Solar Radiation Management Program (SRM)

Solar Radiation Management is an emerging collection of approaches, including stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI), marine cloud brightening (MCB), and cirrus cloud thinning (CCT), designed to modify the Earth’s radiative balance and cool the planet.

Priority areas for this call include:

• Environmentally benign materials discovery for SAI and CCT
• Laboratory physicochemical characterization of SAI and CCT materials and their interactions with light, clouds, atmospheric trace gases, and with themselves or ambient aerosols, with the aim to improve microphysical inputs to existing climate models
• Approaches to minimize cirrus cloud formation, including from aircraft emissions
• Assessments of near-field (<100 km) atmospheric turbulence and its impact on SAI and CCT interventions, primarily through modeling
• Integration of improved representations of aerosols and turbulence into global-scale modeling, and characterization of global and regional impacts of novel materials for SAI and CCT

The funding provided may be used to support research expenses in the following categories:

• Universities: for faculty on an academic year salary in principal investigator (PI) or co-investigator roles, the grant can provide up to one month of summer salary support and related benefits. These salary funds are not substitutional (cannot be used to relieve a university of salary costs) and cannot be used to reduce teaching loads below the departmental norm. They can only be used to supplement the salary, similar to a summer salary in the U.S. system.
  
• All other institutions (including national laboratories): for staff/research scientists in PI or co-investigator roles, the grant can provide salary support and related benefits.
• For non-PI/co-investigator staff/research scientists, as well as postdoctoral, graduate, and/or undergraduate research assistants, the grant can provide salary support and related benefits, including tuition support.
• Scientific domestic or international travel for project members per the travel policies of the awardee institution. Parking, hotel, taxi, registration, and other related travel and conference costs are allowable.
• Meetings appropriate to the needs of the project, including meals, travel, and lodging.
• Support for visitors and collaborators, including domestic and international travel, meals, and lodging expenses.
• Research equipment, supplies, and other expenses directly related to the research, including computers, computer support, professional literature, publication expenses, and professional membership dues.
• Salary support for a project administrator.
• Other expenses related to the support and administration of the project.

Estimated Total Program Funding: