FCC to discuss spectrum proposals with research impacts

The Federal Communications Commission will meet Thursday to discuss, and likely vote on, two spectrum proposals that experts warn could disrupt astronomy and weather satellite data. One proposal would enable auctions in the 1675-1695 megahertz band, relied on by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s biggest weather satellite program. Weather and science groups have pointed to a 2022 NOAA report that identifies significant risks to the distribution of weather and environmental data, including from the satellites and from Earth-based stations. The House Science Committee in 2022 urged the FCC on a bipartisan basis to stop considering a proposal to share the band based on the report. The report added that sharing the band with commercial wireless carriers transmitting to space is “potentially feasible,” but the weather organizations say this would necessitate additional protections for current band users.

The agency will also consider a direct-to-device proposal that would introduce massive emissions into spectrum bands important for radio astronomy, scientists say. Billions of devices in the “Internet of things” would be allowed to send signals to satellites, potentially interfering with astronomical observations in the same or nearby frequencies. The proposal would also open up additional parts of the spectrum to signals between cell phones and satellites, which can also interfere with astronomical observations.

NOAA satellites under scrutiny from House Science Committee

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s next-generation satellite GeoXO program may downgrade the agency’s climate science capabilities, the Government Accountability Office says. NOAA appears to have followed restructuring directives from the White House Office of Management and Budget during budget discussions in April 2025. Those included halving the cost of the program and removing climate-related instruments to “deliver exclusively on NOAA’s weather data needs.” The Commerce Department ultimately mandated a program budget reduction from $19.6 billion to $13 billion. The agency also removed two of the program’s six satellites and three of its five instruments. The GAO report notes that the program office has not yet calculated the new plan’s costs, and the ongoing restructuring may increase certain contract costs while altering its satellite launch schedule.

Stephen Volz, former assistant administrator of NOAA’s environmental satellite division, told FYI that the restructuring significantly degrades NOAA’s satellite capabilities. “We will not only not meet the needs of 10 years ago, we will be far short of the needs in five years when this is supposed to be in space,” Volz said. “The environment is not fixed, and the need for information is increased since 10 years ago, and will increase in 10 years.”

House Science Committee leaders responded to the report, calling for continued oversight of GeoXO. Committee Democrats criticized the restructure as one of “the White House’s irrational and ideological attacks on core NOAA functions.”

NASA Science changes mission selection process, skips annual research solicitation

NASA’s Science Mission Directorate on Wednesday announced an overhaul of its mission selection process. Changes will focus on science outcomes and aim to reduce competition timelines by nearly half. Missions such as the Medium-Class Explorers will move to a two-step approach that trims application material to initially highlight science, keeping implementation studies to the second phase. Others, including the Small Explorers missions, will have a single-step competition with a smaller review team and virtual site visits. Both changes will shorten review times from more than 30 months to about 19, the announcement says. Teams will also need to adopt commercial capabilities wherever they offer a technical or cost benefit. Regarding cost and schedules, “breaches of control thresholds will carry real consequences of up to, and including, mission termination,” the announcement says. NASA Science will host a town hall to discuss the changes on Monday at 2 p.m. — the directorate’s first town hall in two years, according to the Planetary Society.

Also last week, the space agency announced that it would not release its main annual award solicitation this year and instead will release the 2027 solicitation in January. NASA usually releases the annual ROSES solicitation in February, but delayed it to July in 2025 and repeatedly pushed back the release this year. Agency grantees have also flagged long delays in receiving promised ROSES funds. ROSES 2025 will remain open until the 2027 solicitation is released.

Also on our radar

• OPM can now apply a standardized distribution to performance ratings for senior science staff at federal agencies. The final rule aims to discourage performance-ratings inflation, according to the office.
• DOE designated helium as a critical material for its role in producing semiconductors and other advanced technologies. The designation expands federal funding for producers. Researchers have long grappled with helium shortages.
• OSTP director Michael Kratsios promoted “Golden Age” federal science plans in interviews last week, calling “Superintelligence” a top funding priority. He also referenced NSF’s Graduate Research Fellowship Program and metascience office plans, while defending changes to high-skill visas and NSF’s spending shortfall.
• NIH will establish a Women’s Health Division at one of its institutes by Jan. 17 under a new executive order. The order also establishes a White House Women’s Health Task Force.
• NASA’s Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel expressed concern about the Artemis IV moon landing and orbital access for future crewed missions. SpaceX’s Elon Musk responded that a Starship moon lander would require 6 to 8 refuellings in orbit.
• The Treasury Department proposed restricting US investments in Chinese biotech firms, while allowing the licensing of medicines. Comments on the proposed rule are open until Dec. 7.
• The Department of Commerce announced up to $389 million in CHIPS funds will go to four firms for semiconductor and fusion power initiatives. The fusion start-up Helion, backed by OpenAI’s Sam Altman, will receive $175 million.

