Research Opportunities in Satellite Earth Observation

3.1 Eligible Recipients

Eligible recipients are limited to Canadian universities and post-secondary institutions.

3.2 Eligible Projects

To be eligible under this AO, projects must meet the eligibility criteria or one of the eligibility criteria as follows:

• Research activities of interest to Canada related to space science and technology disciplines and their applications.
• Activities that sustain space research and development (R&D) (see definition in Section 3.5) capabilities.
• Studies to develop capabilities that enhance the space sector.
• End project phases such as analyses of space data and the transformation of those data into useful information, dissemination of the ensuing results.

All development phases necessary for a project are eligible for funding. Any logical breakdown or combination of these phases can constitute a funded project under this AO. However, breaking down a project into numerous phases submitted as distinct proposals to obtain more than the maximum grant under this AO is not allowed. Furthermore, the completion of a funded phase does not automatically guarantee future funding of the remaining phases.

To be eligible, the activities outlined in the project must also align with the ARL ladder, described as follows. The projects within this component are those that seek to identify an application (ARL 1), consider innovative concepts (ARL 2), select a preferred approach (ARL 3), seek to develop a concept (ARL 4), validate the concept feasibility (ARL 5), integrate the application in the user environment (ARL 6), and refine the application solution (ARL 7). Detailed information about the ARL scale can be found in Appendix B.

The scope of the proposed project concept is broad and open in terms of the data, technologies, methods and applications that may be considered, provided that the project represents an advancement in the ARL ladder and bridges a gap in knowledge and information that has the potential of improving the applicant's capabilities.

This includes the following:

• Data: Any sources of satellite EO data may be proposed for this purpose, many of which are available through open-access platforms. This includes a variety of optical and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery, as well as non-imagery data and other datasets.

  Note: It will be the responsibility of the applicant to locate these data sources based on the objective of their proposed project and to obtain all of the data to be used in the project from commercial data providers or open-access platforms. If costs are to be incurred in acquiring EO imagery or other data types, the applicant should include these costs in their financial proposals and ensure they are commensurate with the value of the project.

  For Stream 3 (see Section 2), the RADARSAT data subset must be identified, as it represents a major component of the project. This dataset may be complemented with other relevant datasets; however, the use of RADARSAT data should remain the main source of information. The RADARSAT catalog data is available via the Earth Observation Data Management System (EODMS) hosted by Natural Resources Canada (see Access to RADARSAT data).

• Technologies, methods and applications: The proposed project may be related to new applications, data products, models/prototypes, methodologies, and tools, systems, services provided that it is either new or an improvement.
• Applications areas: This AO may address any application area of importance and relevance to Canada, aligned with CSA's priorities (section 3.3).

Please note that projects with the following primary objectives are not eligible under the AO:

• The development or improvement of a specific technology such as a new sensor; or,
• Use or testing technology in preparation of a space flight.

3.3 Links to CSA Priorities

To be eligible, projects supported under this AO must contribute to at least one of the CSA priorities stated below as per Canada's Strategy for Satellite Earth Observation.

• Harnessing satellite EO to address climate change and issues that matter to Canadians;
• Strengthening the delivery of critical services to keep Canadians healthy, safe and informed; and
• Inspiring skills and capacity development for the next generation.

To be eligible, projects supported under this AO must contribute to at least one of the following CSA priorities stated below as per the 2026–27 Departmental Plan:

• Leveraging space in the delivery of critical services to Canadians; and
• Positioning the Canadian space ecosystem for prosperity.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to collaborate with European organizations (e.g., academic institutions, government organizations, industry partners, space agency, etc.) to strengthen Canada–Europe cooperation in Earth Observation. Where such collaborations are proposed, applicants should provide a letter of support describing the nature of the partnership, the roles, and contributions of each partner.

Applicants are encouraged to propose projects that increase the representation and advancement of women and underrepresented groups in space sciences and engineering. It is recommended that the applicants demonstrate how their organization or team contributes to equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) and Indigenous People involvement.

3.4 Links to the Class G&C Program Objectives

To be eligible, projects supported under this AO must contribute to the achievement of at least one of the following objectives:

• To support the development of science and technology relevant to the priorities of the Canadian Space Agency.
• To foster the continuing development of a critical mass of researchers and highly qualified people in Canada in areas relevant to the priorities of the Canadian Space Agency.

