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Advancing Atmospheric and Aerial Autonomy

Overall Description

Advancing Atmospheric and Aerial Autonomy is a Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) proof-of-concept funding opportunity providing £4 million to strengthen the UK's future environmental observing capability through innovative autonomy, sensing, instrumentation and measurement technologies.

The call aims to accelerate the translation of existing technologies, platforms, sensors and expertise into deployable demonstrator capabilities for atmospheric science and wider environmental applications. A major focus is on more adaptable and sustainable approaches to atmospheric observation, alongside autonomous aerial systems developed for environmental monitoring and research.

Projects should rapidly develop, integrate, deploy and demonstrate technologies that produce high-quality environmental observations and data, while establishing pathways toward wider deployment, adoption, application or commercialisation.

Funding Amount

  • Total funding available: £4 million;
  • Project FEC: £300,000–£1 million;
  • NERC funding rate: 100% of FEC;
  • Approximately 50% of funding is expected for atmospheric autonomy;
  • Approximately 50% for wider environmental UAS applications;
  • Project duration: 3–12 months.

Submission Deadlines

  • Opening: 18 August 2026 at 09:00 UK time;
  • Application deadline: 21 October 2026 at 16:00 UK time;
  • Project start: By 1 February 2027.

Submission Conditions

Projects must:

  • Apply through the UKRI Funding Service;
  • Have an FEC of £300,000–£1 million;
  • Last 3–12 months;
  • Start by 1 February 2027;
  • Be led by an eligible UK research organisation;
  • Deliver a deployable demonstrator within the project timeframe;
  • Demonstrate sufficient technical and operational readiness for rapid mobilisation;
  • Have access to the required facilities, platforms, sensors, infrastructure and resources;
  • Include realistic plans for deployment, testing, calibration and validation;
  • Identify significant procurement, regulatory, recruitment and infrastructure dependencies;
  • Demonstrate appropriate partnerships and stakeholder engagement.

Projects must be capable of commencing activity immediately following the award, reflecting the accelerated nature of the programme.

Eligible Types of Applicants

Project lead must be based at a UK research organisation eligible for NERC funding.

Eligible applicants include:

  • Academic researchers at any career stage;
  • Research and technical staff;
  • Engineers;
  • Technicians;
  • Specialists;
  • Multidisciplinary research teams.

Teams may combine expertise in:

  • Environmental science;
  • Engineering and robotics;
  • Autonomy and sensing;
  • Instrumentation;
  • Software and data science;
  • Operational and commercial expertise.

Eligible Countries

  • Lead applicant: United Kingdom;
  • Lead must be based at a UK research organisation eligible for NERC funding;
  • International researchers and organisations: May participate as project partners/collaborators;
  • International project co-leads: May participate but must request £0 funding;
  • International organisations are expected to fund their own participation.

Expected Outcome

 

Projects should:

  • Deliver deployable demonstrator capability;
  • Generate high-quality environmental observations, measurements, data products or services;
  • Strengthen UK atmospheric and/or wider environmental observing capability;
  • Integrate existing technologies in innovative ways;
  • Improve calibration, validation and data quality;
  • Demonstrate new environmental science applications enabled by autonomous technologies;
  • Create capabilities that can be used or adopted beyond the project;
  • Establish pathways toward wider deployment, adoption or commercialisation.

Scope

Funding is divided approximately equally between two areas:

1. Autonomous solutions for atmospheric science (~50% of funding)

Projects may develop:

  • Autonomous observational and measurement systems;
  • Distributed sensing networks;
  • Mobile or fixed monitoring platforms;
  • Sensors and scientific instrumentation;
  • Calibration and validation approaches;
  • Technologies for collecting, processing or exploiting atmospheric data.

2. Autonomous aerial systems for environmental applications (~50% of funding)

Projects must have Uncrewed/Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) as a central component and may address:

  • Environmental monitoring and assessment;
  • Ecosystem observation;
  • Environmental forecasting and prediction;
  • Natural hazard monitoring;
  • Atmospheric observations;
  • Terrestrial, freshwater, coastal and marine environments.

Projects may integrate platforms, sensors, instrumentation, autonomy software, communications and data systems.

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