Accessibility

· 13 checks — Landmarks, headings, alt text, forms, and link quality rolled into one auditable list.

SCORE

GRADE

FIX

REVIEW

PASS

INFO

Checks

8 PASS 1 REVIEW 4 FIX

Link & Button Quality

Action

7 issue(s) across 177 links and 49 buttons

FIX

7 issue(s) across 177 links and 49 buttons

3 link(s) with no accessible text

Links without text are announced as raw URLs by screen readers.

Got: https://www.nationalacademies.org; https://www.nationalacademies.org; https://www.nationalacademies.org

4 link(s) with generic text

Generic link text like 'click here' doesn't describe the destination.

Got: https://www.nasonline.org/ ("Learn more"); https://nae.edu/ ("Learn more"); https://nam.edu/ ("Learn more"); https://www.nationalacademies.org/purpose ("Learn more")

1 image-only link(s) without alt text

Image-only links need alt text on the image (or aria-label on the link) so screen readers can announce them.

Got: a[href="https://www.nationalacademies.org/topics/transportation"]

18 link(s) open in new tab without warning

Add '(opens in new tab)' to link text or aria-label.

Got: https://www.nasonline.org/; https://www.nae.edu/; https://nam.edu/; https://careers.nationalacademies.org/us/en/home; https://www.trb.org/Publications/PubsTRBPublicationsbySeries.aspx; https://www.pnas.org/; https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus; https://academic.oup.com/ilarjournal; https://issues.org/; https://journals.sagepub.com/home/trr (+8 more)

151 link(s) with descriptive text

177 links

3 empty

4 generic text

18 new tab

0 empty buttons

Element	Text	Issue	Suggested Fix
https://www.nationalacademies.org	(empty)	empty	Add link text or aria-label
https://www.nasonline.org/	Learn more	generic text	Replace with descriptive text
Before: Learn more Suggested: Home page
https://nae.edu/	Learn more	generic text	Replace with descriptive text
Before: Learn more Suggested: Home page
https://nam.edu/	Learn more	generic text	Replace with descriptive text
Before: Learn more Suggested: Home page
https://www.nationalacademies.org/purpos…	Learn more	generic text	Replace with descriptive text
Before: Learn more Suggested: Purpose
https://www.nationalacademies.org/topics…	Our Work on Transportation …	img no alt	Add alt attribute to the image
https://www.nationalacademies.org	(empty)	empty	Add link text or aria-label
https://www.nasonline.org/	National Academy of Sciences	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://www.nae.edu/	National Academy of Engineerin…	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://nam.edu/	National Academy of Medicine	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://careers.nationalacademies.org/us…	Careers	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://www.trb.org/Publications/PubsTRB…	Transportation Research Board …	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://www.pnas.org/	PNAS	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus	PNAS Nexus	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://academic.oup.com/ilarjournal	ILAR Journal	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://issues.org/	Issues in Science and Technolo…	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://journals.sagepub.com/home/trr	Transportation Research Record…	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://trnews.org/	TR News	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://www.facebook.com/NationalAcademi…	Facebook	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-nat…	LinkedIn	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://x.com/TheNASEM	X	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://careers.nationalacademies.org/us…	Careers	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://careers.nationalacademies.org/us…	Careers	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://www.nationalacademies.org	(empty)	empty	Add link text or aria-label
https://careers.nationalacademies.org/us…	Careers	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text
https://careers.nationalacademies.org/us…	Careers	new tab	Add '(opens in new tab)' to text

200 links and buttons have descriptive text

Links without text are announced as raw URLs by screen readers.

https://www.nationalacademies.org; https://www.nationalacademies.org; https://www.nationalacademies.org

Why this matters

Links with no accessible text (empty <a></a>, image-only no alt, icon-only no aria-label) are unidentifiable to screen readers.

Source: WCAG 2.1 SC 2.4.4

Generic link text like 'click here' doesn't describe the destination.

https://www.nasonline.org/ ("Learn more"); https://nae.edu/ ("Learn more"); https://nam.edu/ ("Learn more"); https://www.nationalacademies.org/purpose ("Learn more")

Why this matters

Generic anchor text ('click here', 'read more', 'learn more') tells screen readers and search engines nothing about the destination.

Learn more ▾

Out-of-context lists of links read by AT (one navigation pattern) become useless when every link says 'click here'. Use the destination's title or topic as anchor text. Doubles as SEO win — Google passes anchor-text relevance to the destination.

