Frequently Asked Questions

PubSpace launch is NASA’s designated public access repository. It is a collection of NASA-funded scholarly publications within the [STI Repository] ( https://ntrs.nasa.gov/) launch , aiming to increase access to federally funded research in accordance with NASA Public Access Policy launch . The collection enables free public access to NASA’s peer-reviewed scholarly publications, including accepted manuscripts and publisher version of records, as soon as possible after publication.

This collection currently features over 27,000 metadata records with links to publisher websites and 9,800 full-text journal articles. Formally housed in NIH’s PubMed Central, PubSpace within the STI Repository was officially launched as of November 17, 2022.


For more information on Public Access, please visit our About Public Access launch page or contact the Public Access Help Desk launch .

PubMed Central (PMC) is an online repository and was developed and operated by the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), a division of the National Library of Medicine (NLM) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). As of February 1, 2022, new submissions to NASA PubSpace have
moved from PMC to the STI Repository.

NASA’s PubSpace portal to the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) PubMed Central (PMC) repository of journal articles from NASA-funded research remains accessible. You can access the portal here: https://ntrs.nasa.gov/collections/pubspace launch .

Once deposited to PubSpace launch , results of NASA-funded research become more accessible, making it easier for all scientists and the public to pursue NASA’s research priority areas competitively, which helps accelerate scientific discovery. Visit our Submit to PubSpace page for submission instructions.

PAs with PMC, access to the material is free. However, PMC does not allow for any bulk downloading of articles due to copyright restrictions. See the PMC Copyright Notice for more information.

NASA’s Public Access Policy ensures that the public has access to the peer-reviewed and published results of all NASA-funded research through PubSpace launch . United States and/or foreign copyright laws protect most of the papers in PubSpace. Generally, Open Access involves the use of a copyrighted document under a Creative Commons or similar license-type agreement that allows others to copy, distribute, and reuse their work. Please see https://www.sti.nasa.gov/disclaimers/ launch .

PubSpace launch is the collection of scholarly peer-reviewed journal articles that were funded by NASA for public access, which is housed within the NASA STI Repository launch .
The NASA STI Repository provides access to aerospace-related citations, full-text online documents, and images and videos. The types of content include: conference papers, journal articles, meeting papers, patents, research reports, images, movies, and technical information (STI) created or funded by NASA. There are three main collections: NACA Collection (1915-1958), NASA Collection (1958-Present), and the PubSpace Collection.

The deadline for completing in-progress submission actions in NIHMS has passed. If your submission was not fully approved it may need to be submitted again through STI Services. Reach out to the Public Access Help Desk with any questions.

The scope of applicability of this plan includes all peer-reviewed scientific research publications authored or coauthored by investigators funded for this research by NASA appropriated funds. This includes both civil servant and non–civil servant investigators. Publications that contain material governed by personal privacy, export control, proprietary restrictions, or national security law or regulations are excluded. Patents are excluded.

Visit our Submit to PubSpace page for submission instructions.

Clearinghouse for the Open Research of the United States (CHORUS) publishing group coordinates with funding agencies, publishers, and institutions to share knowledge, develop solutions, advance innovation, and support collective efforts to make peer-reviewed publications accessible to the public at no cost. CHORUS is interoperable with agency search portals, publisher platforms, and scholarly repositories and archives.

Learn more about CHORUS launch .

Verify that your publication is in the PubSpace Collection launch (Best Practice:Search by DOI) or confirm that the publisher you are submitting to is on the CHORUS Publisher Member List launch .

The publication will be available from CHORUS after its embargo period set by the publisher. Please check with your publisher about their embargo period if you are unsure of the length of the embargo for your publication. If the embargo period has passed, and you are unable to locate it from CHORUS, please contact the NASA STI Program launch .

If you successfully deposited your publication with NIHMS and it is available in PubSpace, it will continue to remain available. For in-progress submissions, the deadline for completing submission process actions in NIHMS has passed. If your submission was not fully approved, it may need to be submitted again through the STI Program. Reach out to the Public Access Help Desk launch with any questions.

Yes, a DOI is required to link back to the publication at its source. This allows for verification of submission information to create a complete citation.

If your submission file is more than 10 MB, please complete the Public Access Contact form and add to the comments field that you have files that are over the upload limit. The Public Access Help Desk will reach out to assist you in getting the necessary file(s) submitted.

