NSF/AST Program Update

1. NSF/AST Program Update AAAC Meeting October 14-15, 2008 Craig Foltz, Acting Director, AST

2. Outline • Budgets • Status of Interagency Projects • ALMA Update

3. Budgets • Continuing Resolution at FY 2008 levels through March, 2009. • Budget Office (NSF) has allocated 90% of FY 2008 levels for funding. • Impacts our funding strategy and observatories’ cash flow. • Observatories and Managing Organizations have been informed. Their input is currently being analyzed. • Nothing to share with respect to FY 2010 at this time.

4. Impact of CR on AST Observatories • AST Senior Review (2006) made specific recommendations with respect to facilities’ futures: • NAIC reductions • Endorsement of ATST • Endorsement of ALMA • Recommendation of infrastructure investment at NOAO. • ALMA early operations costs began in FY 2006 and are growing, to be partially offset by reductions in NRAO base, but total is increasing. • Observatories’ M&O has been flat-funded since FY2006. (with full-year CR, that’s four years of flat funding)

5. Gemini increase was for Aspen Instrumentation Program and 2.5% increase in M&O. NRAO increase in 2008 is early ALMA ops.

6. Other Factors • ATST D&D costs have increased as the project approaches a possible construction start: • Environmental/cultural compliance cost now >$2.5M • Anticipate additional $1.5M for National Park’s NEPA compliance • Cost of Final Design Review ~$100k • Ramping up of staff to prepare for construction. • Funding is essentially capped at FY2006 level and will be ~$1.3M short in FY 2009. • In response to SR, NOAO has planned for infrastructure improvements at CTIO and KPNO. • In response to SR, AST COV, etc., AST has not reduced funding of individual investigator awards program. • Inflation is non-zero. Absent other issues, effectively a ~12% cut. • Other stresses: Chilean inflation, fuel and utility costs, etc.

7. The Impacts • NAIC reductions resulted in a 25% reduction in staff (24 FTE: 19 layoffs, 5 retrenchments). • Planning for even the possibility of a year-long CR will result in reductions in force, furloughs, facility shut-downs, etc. • Additional cuts applied mid-year cannot be accommodated by additional lay-offs due to severance packages, nor can they be substantially offset by facility closure. • As a result, observatories have begun planning for layoffs, early retirements, retrenchments to be carried out early in FY 2009.

8. Interagency Projects • Virtual Astronomical Observatory • Solicitation issued on time • Under joint review with NASA • Mutually committed to fund the VAO. • Dark Energy Survey • Very well coordinated with DOE HEP • AST provided funding for initial phase of data-processing pipeline. • Blanco telescope improvements initiated but may lag due to availability of funds. • Sloan III • Joint DOE/NSF/Sloan project • AST made new award in FY 2008 • DOE HEP funded year one. • Jointly coordinated with DOE • LSST • Joint PDR planned for Spring 2009

9. ALMA Project Status • Overall construction cost performance is good (CPI~1.0) but slightly behind schedule (SPI~0.95) • Contingency is healthy • Recent accomplishments include: • High-site technical building accepted • Mid-level labs and offices accepted • 11 antennas in Chile (4 Japan, 7 North America/Vertex) • Vertex antenna deliveries to Chile at pace of 1 every 2 months • Antenna transporters accepted • First front- and back-end electronics system accepted • Astronomical spectra taken with prototype antennas

10. ALMA Project Accomplishments • In pictures…