United States Antarctic Program (or
USAP; formerly known as the
United States Antarctic Research Program or
USARP and the
United States Antarctic Service or
USAS) is an organization of the
United States government which has presence in the
continent of
Antarctica. It coordinates research and the operational support for research in the region. The body's goals are
"...to expand fundamental knowledge of the region, to foster research on global and regional problems of current scientific importance, and to use the region as a platform or base from which to support research."
The U.S. Antarctic Program, funded by the
National Science Foundation's Office of Polar Programs, supports only that research that can be done exclusively in Antarctica or that can be done best from Antarctica.