Source: WCAG 2.4.4 / Google Search Central

Image-only links need alt text on the image (or aria-label on the link) so screen readers can announce them.

a[href="https://www.nationalacademies.org/topics/transportation"]

Why this matters

Image-only links with no alt are unidentifiable to screen-reader users — link's destination is invisible.

Source: WCAG 2.1 SC 2.4.4

Add '(opens in new tab)' to link text or aria-label.

https://www.nasonline.org/; https://www.nae.edu/; https://nam.edu/; https://careers.nationalacademies.org/us/en/home; https://www.trb.org/Publications/PubsTRBPublicationsbySeries.aspx; https://www.pnas.org/; https://academic.oup.com/pnasnexus; https://academic.oup.com/ilarjournal; https://issues.org/; https://journals.sagepub.com/home/trr (+8 more)

Why this matters

Links with target="_blank" without rel="noopener" leak the originating page's window context — security and UX issue.

Learn more ▾

Without rel="noopener", the new tab can navigate the original tab via window.opener (tab-nabbing attack). Modern browsers default to noopener for target=_blank but only since recent versions. Always set rel="noopener noreferrer" explicitly.

Source: MDN target / OWASP

Dark Mode Support

Action

No dark mode signals

FIX

No dark mode signals

No dark mode signals detected

Consider adding CSS with @media (prefers-color-scheme: dark) and <meta name='color-scheme' content='light dark'>.

Detection limited to meta tags and inline styles

External CSS files may contain prefers-color-scheme rules not visible to this scan.

Dark ModeNo Dark Mode Detected

color-scheme meta Not set ✗Dark theme-color Not set ✗CSS indicators Not detected ✗

Detection limited to meta tags and inline styles.

Print Stylesheet

Action

No print styles

FIX

No print styles

No print-specific styles detected

When users print this page, they get the screen layout including navigation and non-essential elements. Add @media print rules to hide navigation and optimize layout for paper.

Print Stylesheet No Print Styles

Print stylesheet Not found ✗Inline @media print Not detected ✗

404 Error Page

HTTP 404, custom page

REVIEW

HTTP 404, custom page

Correct 404 status code returned

Got: HTTP 404

Custom styled 404 page

Navigation links present on 404 page

Search form present on 404 page

404 Page Quality ✓ Custom 404 Page

Status Code HTTP 404 ✓Page Title 404 - Page not found ✓Custom Styling ✓Navigation ✓Homepage Link ✗Search Form ✓

A+

Landmark Structure

15 landmarks

PASS

15 landmarks

<main> landmark present

3 <nav> landmark(s) found

All <nav> elements are properly labeled

Skip navigation link present

Page Structure — as a screen reader sees it

Heading Hierarchy

50 headings

PASS

50 headings

Multiple H1 headings (16 found)

A page should have only one H1. Multiple H1s dilute the document outline.

H3 Dropdown items
H3 My Academies
H1 Driving progress for the benefit of society by providing independent, objective advice to advance science, engineering, and medicine.
H2 Ways we are making a difference
H2 Science helps us understand and anticipate the future.
H2 Engineering helps us invent and shape our future.
H2 Medicine helps us treat and find cures for our illnesses.
H2 Together, they can help us build a thriving and healthy society.
H2 Topics
H2 In Focus
H3 Upcoming events
H3 Based On Science
H3 Do wildfires pose serious risks to human health?
H3 Are contrails harmful to the environment?
H3 Can vitamin A help prevent measles?
H2 The National Academies
H3 The National Academies
H3 Journals and Periodicals
H3 Visit
H3 Legal
H1 Discover duplicate H1
H1 Events duplicate H1
H1 Engage duplicate H1
H1 About duplicate H1
H1 Search duplicate H1
H1 Mobile Navigation duplicate H1
H2 Primary Mobile Navigation
H3 Discover
H3 Events
H3 Engage
H3 About
H3 My Academies
H1 Log In duplicate H1
H2 Log In
H1 Register duplicate H1
H2 Register
H1 Thank You duplicate H1
H2 Thank You
H1 Forgot Password duplicate H1
H2 Forgot Password
H1 Reset Requested duplicate H1
H2 Reset Requested
H1 Reset Password duplicate H1
H2 Reset Password
H1 Reset Password duplicate H1
H2 Reset Password
H1 Verify email duplicate H1
H2 Verify email
H1 Subscribe duplicate H1
H2 Subscribe

A page should have only one H1. Multiple H1s dilute the document outline.