Please consult with your institutional official for advice and options.

Any one of the authors or the Principal Investigator for the grant can submit the peer-reviewed publication to the STI Program. Visit our Submit to PubSpace page for submission instructions.

All Civil Servants (and some Contractors with a NASA identity): You are required to utilize the NF-1676 process to submit peer-reviewed publications to the NASA-designated repository.

External NASA-funded researchers who publish their research in a CHORUS member’s journal can now more easily satisfy the Agency’s requirements for public access launch . Further guidance can be found on our Submit to PubSpace page launch .

All Civil Servants (and some Contractors with a NASA identity): You are required to utilize the NF-1676 process to submit peer-reviewed publications to the NASA-designated repository.

External NASA-funded researchers who publish their research in a CHORUS member’s journal can now more easily satisfy the Agency’s requirements for public access launch . Further guidance can be found on our Submit to PubSpace page launch .

NASA determines the official date of publication for the Public Access Policy based on information received from the publisher. NASA uses the date the article is available online from the publisher for determining the public access compliance status of a paper and calculating when a paper should be made public in the NASA-designated repository.

Principal Investigators and their Institutions are responsible for ensuring all terms and conditions of awards are met. This includes the submission of final peer-reviewed publications that arise directly from their awards, even if they are not an author or co-author of the paper. Principal Investigators and their Institutions should ensure that NASA-funded researchers are aware of and comply with the NASA Public Access Policy.

The NASA Public Access Policy is a Term and Condition of Award for all grants and cooperative agreements awarded after November 28, 2016. Please see this document launch for further information. Civil Servant authors fall under the NPD 2230, effective January 14, 2016. The requirement for contracts has yet to be set in the NASA Supplement.

Compliance with the NASA Public Access Policy is not a factor in the scientific and technical merit evaluation of grant applications. Non-compliance will be addressed administratively and may delay or prevent awarding of funds.

Yes, the Public Access Policy applies to any peer-reviewed publication that arises from any amount of direct funding from NASA. Visit our Submit to PubSpace page for submission instructions.

You are not required to submit it, but you may if you have appropriate copyright permission. If you wish to submit, visit our Submit to PubSpace page for submission instructions..

Direct funding generally includes sub-awards because they are associated with a particular award. Your institution should be able to assist you in determining whether NASA direct funds were involved.

The primary awardee’s obligation to ensure sub-recipient compliance with the NASA Public Access Policy is the same as the awardee’s responsibility for other requirements when collaborating with other organizations in carrying out NASA-supported research. Accordingly, the NASA Public Access Policy requirement should be incorporated into sub-recipient agreements, and the primary awardee remains responsible for compliance.

NASA will consider exceptions only under the most extreme circumstances, such as the death of the sole author, on a case-by-case basis.

On February 22, 2013, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) released a memorandum entitled “Increasing Access to the Results of Federally Funded Research.” It directed Federal agencies with more than $100 million in research and development (R&D) expenditures to develop plans to make the published results of federally funded research freely available to the public within one year of publication, and it required researchers to better account for and manage the digital data resulting from federally funded scientific research.

Data: NASA now requires proposers to include a data management plan (DMP) for data created under an award that results from the proposal. More information on preparing DMPs is available with each solicitation announcement. If an award is made, the investigator must manage data described in the DMP in accordance with the plan and should report these data-related activities in annual and final project reports. The NASA Science Mission Directorate has created an FAQ page specific to its requirements on DMPs for ROSES proposals at http://science.nasa.gov/researchers/sara/faqs/dmp-faq-roses/ launch

Publications: Peer-reviewed publications and juried conference papers, based wholly or partially on NASA support, must be deposited in the designated NASA repository. Either the final accepted version of the manuscript or the version of record may be submitted. External NASA-funded researchers who publish their research in a CHORUS member’s journal can now more easily satisfy the Agency’s requirements for public access launch . Visit our Submit to PubSpace page for submission instructions.

Awards to institutions will include conditions to implement NASA Public Access requirements. Principal Investigators must ensure that all researchers who work on projects funded in whole or in part by NASA grants or cooperative agreements comply with the public access policy.

