National Aeronautics and Space Administration 1 July 2016 Washington, DC 20546-0001 Dear Dr. XXXXX, As you are aware, ESA has completed the Stage 1 evaluation (scientific and technical merit) of proposals received in response to the XMM-Newton AO-15 Call for Proposals, and has notified Principal Investigators (PIs) of their proposal accepted/rejected status by e-mail. A list of accepted targets has been made available on the WWW at: http://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/xmm-newton/otac-results and look for the AO-15 results. In response to the 2016 Senior Review for Operating Missions, NASA's Astrophysics Division has allocated funding in the amount of ~$2.5 M for the support of accepted U.S. XMM-Newton Guest Observer (GO) investigations in fiscal year 2017 (FY17). In light of this budget, support of U.S. AO-15 investigations under the XMM-Newton GO Program continue to include both U.S. PI Cat A and B proposals. New for AO-15 will be that U.S. PIs of joint NuSTAR/XMM-Newton Cycle 2 A/B proposals will be eligible for more limited support from the XMM-Newton program, in addition to the funds awarded through the NuSTAR program, to facilitate the analysis of the XMM-Newton component of the proposal. In consideration of the above, I am pleased to invite you to submit a Stage 2 (cost) proposal for your investigation, proposal ######, entitled "TTTTTTTTT". In compliance with NASA procurement policy, funding is limited to PIs associated with U.S. institutions (and who expect to remain so during the grant period). Accordingly, if you are planning on leaving the U.S. for a position abroad, and will therefore be ineligible for a GO grant, please contact the US XMM-Newton Deputy to the Project Scientist, Dr. Kim Weaver, at kimberly.a.weaver@nasa.gov so the funding can be redistributed to other GOs in a timely fashion. Please note that in the current cycle of NASA's Astrophysics Data Analysis Program, support will be limited to analysis of the archival data only. To guide the proposer in formulating a realistic funding request, factors such as the scope and complexity of the investigation should be taken into account, including any modifications to the original science proposal (e.g., deletion of targets, reduction in observing time) that were recommended by the XMM-Newton review panel. As discussed above, only U.S. PI proposals with Cat A and B targets are eligible for support (XMM-Newton and joint NuSTAR/XMM-Newton awarded through the NuSTAR program). Additional factors that will be considered include the presence of other proposals for which the PI is requesting funding under this solicitation, and other sources of support relevant to this request. The review process will consider the realism and reasonableness of the requested funding with respect to the required level of effort to pursue the investigation and other customary cost items (e.g., travel, computer hardware, and publication expenses). A peer-review panel convened by NASA will assess the realism and reasonableness of the budget proposals and make recommendations to NASA concerning the appropriate funding level. The final Stage 2 proposal selection, including the awarded funding level, will be made by the NASA selecting official. Based upon the total available funding and the anticipated number of awards, the estimated average grant award will be ~$55 K. Joint NuSTAR/XMM-Newton Cycle 2 A/B proposals will be eligible for more limited support ($20 K to $25 K) in addition to the funds awarded through the NuSTAR program. Stage 2 PIs will be provided with a "fair-share" estimate to guide them in the preparation of their funding request. You will receive an e-mail in the next two weeks providing the fair-share estimate for your proposal. In preparing a budget submission, the proposer must follow the guidelines provided under "PROPOSALS & TOOLS" at the NASA XMM-Newton Guest Observer Facility web site located at: http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/xmm/xmmgof.html At this site, you will find links to a description of the XMM-Newton GO program, information regarding budget proposal submission, evaluation, selection, and implementation, and instructions for the use of the Remote Proposal Submission (RPS) software for the generation of required forms. Please submit the signed original and three (3) hard copies of the completed cost proposal, along with a CD with the electronic version of the proposal, no later than 4:30 pm EST on 12 August 2016 to the following address: XMM-Newton Guest Observer Program Code 662 Building 34, Room S256 Goddard Space Flight Center National Aeronautics and Space Administration Greenbelt, MD 20771-0001 We expect to complete the Stage 2 proposal review in September 2016, with PI notification of the approved funding level in October. Revised budgets, if required (budgets where the approved amount is less than 80% of the requested amount), will nominally be due within one month of notification. Funding will be initiated after the start of FY17 (1 October 2016). For any questions concerning the cost proposal or process, please contact the NASA XMM-Newton Guest Observer Facility (GOF) at: xmmhelp@athena.gsfc.nasa.gov In addition, should the PI change institution, please notify the GOF by e-mail at the same address providing new contact information. Sincerely, Dr. Stefan Immler NASA XMM-Newton Program Scientist