September 28, 2026 ktindiana

D.8 Habitable Worlds Observatory Precursor Science Investigations (HWO-PSI)

The Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) is a large-aperture ultraviolet/visible/near-infrared observatory concept recommended by the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine decadal survey, “Pathways to Discovery in Astronomy and Astrophysics for the 2020s” (Astro2020). The HWO mission concept would be the first space mission designed specifically to search for life outside our solar system and would be capable of performing transformative science across astrophysics, areas of planetary science, and more. Habitable Worlds Observatory Precursor Science Investigations (HWO-PSI) program element D.8 of ROSES aims to advance the scientific foundation that would reduce risk for a potential future HWO mission.

ROSES-2025 Amendment 68 releases D.8 Habitable Worlds Observatory Precursor Science Investigations (HWO-PSI) as a new opportunity in ROSES-25. Mandatory NOIs are due by September 10, 2026, and proposals are due by October 26, 2026. Proposals submitted to this program will be evaluated using dual anonymous peer review.

On or about July 27, 2026, this Amendment to the NASA Research Announcement “Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Sciences (ROSES) 2025” (NNH25ZDA001N) will be posted on the NASA research opportunity homepage at https://solicitation.nasaprs.com/ROSES2025 and will appear on SARA’s ROSES blog at: https://science.nasa.gov/researchers/solicitations/roses-2025/

Questions concerning D.8 HWO-PSI may be directed to Megan Ansdell at Megan.C.Ansdell@nasa.gov.

Habitable Worlds Observatory Instrument Concept Assessments (Proposals due 14 October 2026) 

Amendment

This program is intended to support the ongoing pre-formulation activities being conducted by the HWO Technology Maturation Project Office (HTMPO); the scope, deliverables, and timelines of HWO-ICA activities are therefore aligned to HTMPO’s concurrent mission concept maturation activities. This opportunity does not support development of flight hardware or support tools/systems and does not imply participation in future HWO mission development.

D.9 Habitable Worlds Observatory Instrument Concept Assessments (HWO-ICA)  supports two categories of proposals:

  • Category 1: Proposals led by U.S.-based institutions to conduct instrument concept assessments over a nominal ~2-year period (see Section 3.2.1)
  • Category 2: Proposals to support U.S.-based individuals participating in currently ongoing instrument concept programs led and funded by non-U.S. institutions, for nominally up to ~2 years (see Section 3.2.2)

Selected proposals will be funded by firm-fixed-priced contracts or Interagency Agreements (see Section 3.7) to fulfill the obligations outlined in this opportunity (see Section 4) in the file starting “D.9” that is posted on the NASA Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Review and Evaluation System (NSPIRES) landing page for NNH25ZDA001N-HWOICA at short URL https://go.nasa.gov/HWOICA. 

ROSES-2025 Amendment 69 releases D.9 Habitable Worlds Observatory Instrument Concept Assessments (HWO-ICA) as a new opportunity in ROSES-25. Neither Notices of Intent (NOIs) nor Step-1 proposals are requested. Proposals are due by October 14, 2026. Proposals submitted to this program will be evaluated using dual anonymous peer review.

On or about August 14, 2026, this Amendment to the NASA Research Announcement “Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Sciences (ROSES) 2025” (NNH25ZDA001N) will be posted on the NASA research opportunity homepage at https://solicitation.nasaprs.com/ROSES2025 and will appear on SARA’s ROSES blog at: https://science.nasa.gov/researchers/solicitations/roses-2025/

Questions concerning D.8 HWO-ICA may be directed to Megan Ansdell at Megan.C.Ansdell@nasa.gov.  

D.9 Habitable Worlds Observatory Instrument Concept Assessments: 

https://nspires.nasaprs.com/external/solicitations/summary.do?solNum=NNH25ZDA001N-HWOICA