Execute a balanced science program based on discipline-specific guidance from the national academies of sciences engineering and medicine administration priorities and direction from congress

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration Shared Services Center awarded the Planetary Science Institute $489,147 on October 1, 2025, under the NASA Science program (CFDA 43.001) to execute a balanced science program based on discipline-specific guidance from the National Academies of Sciences Engineering and Medicine and administration priorities and direction from Congress, with performance through September 30, 2028.

The award supports investigation of the cratering process within the low-gravity and low-strength environment of comets, including analysis of crater morphologies and the conditions under which pit craters form, to test whether observed steep-sided pits on comets are consistent with impact cratering. Work includes zero-gravity impact experiments, iSALE modeling, experimental data analysis, simulation comparison with comet nucleus observations, and manuscript preparation and conference presentation.

Work is performed in Tucson, Arizona 85719.

The Planetary Science Institute passes funding to three sub-recipients. Southwest Research Institute (sub-award obligated January 5, 2026) provides scientific and technical leadership of the GraVeTAS experiment chamber, mechanical and electrical design, build and testing of system upgrades to meet zero-gravity flight requirements, analysis of microgravity impact experiment data, and personnel support for microgravity flights and a final-year science conference presentation. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (sub-award obligated February 17, 2026) investigates cratering process and crater morphologies with a Co-Investigator supervising undergraduate data analysis, comparing experimental and simulation results with comet observations, and supporting zero-gravity flight experiments. Purdue University (sub-award obligated February 9, 2026) performs iSALE modeling, interprets results, contributes to manuscript preparation, presents at science conferences, and aids in flight experiments.

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