NASA science competitions are set for a redesign under Competition Model 2.0, a proposal-selection approach announced by the agency’s Science Mission Directorate in an October community letter. The plan asks early-stage teams to concentrate on the scientific case before producing the most detailed engineering and cost work.
NASA says the changes could shorten selection timelines by as much as 45% for some competed mission classes. The agency plans to explain the proposal and answer questions during a virtual town hall on Monday, Oct. 26.
The announcement concerns the way missions are selected and studied. It is not a spacecraft launch, a new award for a particular science team or evidence that the target time savings have already occurred.
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NASA Science Competitions Put Science First
The agency says applicants to Astro-Probes, New Frontiers and Discovery competitions would submit a science case, a science implementation plan and a proof-of-concept mission design at the initial step. NASA estimates this removes about half of the material currently required in an early announcement-of-opportunity response.
Only teams advancing to the next stage would undertake a deeper mission implementation study. NASA would involve Goddard Space Flight Center or the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, with some New Frontiers or Discovery studies potentially assigned to Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory.
This makes the first selection more about the proposed discovery and less about whether an initial team can finance an extensive engineering package. NASA says investigators without major university or corporate backing would remain eligible to compete on merit.
The Science Mission Directorate letter describes the approach as a staged reform. Actual solicitations and their detailed requirements will determine how consistently the model is applied.
Timelines May Fall by Up to 45 Percent
For Astro-Probes, New Frontiers and Discovery, NASA projects cutting the time between announcement of opportunity and second-step selection from approximately 35 months to 19.5 months. That is an agency estimate, not an observed outcome from completed competitions.
MIDEX and Earth Explorer missions would use a related two-stage structure with additional implementing organizations, including industry and universities. NASA again projects selection-time reductions of up to 45% for those classes.
Smaller missions, including SMEX, Missions of Opportunity, Earth Venture projects, hosted payloads and rideshare opportunities, would use a single-step competition with smaller review teams and virtual site visits. NASA forecasts a reduction from roughly 32 months to 19 months, or up to 40%.
For NASA science competitions, the planned timelines address the competition process. They do not guarantee that spacecraft development, integration, launch opportunities or science operations will be completed on the same accelerated schedule.
Commercial Capabilities and Oversight Remain Central
NASA says commercial buses, subsystems and multi-mission operations should be considered where they offer demonstrable technical or financial benefits. The letter does not require that every mission outsource its spacecraft or abandon government engineering resources.
Cost and schedule controls remain part of the approach. The agency says estimates made during Phase A will guide trades in complexity and scope, while significant breaches of control thresholds could result in termination of a mission.
Flagship missions would remain under a separate approach developed after the James Webb Space Telescope experience. Those large directed programs are not moving into the same competition format used for smaller investigator-led spacecraft.
The relationship between scientific payloads and commercial flight opportunities is illustrated by TAD coverage of the Bandwagon launch and NASA experiments. That article concerns actual payloads flown, whereas this new announcement concerns the preceding project-selection process.
FAQ: NASA science competitions
Will NASA science competitions stop reviewing engineering risk?
No. NASA proposes delaying detailed mission implementation studies until a later selection stage, when teams and agency specialists can evaluate risk.
Does Competition Model 2.0 apply to flagship missions?
Not in the same way. NASA says major directed flagship missions will continue under an existing large-mission management approach.
When will NASA explain the proposed changes?
The agency has scheduled a virtual science-community town hall for Monday, Oct. 26, 2026.
Looking Ahead
NASA’s Oct. 26 town hall is the next announced opportunity for researchers to hear implementation details and ask questions. The directorate says rollout will occur in stages and will incorporate community feedback; complete solicitation dates were not announced in the letter.
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