I have heard that NOAO is an FFRDC. What is an FFRDC?
NOAO is considered a Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) by the National Science Foundation. As such, NOAO is able to take advantage of all available government discounts for purchases. However, NOAO is not allowed to access government discounts for airline travel. An FFRDC is a unique organization that assists the United States government with scientific research and analysis, systems development, and systems acquisition. FFRDCs bring together the expertise and outlook of government, industry, and academia to solve complex technical problems that cannot be solved by any one group alone. FFRDCs enable agencies to use private sector resources to accomplish tasks that are integral to the mission and operation of the sponsoring agency. An FFRDC is required to conduct its business in a manner befitting its special relationship with the government, to operate in the public interest with objectivity and independence, to be free from organizational conflicts of interest,
