Special Program Announcement for Office of Naval Research Research Opportunity: FY27 Communications and Networking Applied Research
This grant funds research to advance robust communications and networking technologies for Naval operations across diverse platforms and challenging environments.
Funder: Office of Naval Research
Due Dates: July 31, 2026 (White paper, recommended) | November 16, 2026 (Full proposal, recommended)
Funding Amounts: $250,000–$500,000 per award per year; 5–6 awards expected; project duration 1–3 years.
Summary: Supports applied research to advance communications and networking technologies for robust, secure Naval operations across challenging environments.
Key Information: White paper submission is strongly encouraged but not required for full proposal eligibility.
Description
This opportunity supports applied research projects aimed at developing and maturing communications and networking technologies for Naval operations. The focus is on enabling seamless, robust, and secure connectivity for distributed maritime operations, supporting the Naval Tactical Grid (NTG) across diverse operational domains (land, maritime, cyber, space) and under challenging conditions such as jamming, spectrum limitations, and mobility. The program seeks advances in areas including long-range VHF-band data links, electronically-steered apertures, low probability-of-detection communications, distributed network control, and predictive network algorithms. Innovative ideas outside these focus areas, but relevant to Navy/Marine Corps communications and networking, are also welcome.
