NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, Earth Science Division, Washington, selected Washington State University, Vancouver, and the University of Washington, Seattle, for grants to support the agency’s Advanced Information Systems Technology Program. The maximum grant value for State is $1,628,979; and for UW, $1,289,196.

The main purpose of the program is to invest in research and development of new and innovative information technologies. The program focuses on creating mature technologies leading to smaller, less resource-intensive and less expensive flight systems that can be built quickly and efficiently, and on more-efficient ground-based processing and modeling systems that improve the use of Earth science data.

The research also supports the Vision for Space Exploration, NASA’s long- term plan to return astronauts to the moon and extend exploration to Mars and beyond.

For information about NASA and agency programs on the Web, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/home