News Blog

Every day you encounter something made possible by the National Science Foundation.

The National Science Foundation has announced a new award -- the NSF Diamond Achievement Award -- which will be presented for the first time to the international team of researchers who recently captured the first-ever image of a black hole.

On April 10, in coordinated press conferences across the globe, the Event Horizon Telescope collaboration announced that its planet-scale array of eight ground-based radio telescopes, which was forged through international collaboration, had ...

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has named materials scientist Jennifer Dionne and computer scientist Mark Braverman the recipients of this year's Alan T. Waterman Award.

The Waterman Award annually recognizes an outstanding young researcher in any field of science or engineering supported by NSF. Researchers 40 years of age or younger, or up to 10 years post Ph.D., are eligible. This year, two outstanding researchers ...

The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) project and the National Science Foundation (NSF) will hold a press conference to announce a groundbreaking result.

What: Press conference on groundbreaking result from the Event Horizon Telescope.

Who: NSF Director France Córdova will deliver remarks. A panel of EHT researchers will also ...

The National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) has released its 2019 Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering (WMPD) report, which provides detailed information about participation levels in science and engineering (S&E) education and employment.

"As the science and engineering community strives to broaden participation in education and careers, we need an accurate ...

Today, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released details of the President's Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Budget Request to Congress, which includes a proposed level of funding for the National Science Foundation (NSF). Detailed information will be available on NSF's website.

NSF Director France Córdova issued the following statement:

Under the President's FY2020 budget request, NSF will ...

Media are invited to join a 30-minute call about the President's Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 National Science Foundation (NSF) budget request to Congress.

The call will include information on the new budget proposal, the details of which are expected to be released on March 18, 2019. NSF staff will answer questions and speak to how agency investments in fundamental science and engineering research will continue to support the nation's economy, security and global ...

The National Science Foundation manages the U.S. Antarctic Program, which coordinates all U.S. scientific research (including penguin research!) on the southernmost continent and in the Southern Ocean.

Computer science team lights up faster, more secure data transmission to meet future demands

The National Science Board (NSB) has authorized the National Science Foundation (NSF) to move forward with the Antarctic Infrastructure Modernization for Science (AIMS) project. AIMS is planned as a 10-year undertaking to overhaul McMurdo Station into an energy- and operationally efficient platform from which to support world-class science. Through its Office of Polar Programs (OPP), NSF manages the U.S. Antarctic Program, which funds and facilitates the nation's scientific endeavors on ...

Engineers investigating impact of krill swarms on ocean mixing, and possibly global climate

Acting on the advice of medical experts, National Science Foundation (NSF) officials have directed the NSF-chartered research vessel Nathaniel B. Palmer to put ashore a person in need of a level of care not available aboard the ship. The Palmer, which is at sea in Antarctic waters, will divert to the British Antarctic Survey's Rothera Station.

After arriving at Rothera, the patient will be flown to Punta Arenas, Chile.

The Palmer is on a first, ...

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is awarding Caltech and MIT $20.4 million to upgrade the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO), building upon the agency's four-decade investment, which has totaled more than $1 billion to date. Funded through a cooperative agreement, Advanced LIGO Plus will increase the volume of deep space the observatory can survey by as much as seven times. This investment is part of a joint international effort in collaboration with UK ...

Media invited to expert panel discussing next generation gravitational wave detector

NSF and UKRI to host conversation on future directions for LIGO research

Media are invited to attend an expert panel discussion on gravitational wave detectors and the future of the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) at the Marriott Wardman Park hotel on Feb. 14. The National Science Foundation (NSF) and U.K. Research and Innovation (UKRI) ...

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has selected Dr. Joanne Tornow to serve as head of the Directorate for Biological Sciences (BIO).

Tornow has served with NSF for nearly two decades, with a career that has ranged from program management to the highest levels of NSF leadership and strategic development. Her work at NSF has been marked by a focus on accountability, and on supporting cross-disciplinary, convergent research that draws on the strengths of scientists and engineers ...

President Donald J. Trump is expected to sign an executive order Feb. 11, titled "Maintaining American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence." The order aims to promote sustained investment and innovation in artificial intelligence (AI), enhance access to resources for AI research, and train a next-generation AI research workforce. National Science Foundation (NSF) Director ...

Center for Biomechanical & Rehabilitation Engineering lab inspires STEM careers by focusing students on helping the elderly

The West Antarctic Ice Sheet in the Amundsen Sea off Antarctica could play a pivotal role in future sea level rise, but many questions remain unanswered, scientists say.

Now, researchers taking part in an international ocean drilling expedition funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and international partners are on Antarctica's remote Amundsen Sea looking for clues through an analysis of the ice sheet's history.

Led by researchers at the University of Houston and ...

Media are invited to join a 30-minute call to learn about how National Science Foundation (NSF) activities were affected by the funding lapse.

The call will include updates on impacts, including rescheduling panels and extending deadline proposals. While NSF is still evaluating the full impact of the funding lapse, staff will speak to immediate actions already taken to ensure critical funding reaches members of the scientific and engineering research ...

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is investing $20 million in 10 research awards to push forward the frontiers of engineering research in soft robotics.

"Configurable, strong, mobile robots could safely explore environments too hostile for humans, such as disaster zones and the deep ocean," said Dawn Tilbury, NSF's assistant director for Engineering. "They could allow unprecedented extension of human perception and action to places we've only dreamed about, opening up vast ...