NASA employees who generate published journal articles and juried conference papers in the course of official business must comply with NASA’s public access policy.

Principal Investigators are responsible for meeting the public access requirements.

NASA’s public access policy covers articles in peer-reviewed journals, juried conference papers, and data that result from NASA funding. These research outputs are a subset of the outcomes that should be reported in annual and final project reports. NASA’s public access policy for data is covered by NASA’s data management plan requirements.

The public access requirement applies to new awards resulting from proposals submitted, on or after January 2016.

NASA requires principal investigators who publish peer-reviewed journal articles or juried conference papers to deposit a copy of the item (either the final accepted version or the version of record, as defined in NASA’s public access plan) in the NASA public access repository. Visit our Submit to PubSpace page for submission instructions.

The final accepted version is the author’s final manuscript of a peer-reviewed paper accepted for journal publication, including all modifications resulting from the peer-review process. It is the version before the journal makes edits that will constitute the final “version of record.”

The version of record is the publisher’s authoritative copy of the paper, including all modifications from the publishing peer review process, copyediting, stylistic edits, and formatting changes.

Yes. All proposals submitted to NASA must include a Data Management Plan according to that particular solicitation’s requirements.

PI’s shall use the repository that was listed and agreed to by NASA as part of the proposal’s Data Management Plan.

The scope of material covered by the DMP (for example, whether it includes software or code) is governed by guidance at the directorate, division, and program levels. Investigators are encouraged to consult with the cognizant program officer.

NASA allows an embargo or administrative delay for access to up to 12 months from the date of publication of journal articles or juried conference papers. Individual journal titles (or proceedings or transactions) may institute shorter periods.

It depends. Are you a principal investigator of research that is funded, wholly or in part, by NASA? Is it a new award that resulted from a proposal that was submitted on or after January 2016? If your answer to both questions is “Yes,” the public access requirements apply to you.

No, material resulting from awards made prior to the January 2016 effective date is not subject to public access requirements for publications. However, the data resulting from your award should be managed according to the data management plan included in your proposal.

NASA requires principal investigators who publish peer-reviewed journal articles to ensure the publication is available in PubSpace launch , NASA’s designated public access repository. Either the final accepted version of the manuscript or the open access version of record may be submitted. Visit our Submit to PubSpace page for submission instructions.

Even if the article was published in an Open Access journal, the final accepted version must be made available in PubSpace launch (NASA’s designated public access repository) for all publications resulting from an award made on or after January 2016. Visit our Submit to PubSpace page for submission instructions.

Yes. For publications resulting from an award made on or after January 2016, the final accepted version must be made available in PubSpace launch (NASA’s designated public access repository). Visit our Submit to PubSpace page for submission instructions.

Yes. External NASA-funded researchers who publish their research in a CHORUS member’s journal can now more easily satisfy the Agency’s requirements for public access launch . Further guidance can be found on our Submit to PubSpace page launch .

Unless otherwise provided in the award, grantees own or may permit others to own the copyright, subject to the Federal Government’s license.

The Federal Government has a non-exclusive, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free license to exercise or authorize others to exercise all rights under copyright to use a federally-funded work for Federal purposes. The Federal Government license includes the right to have the copyrighted material included in a repository where the public can search, read, download, and analyze the material in digital form.

You should consult with your publisher or the repository in which the article is housed to ascertain conditions that may be imposed on future uses of the article. The Federal Government has a non-exclusive, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free license to exercise or authorize others to exercise all rights under copyright to use a federally-funded work for Federal purposes. The Federal Government license includes the right to have the copyrighted material included in a repository where the public can search, read, download, and analyze the material in digital form.

Mandatory deposit of data on which an article is based may be required by the journal publisher or other funders. Data collected as part of NASA-funded research, whether or not they are used to support a given publication, should be managed according to the data management plan.

Yes. The principal investigator of the award is responsible for ensuring deposit in the NASA-designated repository of all articles based on research funded under that award. Visit our Submit to PubSpace page for submission instructions.

If the article is published with a CHORUS publisher member and NASA funding was properly indicated, then no further action is required.

If NASA has supported part of the research, the final accepted version must be made available in PubSpace launch (NASA’s designated public access repository). You should consult the policies of the other funders to determine if deposit in another repository is also required. Visit our Submit to PubSpace page for submission instructions.