3.5 Basic Research and Development (R&D) Definition

To be eligible, projects supported under the G&C Program must meet the CSA basic R&D definition:

"Any pre-commercial science and technology activities that are carried out to resolve unknowns regarding the feasibility of (i) space concepts or (ii) applications in the space sector."

Basic R&D activities supported under the G&C Program shall be undertaken in Canada unless it is essential to the success of the project that they be undertaken outside the country.

4.1 Required Documentation

The applicant must ensure that its application includes the required documents:

• A completed original Application Form signed by the duly authorized representative with all documentation and information mentioned therein.
• Proof of incorporation or registration (i.e., Corporation Registry).
• Letters from other funding contributors confirming their grants or contributions, if applicable.
• Letters of support, confirming participation to the project, if applicable.
• Curriculum vitae (CV) in the format of your choice for each member of the team.
• Documentation supporting the activities proposed within the project, if applicable.

The documents must be combined in a single PDF formatted file, in the same order as presented above with all security features disabled. The application form and supporting documents must be included in the file as a searchable PDF formatted document (PDF/A-1a format preferred). It is entirely the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that there are no accessibility issues with the submitted PDF file.

It is the applicant's responsibility to ensure that the application complies with all applicable federal, provincial/territorial and municipal laws and regulations.

The applicant must keep one hard copy of all the original documents above. The CSA may require applicants who successfully passed the evaluation stage to send a hard copy of their complete application with the original documents.

Additional governing documents might be requested in a later phase of the evaluation process.

Please note that incomplete applications will not be considered.

4.2 Submit the completed application electronically

The applicant must submit their application electronically by following the steps below:

1. Submit an account creation request using the Electronic Proposal Portal. Note that Google Chrome is the browser of choice for submissions, but supported browsers are Google Chrome and MS Edge. It is strongly recommended that the applicant creates their account 1 week before the call's closing date.
2. In the "Proposal title" field of the Electronic Proposal Portal, use the following naming convention: ROSEO_AO5_ Name of the post-secondary institution_Short Project Name (example: ROSEO_AO5_University XYZ_Optical application development). Only alphanumeric characters, spaces, underscores, and dashes are accepted.
3. The "Applicant" section must contain the information for the Principal Investigator responsible for the research project as well as the Duly authorized representative of the institution (who will be signing the application on behalf of the institution). The applicant may add as many people as necessary to the proposal. It is important to note that all people added will have access to the same online application form and will have the possibility to make changes.
4. Once submitted, the applicant and any additional contacts added by the applicant will each receive an email confirming the account creation. Applicants must allow up to three business days to receive the email, which will include a link to 1) the online application form and 2) another link to the secure portal where all required documents must be uploaded, along with the username, password and instructions (user guide).
5. Using the username and the temporary password assigned by the CSA, login to the online application form. Some security features, such as firewalls, may hinder access and the CSA must be informed of any access issues as soon as possible. Applicants may save the information entered and return to the form later, if necessary, until the application submission deadline date.
6. After completing the application form, print it as a PDF document before clicking "submit".
7. The duly authorized representative of the institution must sign the application form.
8. Combine all required documents into a single PDF document (please see Section 4.1 for details on the accepted format) and upload your complete and signed application package to the secure portal, using the link provided in the initial email, no later than October 30, 2026, at 1:00 pm (ET). Please refer to the user guide for instructions on how to securely upload documents.

Important Notes:

• If technical issues related to an account creation or to an electronic submission arise, applicants must inform the CSA as soon as possible at the email address smartearth.utiliterre@asc-csa.gc.ca for the issue to be investigated. Applicants are strongly encouraged to upload their complete application package well before the submission deadline.
• Applications must be submitted (successfully uploaded to the secure portal) by the applicants no later than October 30, 2026, at 1:00 pm (ET).
• The onus is on the applicant to ensure that their application is complete and that all documents are uploaded to the Electronic Proposal Portal before the prescribed deadline.
• The CSA is not responsible for any delays under any circumstances and will reject any applications that are uploaded after the stipulated deadline.
• Applications hand-delivered to the CSA will not be accepted.
• Applications sent by e-mail will not be accepted.
• If multiple applications are submitted, only the latest valid version received will be considered.

4.3 Service Standards – Complete Applications

Applicants will be notified in writing of decisions regarding their application. Selected applications will be announced on the CSA website. The CSA has set the following service standards for processing times: acknowledgement of receipt, funding decisions and payment procedures.

