Today the Canadian Space Agency announced the Flights and Fieldwork for the Advancement of Science and Technology (FAST) 2019 opportunity.
According to the Canadian Space Agency the FAST program supports “research projects of Canadian universities and post-secondary institutions that will contribute to the development of new scientific knowledge and space technologies, while making it possible for students to acquire hands-on experience in space-like missions.”
The last FAST program awards were in 2017 where $6.2 million was awarded for 31 projects.
In this FAST program announcement the expected budget is $3.5 million going to approximately 19 awards. The maximum duration for the grants is three years.
For FAST 2019 the grants will be awarded in two categories;
Category A: Maximum grant of $300,000 for a maximum duration of three years for an end-to-end space-like mission project that includes the development or improvement of a technology, use of the technology during a flight or field or research site deployment, and data collection and analysis; the maximum amount available per year is $150,000.
Those familiar with the program and interested in applying for Category A should be aware that FAST 2019 appears to be a merging of FAST 2017 Category A and B with the resulting median award of $300,000 being the new ceiling for grants.
Category B: Maximum grant of $100,000 for two or three years, for a small space-related research project; the maximum amount available per year is $50,000.
Category B is what Category C was in FAST 2017. The application deadline is October 18, 2019, 1:00 pm ET.