NSF Division of Astronomical Sciences

1. NSF Division of Astronomical Sciences MPS/AST Committee of Visitors February 7, 2011 Jim Ulvestad Division Director, AST

2. Outline • Recent Science Results (Why is NSF here?) • MPS and AST Ecosystem/Budget • AST Staff Duties and Organization • AST Budget and Proposal Pressure • COV-2008 Recommendations COV-AST-org-Ulvestad

3. Most Massive Neutron Star Demorest et al. 2010, Nature, 467, 1081 COV-AST-org-Ulvestad • GBT measured modification of pulse periods from pulsar in binary pair with white dwarf • “Shapiro” delay • Modeling gives precise masses of system, with neutron star M=1.97MSun

4. Most Massive Galaxy Cluster Brodwin et al. 2010, ApJ, 721, 90 COV-AST-org-Ulvestad • South Pole Telescope detected 8x 1014 MSun galaxy cluster at z=1.07, using blind survey of Sunyaev-Zeldovich effect • Multi-color images (CTIO 4m) reveal numerous “old” galaxies

5. An Earth-Sized Planet? Vogt et al. 2010, ApJ, 723, 954 COV-AST-org-Ulvestad • Long-term monitoring of Gliese 581 radial velocities has most recently revealed Gliese 581g • ~3 Earth masses • ~1.3 Earth diameters • In “habitable” zone where liquid water can exist

6. MPS/AST Organization • AST lives in Mathematical and Physical Science Directorate • Largest research directorate in NSF, with budget approaching $1.4B • Total NSF budget is ~$7B • Other divisions: Chemistry, Materials Research, Mathematical Sciences, Physics • AST is the most “facilities-heavy” division • Total AST budget: $245M in FY 2010 STAFF COUNTS COV-AST-org-Ulvestad

7. MPS FY 2011 Budget Request AST budget doubled 2000-2010 COV-AST-org-Ulvestad

8. AST Budget Pie FY11 Budget Request ~$250M COV-AST-org-Ulvestad

9. NSF-AST FY 2009 Program(including American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, ARRA) FY11 Budget ~$250M COV-AST-org-Ulvestad

10. Management Since Feb. 2008 • Division Director (DD) • Wayne van Citters moved to MPS front office, April 2008 • Craig Foltz served as DD until March 2010 • Jim Ulvestad appointed DD (rotator) March 2010 • Deputy Division Director (DDD) • Eileen Friel left for Lowell Observatory, June 2009 • Nigel Sharp served as interim DDD until February 2010 • Vern Pankonin served as interim DDD, May 2010-January 2011 • Vern Pankonin appointed DDD in January 2011 COV-AST-org-Ulvestad

11. Other Program Staff Changes • Permanent Federal employees • Jeff Pier started August 2008; NOAO in 2009 • Gary Schmidt started March 2010; Gemini in Nov. 2010 • Open position (replacing Pankonin’s Program Officer slot) advertised • Rotators (Intergovernmental Personnel Act=IPA) • Don Terndrup started in 2008 • Tom Statler and Scott Fisher in 2009 • Katharina Lodders in 2010 • Ed Ajhar and Maria Womack in 2011 (last week) • Federal Temporary Employee • Paul Morris in 2010-2011 COV-AST-org-Ulvestad

12. Administrative Staff Changes • Craig McClure became Program Support Manager in 2009 • Donna O’Malley became Operations Specialist in 2009 • Liz Pentecost became Facilities Coordinator in 2009 • Heidi Griggs became Administrative Support Assistant in 2009 • Diana Phan started as student in 2009, transformed to Program Assistant in 2011 • Kim Elliott moved to central MPS IT in 2010 COV-AST-org-Ulvestad

