NERSC’s annual call for proposals includes awards of CPU and GPU node time on its flagship supercomputer, Perlmutter.
The National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC), a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science (SC) user facility, is soliciting proposals for allocation year (AY) 2026 for use of its high performance computing resources. The 2026 allocation year (AY 2026) runs from January 21, 2026, through January 19, 2027.
Submissions open August 11, 2025, and are due October 6, 2025, 5 p.m. PDT.
Proposals must support the mission of the DOE Office of Science.
Available resources
The following resources are available for AY 2026 allocation requests:
- CPU compute time on Perlmutter CPU-only nodes
- GPU compute time on Perlmutter’s GPU-accelerated nodes
- Community File System (CFS) storage
- HPSS Archival storage
Each of these resources is allocated separately.
Why apply now?
While NERSC accepts proposals year-round, the majority of its resources are distributed before the allocation year begins. Additional allocations may be awarded throughout the year, so long as resources remain, but applying during the pre-AY application period will ensure that your proposal is fully considered.
First-time and continuing principal investigators (PIs) who want to submit a new project request or renew their current projects should apply for AY 2026.
To continue to use NERSC resources in 2026, DOE Mission Science, Exploratory, Education, and Director’s Reserve projects must submit renewal proposals during the pre-AY application period.
ASCR Leadership Computing Challenge (ALCC) allocations are managed separately and cannot be requested or renewed through this process.
How awards are determined
DOE Mission Science proposals are evaluated by the Office of Science program selected by the proposer. Each of these programs has a pool of time to distribute. Allocations are drawn from these pools.
Exploratory, Education, and Director’s Reserve projects are evaluated by NERSC staff, and allocations are drawn from NERSC allocation pools.
How to submit a proposal
Requests to use NERSC resources are submitted via the ERCAP (Energy Research Computing Allocations Process) Request Form. The form requires a NERSC user ID to access.
Most projects fall under the “class” of “DOE Mission Science.” Unless you know otherwise, you should select this class on the ERCAP form.
Award notifications
Requests submitted by the deadline will receive a determination, emailed to principal investigators and project managers, the week of December 15, 2025.
Questions and help
The allocations team is hosting a series of drop-in office hours to answer questions and provide direct assistance with filling out the ERCAP form.
Applicants may also open a ticket in NERSC’s user help portal (requires login) or email the allocations management team with questions.