NASA launches 10 fellowships for next-generation SI researchers

The initiatives were unveiled alongside the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy’s “Science: A Golden Age Summit” in Washington on Thursday. They focus on improving scientific peer review and supporting the next generation of researchers.

One initiative will establish a coordinated metascience program within NASA’s Science Mission Directorate to improve the reliability, efficiency and transparency of the agency’s scientific practices. NASA is also expanding its use of dual-anonymous peer review, in which the identities of both applicants and reviewers are concealed during the review process, to ensure research proposals are assessed on scientific merit.

The approach was first tested as a pilot program during the first Trump administration. NASA said the initiative is designed to promote fairness and encourage innovative research ideas.

The second initiative will support 10 Genesis Mission Fellows – doctoral students with expertise in both SI and science or engineering. They will work on NASA mission areas and conduct research at agency laboratories, advancing scientific discovery using SI technologies.

The fellowship program will build on NASA’s existing Future Investigators in NASA Earth and Space Science and Technology program.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said the initiatives would create new opportunities for scientific research and invest in the next generation of researchers.

“We are entering a new Golden Age of American innovation and discovery, and NASA will be at the forefront,” he said.

Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that the United States and 16 other countries had endorsed the Kyoto Vision for a Golden Age of Science, with Kazakhstan the only Central Asian country among the 17 signatories.