Acknowledgement: The CSA's goal is to acknowledge receipt of proposals within 2 weeks of receiving the completed application package.

Decision: The CSA's goal is to respond to the proposal within 17 weeks for this AO's closing date and to send a grant agreement for signature after formal approval of the proposal.

Payment:

The CSA's goal is to issue payment within 4 weeks of the successful fulfillment of the requirements outlined in the grant agreement but is under no obligation to meet this deadline.

Compliance with these service standards is a shared responsibility. Applicants must submit all required documentation in a timely fashion. Service standards may vary by Announcement of Opportunity.

5.1 Eligibility Criteria

• Represent an eligible recipient as defined in Section 3.1.
• Represent an eligible project as defined in Sections 3.2, 3.3, 3.4.
• Meet the basic R&D definition in Section 3.5 (if applicable); and
• Meet program funding provisions in section 6 Funding.

5.2 Evaluation Criteria

Applications will be evaluated according to the following criteria with scale rating indicated in percentage:

• Benefits to Canada (30 points)
• Project feasibility (10 points)
• Resources (20 points)
• Results (30 points); and
• Risk and risk mitigation measures (10 points).

The minimum passing score for each criterion is 60%. The final score for each application will be the cumulative total of the scores obtained across all five criteria. An application must achieve an overall minimum score of 60 points. Applications will then be ranked based on their final scores, and grants will be awarded in rank order. Definitions of the criteria are provided in Appendix A.

5.3 Evaluation Process

Only applications that have passed the eligibility assessment listed in Section 5.1 will be given further consideration.

Once the eligibility criteria are confirmed, evaluators will assess the screened applications according to the criteria listed in Section 5.2. Applicants are encouraged to provide a detailed and clear description of how they meet each criterion.

Evaluators shall be experts in the field(s) relevant to the applications and may include representatives of Government of Canada departments.

Before a final decision is made, the CSA may conduct any consultation and seek advice or comments, including, but not limited to, from suppliers, researchers, financial institutions, accounting firms, financing organizations, credit rating organizations, government agencies and organizations, as it deems necessary in order to obtain any information useful for the evaluation of this application.

The results obtained in this AO could take into account certain factors in the final decision to grant funding, such as, but not limited to, the representativeness of the four designated groups (woman, Aboriginal person, disabled person or member of a visible minority), regional distribution, academic level, distribution between universities and post-secondary educational institutions, etc.

6.1 Available Funding and Duration

The maximum grant that a recipient can receive from the CSA under this AO is $150,000 over a maximum period of 3 years. The funding per year per project is $50,000 for year 1, $50,000 for year 2, and $50,000 for 36 months. This AO may include provisions allowing implementing beneficiaries to request additional funding and an extension of the duration of the grant agreement.

Each eligible recipient can be funded for one project under this AO.

The number of projects under this AO will depend on funding availability.

To determine the amount of funding to be allocated, consideration will be given to the availability of CSA funds, the total cost of the project, and the other confirmed sources of funds provided by other stakeholders and the applicant.

The CSA reserves the right to reject any proposals or reduce the amount of the grants at its entire discretion.

6.2 Eligible Costs

Eligible costs are costs that are essential to carry out the Project, reasonable and directly related to the Project to achieve the expected results of the Project. The costs are to be incurred directly by the applicant. Incurred Costs means any expense made to carry out the Project related to an Eligible Cost which is due and payable. CSA will not contribute to costs Incurred prior to the coming into force of a Funding Agreement and after the Project Completion Date.

Eligible costs for under this AO can include:

• access fees;
• acquisition or rental of equipment;
• acquisition, development and printing of materials;
• and PST, HST and GST net of any rebate to which the recipient is entitled to and the reimbursement of any taxes for goods and services acquired in a foreign country net of any rebate or reimbursement received in the foreign country;
• consultant services;
• cost for carrying out environmental screening and/or impact studies;
• data acquisition;
• data management;
• laboratory analyses services;
• licenses and permits fees;
• material and supplies;
• overhead (administrative) costs (not to exceed 20% of eligible costs for universities and 15% for other eligible recipients);
• registration fees;
• Salaries and benefits (benefits not to exceed 20% of eligible salaries)
• travel

In no circumstance can the total amount of assistance from governmental sources (federal, provincial, territorial and municipal) to the recipient exceed 100% of the total project cost.