13. Division of Astronomical Sciences (AST) Office of the Division Director Individual Investigator Programs Mid-Scale & Future MREFC Projects Facilities Administration James Ulvestad Division Director Vernon Pankonin Deputy Division Director Elizabeth Pentecost Project Administrator Donna O’Malley Operations Specialist Craig McClure Program Support Manager Heidi Griggs Administrative Support Assistant Anton Jiggetts Program Technology Analyst Ann Butler Program Assistant Diana Phan Student Program Assistant Gary Schmidt Advanced Technologies & Instrumentation Dana Lehr Astronomy & Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellowships R.Scott Fisher Education & Special Programs (CAREER, REU, PAARE) Andrew Clegg Enhancing Access to the Radio Spectrum Jeffrey Pier Major Research Instrumentation Thomas Statler Planetary Astronomy Donald Terndrup Stellar Astronomy & Astrophysics Katharina Lodders Galactic Astronomy Richard Barvainis Extragalactic Astronomy & Cosmology Nigel Sharp NVO/VAO, Large Synoptic Survey Telescope Donald Terndrup Giant Segmented Mirror Telescope Ed Ajhar; Maria Womack Vernon Pankonin Mid-Scale Projects/ Instrumentation Richard Barvainis University Radio Observatories Paul Morris Facilities Manager Philip Puxley Atacama Large Millimeter Array Tomas Gergely Electromagnetic Spectrum Management Gary Schmidt Gemini Observatory Dana Lehr National Astronomy Ionosphere Center Jeffrey Pier National Optical Astronomy Observatory Vernon Pankonin National Radio Astronomy Observatory Craig Foltz National Solar Observatory

14. Comments on Organization • Program managers for facilities are all pulling double duty • Vern Pankonin: NRAO + DDD + SKA + mid-scale • Phil Puxley: ALMA construction + operations • Jeff Pier: NOAO + MRI • Gary Schmidt: Gemini + ATI • Dana Lehr: NAIC + AAPF • Craig Foltz: NSO + ATST • Nigel Sharp: LSST + VAO + DES + some EXC • Don Terndrup: GSMT + SAA • Rich Barvainis: UROs + EXC + mid-scale • Individual Investigator Program • Scrambling to cover AAPF and EXC COV-AST-org-Ulvestad

15. Managing Conflicts of Interest • Ulvestad is rotator from AUI (NRAO, ALMA, VAO) • Fisher is rotator from AURA (Gemini, NOAO, NSO, VAO) • Schmidt is on leave from Arizona (LSST, GMT, LBT) • Other rotators have conflicts with home universities and collaborators COV-AST-org-Ulvestad

16. Empirical Law #1 Facility costs increase exponentially, while budgets increase linearly (at best) • 1950s-1960s, ~$10M: KP, Green Bank, Arecibo • 1970s-1990s, ~$100M: VLA, VLBA, Gemini, GBT, Keck • 2000s-2020s, ~$1B: ALMA ($1.3B), ATST ($0.3B), LSST ($0.5B), GSMT (3 X ~$1-2B), SKA (~$2-6B) COV-AST-org-Ulvestad

17. Empirical Law #2 Proposal success rate is on a long-term downward trend through all of NSF COV-AST-org-Ulvestad

18. Unrestricted Grants (AAG) COV-AST-org-Ulvestad • Success rate in FY 2010 bounced slightly up to 22% because of hiatus in some development funding • Expect ≤ 18% in FY 2011 (number of proposals up ~23%!) • NSF goal to complete 70% of all proposal actions within 6 months • 2009 completion took 11-12 months (ARRA) • 2010 completion took 10 months, due to short-staffing • Actions in FY 2011 • More automated compliance checking • More experienced IPAs; group efforts; use of admin. staff • Stay on top of deadlines • Striving for more “non-competitive” designations in panels

19. COV-2008 Recommendations-1 COV-AST-org-Ulvestad • AST Staff requirements—NSF • Double AST travel budget—NSF • Use Senior Review to resist earmarks—as feasible • Regular Senior Review, every 10 yr?—sooner • Astro2010 should re-examine past priorities—done • NSF flexibility in MREFC—NSF • Diverse, competent review panels—maintained • More info to proposers; less tolerance of non-compliance—compliance done, staffing not adequate for more information to proposers

20. COV-2008 Recommendations-2 COV-AST-org-Ulvestad • Engage with cyber-infrastructure efforts—as appropriate; LSST • Re-examine instrumentation programs—in progress • Maintain unsolicited mid-scale program—re-evaluating • Balance UROs and radio system—steady state now • Caution on burden of re-competition—NSB policy • Implement Senior Review recommendations for NOAO—followed major recommendations • Start ATST—done • Consider moving ESM to MPS or NSF OD—under discussion

21. Primary Issues & Concerns • AST staffing and budget levels • Execution of adequate oversight • Responsiveness to community • How to communicate with community effectively? • Long-term budget prognosis • Ongoing facility operations reduce flexibility • Long-term strategic plan and portfolio review is critical • Cannot accommodate increased AAG pressure • US competitiveness in ground-based OIR • Gemini challenge provides the opportunity to craft a more coherent US national observatory • Long-term future of Gemini partnership? • Success of GSMT programs? • Operation of large, new MREFC projects • Home for solar research in NSF? COV-AST-org-Ulvestad