This proposal opportunity is in response to the NASA Announcement of Opportunity (AO), Astrophysics MIDEX, which is expected to be released in the fall of 2020[LH(1] . The partnership opportunity is being issued to select a teaming partner to design and implement a Cryocooler for an instrument.
The proposed mission is currently in pre-Phase A. This phase ends with a Step 1 proposal that will be due 3 months after the AO is released. If the proposal is selected for implementation, the mission will proceed into Phase A, per NPR 7120.5E. The following schedule should be used as a basis for responses to this opportunity:
Release of draft AO Winter 2020 (target)[LH(2]
Release of final AO Fall 2021 (target)
Pre-proposal conference ~ 3 weeks after final AO release
Step 1 Proposals due 90 days after AO release
Selection for competitive Phase A studies Fall 2022 (target)
CSRs due Spring 2023 (target)
Down-selection Fall 2023 (target)
Spacecraft start date Vendor specified
Instrument Delivery for I&T 36 months after start of Phase B (10/2026)
Launch (NLT 10/31/2028) TBD, soonest opportunity after I&T complete
Additional details and information can be found in the attachment to this posting.