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All events are Eastern Time unless otherwise noted. Listings do not imply endorsement. Events beyond this week are listed on our website.

The House and Senate are in recess and will return Nov. 9.

Monday, October 26

NASA: Von Braun Space Exploration Symposium (continues through Wednesday)

NASA: Virtual town hall on Competition Model 2.0
2:00 - 3:00 pm

Tuesday, October 27

NIST: Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology meeting (continues Wednesday)

Hudson: Chemistry of combat: Rebuilding America’s energetics base
1:00 - 6:00 pm

Wednesday, October 28

NDIA: Multinational conference on missile defense (continues through Friday)

New America: Amy J. Nelson’s The Arms Control Paradox
12:00 - 1:00 pm

Belfer Center: The legacy of Reykjavik and the future of US–Russia nuclear relations
2:30 - 4:00 pm

Thursday, October 29

FCC: Open commission meeting
10:30 am - 12:30 pm

Friday, October 30

No events.

Monday, November 2

Commerce: US Integrated Ocean Observing System Advisory Committee meeting
10:00 am - 12:00 pm

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Deadlines indicated in parentheses. Newly added opportunities are marked with a diamond.

Job Openings

APS: Head of scientific programs (ongoing)
National Academies: Research associate, Physical Sciences, Systems, and Infrastructure program (ongoing)
AAAS: Chief government affairs officer (ongoing)
◆DOE: Legislative affairs specialist (Oct. 26)
◆NSF: Government affairs specialist (Oct. 28)
◆NNSA: Deputy director, Nuclear Technology Division (Oct. 29)
NIST: Award administration program manager, CHIPS (Oct. 30)
AAAS: Pathways to Policy Fellowship (Nov. 1)
◆DOE: Deputy assistant secretary for nuclear fuel cycle (Nov. 4)
◆NOAA: Director, National Geodetic Survey (Nov. 18)
AIP: Science policy fellowship, Congress (Dec. 1)
LBNL: Nonproliferation fellow (through January)

Solicitations

FAS: Public Impact S&T Initiative open call (ongoing)
National Academies: Call for experts for the Large-Scale Basic Energy Sciences User Facilities Committee (Oct. 26)
NSF: RFC on notice of intent to integrate three NCSES workforce surveys (Oct. 27)
NIH: RFC on proposal to establish the Office of the NIH Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer (Oct. 28)
NSF: RFI on identifying the next generation of X-Labs topics (Oct. 30)
National Academies: Call for committee members for study evaluating DOE’s Milestone-Based Fusion Development program (Oct. 30)
◆DOE: Call for nominations for director of enabling technologies and partnerships division of fusion energy sciences (Nov. 5)
DHS: RFC on proposed rule eliminating the discretionary 60-day grace period for H-1B and other visa holders (Nov. 10)
USGS: Call for nominations to the National Geospatial Advisory Committee (Nov. 16)
Commerce: RFI regarding the digitization and modernization of the NTRL (Nov. 16)
NIST: RFI on future needs for medical metrology and standards for medical imaging, devices, diagnostics and therapy (Nov. 30)
◆Treasury: RFC on Outbound Investment Security Program regulations (Dec. 7)

Know of an opportunity for scientists to engage in science policy? Email us at fyi@aip.org.

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Do you have a story to tell about how science policy is impacting you?

AIP’s research team is gathering first-hand accounts from scientists, engineers, students, and staff whose careers have been affected by policy and funding changes over the past year. Volunteers can submit their stories via this online form. Participants’ stories will be added to the Niels Bohr Library & Archives digital repository as searchable, citable records — with options for anonymity and a five-year embargo period. Read more about the initiative here.

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News and views currently in circulation. Links do not imply endorsement.

Congress

IEEE Spectrum: Why engineers should brave Capitol Hill (perspective by Lucas Laursen)
Joel Widder: Federal science policy for the next generation of advocates: The memorandum nobody reads (perspective)
Planetary Society: Space in the 2026 elections
Politico: As lame duck battle over chips heats up, OpenAI pulls back
Politico: ‘Bumper sticker bill’: AI kill switch rides the midterm elections wave
Scientific American: Republican congressional candidate Tom Stalcup on how both parties abuse science for political gain

Education and Workforce

Associated Press: Meet the researchers leaving the US because of Trump’s funding cuts and politicization of science
Higher Ed Dive: UNC-Chapel Hill strikes bargain with Trump administration to end probes
The Crimson: Harvard lobbied on Trump’s visa cap as federal lobbying spending dips to $200,000
Inside Higher Ed: Breaking down OPT and how it affects the economy in 6 charts
Inside Higher Ed: Strengthening HBCUs shouldn’t weaken HSIs (perspective by Deborah Santiago)
MIT Faculty Newsletter: How we learned to stop worrying and love campus surveillance (perspective by Catherine D’Ignazio et al.)

