Editor’s note (February 5, 2025): ARM is extending the deadline to submit preliminary proposals for ARM tethered balloon system missions in fiscal year 2026 (FY2026). The new deadline is Monday, February 10, 2025. The ARM/EMSL FICUS call for FY2026 is now CLOSED. Below are the original guidelines for both calls.
In FY2026, the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) user facility plans to conduct approximately six to eight tethered balloon system (TBS) missions using ARM TBS baseline instruments, with missions taking place over two-week periods. Missions are being planned to take place at ARM’s Southern Great Plains (SGP) atmospheric observatory in Oklahoma and the Bankhead National Forest (BNF) observatory in Alabama. ARM is also exploring the possibility of TBS missions for the upcoming 2026 deployment in Phoenix, Arizona.
Two ARM TBS calls are now open for FY2026. ARM is accepting preliminary proposals for TBS missions while also participating in a joint TBS call with the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory (EMSL). Like ARM, EMSL is a U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science user facility.
Awarded projects from the ARM/EMSL and ARM-only calls will begin no earlier than Wednesday, October 1, 2025.