sciences and to initiate and support basic scientif- 

 ic research in the mathematical, physical, medi- 

 cal, biological, engineering, and other sciences. 

 The commitment to the support of basic research 

 and the promotion of the progress of science re- 

 tain primacy in the Foundation's activities. 



Within NSF three Directorates are primarily 

 concerned with support of basic research: Mathe- 

 matical and Physical Sciences and Engineering 

 (MPE); Biological, Behavioral, and Social Sci- 

 ences (BBS); and Astronomical, Atmospheric, 

 Earth, and Ocean Sciences (AAEO). Other Direc- 

 torates such as the Research Applications Direc- 

 torate (now the Directorate of Applied Science 

 and Research Applications), the Directorate for 

 Science Education, and the Directorate for Scien- 

 tific, Technological, and International Affairs also 

 support some basic research. 



AAEO 



List of Priorities 



Astronomical Sciences 



• Development of improved detectors 

 for existing telescopes 



• Studies of high-energy processes in 

 radio sources, quasars, pulsars, and 

 x-ray sources 



• Studies of early and late stages of 

 stellar evolution 



• Determination of the composition 

 and physical conditions in the gener- 

 al interstellar medium 



• Very long baseline interferometry 



• Very large array telescope 



Atmospheric Sciences (short-term) 



• First GARP global experiment 



• MONEX (monsoon experiment) anal- 

 yses 



• Mesocale meteorology 



• Atmospheric chemistry 



• International magnetosphere study 



• Studies of solar activity and solar 

 terrestrial relations 



Atmospheric Sciences (long-term) 



• Severe storm and mesoscale experi- 

 ment 



• Climate studies 



• Magnetic cleft observatory to study 

 the magnetic cusp (the magnetic 

 cleft is a singular region of the mag- 

 netosphere at which the solar wind 

 has direct access to Earth's atmos- 

 phere. It provides a unique environ- 

 ment for plasma physics studies and 

 for studies of the impact of energy 

 deposition on the Earth's atmos- 



phere, which is believed to be of 

 significance to global scale atmos- 

 pheric behavior) 



Earth Sciences 



• Expanded ocean sediment coring 

 program (such a drilling program 

 may provide the scientific basis for 

 the search for additional hydrocar- 

 bon energy sources) 



• A continental drilling program, iso- 

 topic and high-pressure geochemistry 

 related to the origin of ores 



• Large-scale seismic reflection profil- 

 ing to determine the fine structure of 

 the crust and upper mantle 



Ocean Sciences (short-term) 



• Chemical, physical, biological, and 

 geological processes at the deep-sea 

 floor 



• Recent evolution of the ocean basins 

 and global climate 



• Marine shallow water habitats 



• Circulation, mixing, and transport 

 processes in estuarine and continen- 

 tal shelf waters and adjacent bound- 

 ary currents such as the Gulf Stream 



• Structure and properties at the 

 oceanic crust 



• Physical oceanography of the equa- 

 torial Pacific 



• Expanded and interrelated studies of 

 marine organic materials, biochemi- 

 cal processes, and surface reactions 

 on particulate matter 



Ocean Sciences (long-term) 



• Structure and function of open-sea 

 biological communities emphasizing 

 the role of nekton (free swimming 

 aquatic animals) 



• Physical processes involved in air- 

 sea interactions with emphasis on 

 large-scale interactions in the equa- 

 torial regions 



• In situ marine chemical experimenta- 

 tion and manipulation 



• Deep structure and geologic evolu- 

 tion of continental margins and the 

 ocean basins 



• Refinement of models of the general 

 ocean circulation 



• Determination of the driving forces 

 for plate tectonics 



Polar Sciences (short-term) 



• Living resources and oceanography 

 of the southern oceans 



PRIORITIES AND GAP AREAS 31 7 