Eligible recipients are limited to Canadian universities and post-secondary institutions.

The applicants must identify all sources of funding in their applications and confirm this information in a funding agreement if the project is selected for funding. Upon completion of a project, the recipient must also disclose all sources of funding.

7.1 Agreement

Upon favorable review of the applications, CSA will send a Grant agreement to the successful applicant. The Grant agreement will outline the rights, roles, and obligations of each respective party. In the event of any discrepancies between this AO and a Grant agreement between CSA and the recipient, the latter document will take precedence.

For greater clarity, no liability and no commitment or obligation exist on the part of the CSA to issue a Grant payment to the applicant until a Grant agreement is signed by both parties. Furthermore, any costs or expenses incurred or paid by the recipient prior to the execution of a written Grant agreement by both parties are the sole responsibility of the applicant, and no liability exists on the part of the CSA.

7.2 Payments

The CSA and a successful applicant (the recipient) will sign a funding agreement. This is a condition for any payment made by the CSA with respect to the approved project.

For Grant agreements, payments will be made in a lump sum or instalments as described in the signed agreement. Grant funding agreements will include a clause stipulating the recipient's obligation to confirm—once a year in the case of multi-year agreements—their eligibility for the G&C Program – Research Component and inform the CSA in writing of any changes to the conditions used in determining their eligibility for this component.

7.3 Audit

The recipient of a funding agreement shall keep proper records of all documentation related to the funded project, for the duration of the project and for three (3) years after the completion date of the project, in the event of an audit. This documentation shall be available upon request.

7.4 Intellectual Property

All intellectual property developed by the recipient in the course of the project shall vest in the recipient. The recipient will undertake to protect all intellectual property he will possess, acquire or develop during the project.

7.5 Organizations in Quebec

7.6 Organizations in Alberta

An organization located in Alberta may be subject to the Provincial Priorities Act (Chapter P-35.5) (the Act) and its Provincial Priorities Regulation (Alberta Regulation 21/2025) (the Regulation).

As per section 2 of the Act, provincial entities listed in the Act and Regulations must obtain prior approval from the Government of Alberta in accordance with the process set out in the Act and in the Regulation before entering into an agreement with the Government of Canada.

Therefore, any entity that falls under the application of the Act or the Regulation must obtain such authorization prior to entering into an agreement with the Canadian Space Agency.

Applicants having activities in Alberta must complete Section 8C of the application form.

7.7 Performance Measurement

The CSA will ask the recipients to report on various performance measurement indicators throughout the execution of the project. Examples include but are not limited to number of applications having advanced their ARL (application readiness level), number of highly qualified personnel involved in projects funded by CSA, etc.

7.8 Open Access Publications

In the event that publications result from the project, the CSA wishes to promote the dissemination of findings that results from the projects it funds as quickly and to the greatest number of people as possible. Improved access to scientific results not only allows scientists to use a broader range of resources and knowledge, but also improves research collaboration and coordination, strengthens citizen engagement and supports the economy.

The CSA promotes the use of open access publication and archiving by recipients in order to facilitate the widest dissemination of findings that results from its funded projects. Thus, recipients are invited to publish, in a timely matter, their articles by using one of the following methods:

1. Accessible online repository (institutional or disciplinary) so that the publication is freely accessible.
2. Journal offering open access to articles.

It should be noted that these two methods are not mutually exclusive and that recipients are encouraged to use both.

Finally, the CSA wishes to receive, as a courtesy, a copy of the publications (if not freely accessible) or the hyperlink (if freely accessible) and its digital object identifier (DOI). These will be used to improve accessibility by including them in the CSA publications directory.

7.9 Conflict of Interest

If the applicant is employed by a federal government department, including the CSA, they are required to comply with all rules applicable to their department or federal organization in order to identify, prevent, and resolve any potential, apparent, or actual conflict of interest.

10.1 smartEarth Application Readiness Level 1

10.2 smartEarth Application Readiness Level 2

10.3 smartEarth Application Readiness Level 3

10.4 smartEarth Application Readiness Level 4

10.5 smartEarth Application Readiness Level 5

10.6 smartEarth Application Readiness Level 6

10.7 smartEarth Application Readiness Level 7

Reminder – Maximum level attainable for this AO is ARL 7

10.8 smartEarth Application Readiness Level 8

10.9 smartEarth Application Readiness Level 9