WASHINGTON — To continue earth sciences’ rapid pace of discovery, the National Science Foundation’s Division of Earth Science (EAR) should invest in new initiatives, partnerships, and infrastructure to answer priority research questions in the next decade, according to a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

EAR is the primary federal group for funding and providing essential infrastructure capabilities to the earth science community. A Vision for NSF Earth Sciences 2020-2030: Earth in Time says earth science research is vastly different from what it was a decade ago, and continued progress will make society better prepared to meet the challenges of a changing Earth. A scientifically and demographically diverse group of researchers working in an open environment, individually and collaboratively, will be required for earth sciences to achieve cutting-edge, successful research and discovery.

“Volcanic eruptions, climate change, changes to the global water cycle — geologic understanding of the Earth has profound implications for people all across the globe,” said James A. Yoder, dean emeritus of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and chair of the committee that authored the report. “This is an all-hands-on-deck moment for earth sciences, and our report offers EAR a guiding vision as it leads the field through the next decade of discovery.”

High-Priority Questions

In the past 10 years, earth science has made important conceptual, technological, computational, and observational advances. High-priority questions for the next decade of earth science focus on understanding Earth as an active, dynamic, and intertwined system. While some of these questions focus on enhancing our basic understanding of Earth, such as investigating when, why, and how plate tectonics developed, all 12 questions identified in the report aim to advance our understanding of how the Earth impacts society.

New Initiatives

The report recommends EAR undertake initiatives that provide potentially transformative capabilities and address gaps between existing and needed infrastructure in earth sciences. Several of these initiatives, such as funding a national consortium for geochronology, focus on supporting collaborative research. EAR should also fund facilities that provide new access to technical capabilities and enable advances, such as a very large multi-anvil press facility and a near surface geophysics center. These initiatives cannot be developed at the expense of EAR’s core disciplinary research programs and will require new funding.

Human, Cyber, and Physical Resources

Future research will rely more than ever on integrating emerging technology, data analysis, and the workforce. Highly trained STEM professionals are central to future earth science breakthroughs, but the field faces challenges in recruiting and retaining an inclusive workforce with data science expertise. The report recommends EAR enhance its existing efforts to provide leadership, investment, and centralized guidance to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion within the earth science community. EAR should also fund technical staff for grantees on a long-term basis.

All priority earth science questions will require advancements in high-performance computing, improved modeling capabilities, enhanced data curation and standardization, and a robust cyber infrastructure. EAR should initiate a standing committee to advise on cyber infrastructure needs and implement a strategy to support earth science data standards across the research community. EAR-supported facilities and infrastructure should be regularly evaluated in order to prioritize future infrastructure investments, sunset facilities as needed, and adapt to changing priorities, the report says.

Partnerships

Seizing opportunities to partner with other federal agencies, NSF divisions, and international partners not only advances research objectives but also allows for more efficient leveraging of relevant facilities and infrastructure. EAR should proactively partner with these organizations to advance novel and societally relevant research.

The study — undertaken by the Committee on Catalyzing Opportunities for Research in the Earth Sciences (CORES): A Decadal Survey for NSF's Division of Earth Sciences — was sponsored by the National Science Foundation.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are private, nonprofit institutions that provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions related to science, technology, and medicine. They operate under an 1863 congressional charter to the National Academy of Sciences, signed by President Lincoln.

Contact:
Megan Lowry, Media Officer
Office of News and Public Information
202-334-2138; e-mail news@nas.edu