Research Management

Science: Meet the former FBI agent behind NIH’s targeting of Chinese scientists
Issues in Science and Technology: A tradition of federal innovation (perspectives)
Economist: America’s new era of private science
Nature: Lessons from Katrina: How to rebuild academia from the ground up
Physics World: Experienced scientists produce more persistently disruptive research, finds study
FedScoop: SBA refocuses Regional Innovation Cluster program following DOGE cuts

Labs and Facilities

Fermilab: Meet the Fermilab cobot helping assemble a particle accelerator
Science|Business: EU commission announces plan for polar hub to step up research coordination
American Nuclear Society: Canada bolsters space nuclear sector through new center, radioisotope projects funding

Computing and Communications

The Information: OpenAI asks Gov. Newsom to strengthen AI regulations
Science: Across fields, AI finds solutions hiding in plain sight
Nature: Can maths survive AI? (perspective by Terence Tao)
Scientific American: The inside story behind OpenAI’s million-dollar math proof
Scholarly Kitchen: All this AI signal and noise: What deserves action now (perspective by Will Schweitzer)
Bloomberg: Ex-OpenAI Science head Kevin Weil launches startup with $215 million
Chemical & Engineering News: Lila Sciences tests AI‘s ability to find hydrogen catalysts
Science: The Virtual Biotech: A multi-agent AI framework for therapeutic discovery and development
Chronicle of Higher Education: Computer science is bleeding students. It’s not the first time

Space

Space Policy Online: Moon’s South Pole not the only compelling location for human exploration
MIT Technology Review: The Impossible issue: Nuclear-powered spaceships
The Space Review: The commercial space station competition finally begins
Ars Technica: Japan launches mission to bring home a piece of the Martian moon Phobos
Ars Technica: A Chinese rocket deorbited over Minnesota and left debris in a farmer’s cornfield
NASA: NASA welcomes Uzbekistan as newest Artemis Accords signatory
The Guardian: Australia offers astronaut Katherine Bennell-Pegg for space mission to International Space Station
Associated Press: NASA adopting Apollo’s urgency to build a moon base and land astronauts within two years

Weather, Climate, and Environment

The Guardian: Why have countries been pushing for a vital global climate report to be delayed?
Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists: Scientists say authors of a controversial government climate report made basic error
Carbon Brief: Experts: How are climate scientists using artificial intelligence?
Inside Climate News: Limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius is no longer feasible, UN report finds
New York Times: Losing ground in the climate fight

Energy

American Nuclear Society: NRC finalizes rule on licensing reactors with prior DOE or DOD authorization
American Nuclear Society: NRC reviews first 100 days after reorganization
ProPublica: Nuclear weapons waste made workers sick. Despite a law meant to help, the DOE keeps fighting their claims
American Nuclear Society: GAO: DOE should clarify future land use plans, regulatory scope for cleanup efforts

Defense

Scientific American: How a fusion start-up could help maintain the US nuclear arsenal
Breaking Defense: The Pentagon has gone too far in using the Other Transaction Authority. Congress should act (perspective by Julia Gledhill)
Scientific American: Alarm grows over Russian satellite’s provocative approach to US-owned satellite

Biomedical

SEJ: CDC data is copious, but can you trust it?
Stat: In DOGE’s aftermath, federal health workers bristle at new performance reviews
Science: Kennedy to select MAHA-aligned researcher to head mental health institute, overruling NIH director
The Wall Street Journal: Calley Means, a Top RFK Jr. adviser, quits Trump administration
Nature: A first for CRISPR: Powerful prime editing alters DNA directly in the human body
Science: Department of Justice to fund studies of gender dysphoria and violent behavior
Reuters: FDA sets up board to oversee drug exclusivity determinations

International Affairs

The Guardian: RFK Jr’s ‘deities of vaccine research’ raided by police in Guinea-Bissau
Science|Business: Number of collaborative grants falls sharply in Horizon Europe
CSIS: Why the US needs Europe in order to win the technology race (perspective by Federico Steinberg and Riccardo Bosticco)
Fusion Industry Association: Israel’s energy ministry calls for billions in fusion investments to compete globally