 18, 2013.

  6. Proposal evaluation and PI notification will occur over this timeline.

Questions concerning Kepler's science opportunities and open programs, public archive or community tools? Contact us via the email address.
FirstGov - Your First Click to the US Government
+ Freedom of Information Act
+ Budgets, Strategic Plans and Accountability Reports
+ The President's Management Agenda
+ NASA Privacy Statement, Disclaimer,
and Accessibility Certification
+ Inspector General Hotline
+ Equal Employment Opportunity Data Posted Pursuant
to the No Fear Act
+ Information-Dissemination Priorities and Inventories
NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Editor: Martin Still
NASA Official: Jessie Dotson
Last Updated: Jan 6, 2012
+ Contact NASA