Office of Naval Research

The Office of Naval Research (ONR)'s objective is to undertake science and technology research for the U.S. naval services and the nation as a whole. Since its inception, ONR has contributed to research in a variety of sectors, having invested in early computing, deep sea exploration, and solid-state electronics.

Part of the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory's main campus

The ONR was established under Public Law 588 as the U.S. government’s first permanent agency dedicated to funding civilian scientific research in peacetime. The ONR manages and funds basic and applied science and advanced technology development through grants and contracts with partners in academia, industry, and government in the United States and globally. The Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C., is the ONR's subsidiary organization. The ONR also collaborates with the Navy’s systems commands and their warfighting centers located across the United States.

Seal of the Office of Naval Research department of the U.S. Navy in 1959

ONR was formed in August 1946, in the aftermath of World War II to promote and sustain the partnership of government, academia, and industry that had led to several significant technological innovations during the war. The ONR was originally involved in basic science research on a contractual basis; however, in 1959 grants were added as a funding option. Funding for applied research began in 1980 when the Office of Naval Technology was established—a joint organization also headed by the chief of naval research. In 1993, the two offices were combined and funding for advanced technology development was added.

Originally located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., in what had previously been the Navy Department buildings, the ONR has since been relocated to the Ballston neighborhood of Arlington, Virginia. The organization is managed by the chief of naval research, a naval flag officer, and the executive director, a Senior Executive Service civilian. Research activities are divided into two research directorates, research (responsible for discovery and invention) and technology, which oversee and coordinate the following science and technology departments:

U.S. Naval Research Laboratory in 1923

• Expeditionary Warfare
• Command, Control, Communications, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance
• Ocean Battlespace Sensing
• Sea Warfare and Weapons
• Warfighter Performance
• Naval Air Warfare and Weapons

ONR Global is a division of the ONR that was founded in 1946, with a single office in London. Since then it has branched out all over the world, setting up offices in Santiago, Chile; São Paulo, Brazil; London, U.K.; Prague, Czech Republic; Singapore; and Tokyo, Japan. ONR Global's task is to communicate with the international science and technology community and foreign operational commands to cultivate cooperation in areas of mutual benefit.