CALL FOR PROPOSALS FOR CIMES
Cooperative Institute for Modeling the Earth System
From: Stephan Fueglistaler, Director
Gabriel Vecchi, Deputy Director
Tim Merlis, Science/HPC Manager
October 4, 2024
As part of the Cooperative Institute for Modeling the Earth System (CIMES), a collaboration between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Princeton University, we are now soliciting proposals for projects related to modeling and understanding the Earth system.
Proposals must be submitted (see below) before or on October 31, 2024.
Funds for this call are provided by NOAA and the Princeton University Dean for Research. Projects may align with the strategic goals of NOAA’s Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory (GFDL) and involve a close collaboration with NOAA/GFDL scientists, or focus on the numerical modeling and understanding the Earth system but need not be directly tied to NOAA's priorities. CIMES funding priorities are detailed below.
CIMES Themes:
1. Earth System Modeling: Developing and improving Earth System Models (ESMs), numerical models which simulate the climate and earth system, and allow prediction of the future evolution of this system. These models include the dynamical, physical, chemical, and biological components of the atmosphere-ocean-ice-land system and their coupling.
2. Seamless Prediction across Time and Space Scales: Applying the ESMs to predictions on time-scales from days to centuries and over spatial scales from those of extreme events to global scales, making use of the same flexible code-base. Focus on two different aspects of prediction across time and space scales: the very high-resolution modeling necessary to resolve extreme weather phenomena, and the predictability of different weather and climate phenomena.
3. Earth System Science: Analysis and Applications. Using an Earth System approach - combining modeling, observations and theory - to develop a broad and interdisciplinary understanding of the impacts of environmental variations and changes on pressing problems of relevance to society.
CIMES Funding Priorities
CIMES prioritizes support for projects that may be difficult to support through other funding sources, but promise to significantly advance Earth system research by virtue of harnessing existing synergies between Princeton University and NOAA/GFDL, and/or provide a strategy towards establishing new collaborations in areas with high potential for synergies.
Projects are supported for one year with the possibility of renewal, contingent upon satisfactory progress, CIMES programmatic priorities, and availability of funding. CIMES aims at providing the necessary support for the projects to succeed, and projects with a clear vision and strategy to establish a critical mass for success may request funding exceeding the typical level of one postdoctoral researcher or one graduate student. CIMES recognizes the special challenges for collaborative and interdisciplinary projects, and values strategies and efforts to ensure that projects overcome these challenges and develop into larger projects and initiatives that would eventually be supported through standard funding sources such as NSF or NOAA calls.
In addition to providing financial support for postdoctoral researchers, CIMES may provide support through access to HPC resources (Stellar and Tiger3 systems), and provide limited HPC and Earth System Model know-how support. Applicants are strongly encouraged to consult with CIMES Science/HPC Manager Dr. Tim Merlis regarding their projects’ computational needs prior to submitting their proposals.
Proposal Format
Proposals must use the template provided below; which also provides additional information regarding GFDL and computational resources.
Proposals should be succinct (typically 1-2 pages), but clearly lay out the objectives, the work plan for the proposal period, a clear path forward to achieve the objectives, and a detailed budget. If computational resources on the Stellar system are requested, the proposal shall provide a rough estimate of computing time and storage, and a contingency plan if the Stellar system cannot provide the requested resources.
Requests for continuation of projects currently supported by CIMES have the same requirements as new proposals, but also require a summary of the progress to date (see also template, item 8).
Proposals and detailed budgets should be sent to Dr. Tim Merlis at [email protected] with a copy to Kit Chandler at [email protected] by October 31, 2024. For budget questions (salaries, travel support and publication expenses) please contact Kit Chandler.
Proposal ideas may also be discussed prior to submission with CIMES HPC/Science manager Dr. Tim Merlis ([email protected]). For partners at GFDL PIs may want to consult https://www.gfdl.noaa.gov. The CIMES Task III webpage (https://cimes.princeton.edu/research/task-iii-projects) provides information on previously funded projects, researchers and PIs at Princeton University.
Proposals will be evaluated on the following criteria:
(1) Scientific merit. Does the proposal address an important problem, and provide a well-designed strategy that promises to deliver results over the course of the project with significant impact in terms of advancing understanding, modeling capabilities and publications in peer-reviewed journals?
(2) Contribution of research to NOAA's and, specifically, GFDL's mission; proposals supported by Princeton’s matching funds may be less directly linked to GFDL’s and NOAA’s mission (as detailed above).
(3) Potential or demonstrated success (for extension requests) of the project to build transformative collaborations between Princeton University and NOAA/GFDL.
(4) Likelihood that post-docs and graduate students supported by this research will become the next generation leaders in their respective fields.