Why this matters

Multiple H1s blur the page's primary topic — screen-reader users and Google both prefer one H1.

Learn more ▾

HTML5's outline algorithm technically allows multiple H1s within sectioning content, but no browser implements it. In practice: one H1 per page. Use H2-H6 for subsections.

Source: WCAG 2.4.6 / Google Search Central

A+

Alt Text Quality

All 10 images OK

PASS

All 10 images OK

1 decorative image(s) correctly marked

9 image(s) with good alt text

10 images 9 good alt text 1 decorative

All images have appropriate alt text.

Form Accessibility

1 of 15 controls have issues

PASS

1 of 15 controls have issues

1 control(s) rely on placeholder only

Placeholder text disappears on focus and is not a reliable label.

Got: <input type="search" name="query">

14 control(s) properly labeled

15 controls

14 labeled

1 placeholder only

0 unlabeled

Control	Type	Label	Method
#email	email	Email (required)	for/id
#password	password	Password (required)	for/id
#register-email	email	Email (required)	for/id
#register-password	password	New password (required)	for/id
#register-password-confirm	password	Retype password (required)	for/id
#subscribe-marketing	checkbox		none
#register-terms	checkbox		none
#pwrequest-email	email	Email (required)	for/id
#pwreset-password	password	New password (required)	for/id
#pwreset-password-confirm	password	Retype password (required)	for/id
#first_name	text	First Name	for/id
#last_name	text	Last Name	for/id
#email_subscribe	email	Email (required)	for/id
#email_agreementKuNR	checkbox		none
query	search	(Search)	placeholder only

Placeholder text disappears on focus and is not a reliable label.

Why this matters

Placeholder-only labels disappear when the user starts typing — they must remember what the field was for.

Learn more ▾

Placeholders are NOT labels. They vanish on input, fail color contrast checks (most are gray), and don't satisfy WCAG SC 3.3.2. Always use a real <label> alongside (or aria-labelledby).

Source: WCAG 2.1 SC 3.3.2 / Nielsen Norman

Favicon & Branding

7 icon(s) detected

PASS

7 icon(s) detected

favicon.ico present at site root

HTML icon links detected

Apple touch icon present

SVG favicon detected — scales perfectly to any size

Multiple icon sizes detected

✓ favicon.ico Present

✓ PNG Icons Present

✓ Apple Touch Present

✓ SVG Favicon Present

✓ Manifest Icons Present

✓ Multiple Sizes Present

A+

Web Manifest

PWA-ready

PASS

PWA-ready

Meets PWA install criteria

Name present: National Academies

192x192 icon present

512x512 icon present

Display mode: standalone

PWA Install Criteria ✓ Installable

Name National Academies ✓192×192 icon ✓512×512 icon ✓Start URL / ✓Display Mode standalone ✓

Display Mode standalone Theme Color #211747 Background Color #211747 Icons 2 icon(s)

A+

Color Contrast (Screenshot)

20 text elements analyzed, 0 fail WCAG AA

PASS

Analyzes text contrast against the actual rendered page, including background images, gradients, and overlays that CSS-based tools cannot detect.

20 pass

Show all checked elements (20)

Element	Ratio	Required	FG	BG	Result
h1 Driving progress for…	19.47:1	3.0:1	#000000	#F6F6F9	Pass
h1 Discover	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h1 Events	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h1 Engage	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h1 About	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h1 Search	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h1 Mobile Navigation	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h1 Log In	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h1 Register	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h1 Thank You	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h1 Forgot Password	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h1 Reset Requested	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h1 Reset Password	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h1 Reset Password	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h1 Verify email	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h1 Subscribe	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h2 Ways we are making a…	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h2 Science helps us und…	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h2 Engineering helps us…	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass
h2 Medicine helps us tr…	17.30:1	3.0:1	#000000	#E9E9E9	Pass

Methodology: The top 20 text elements by font size were checked. Background color was sampled from the desktop screenshot using a 5-point pattern. WCAG 2.1 AA requires 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text.

A+

Lighthouse Accessibility Audits

Score 97/100 — 2 failing, 30 passed

PASS

Accessibility

These checks highlight opportunities to improve the accessibility of your web app. Automatic detection can only detect a subset of issues and does not guarantee the accessibility of your web app, so manual testing is also encouraged.

Best practices

Touch targets with sufficient size and spacing help users who may have difficulty targeting small controls to activate the targets. Learn more about touch targets.

Why this matters

Performance issues directly impact user engagement and conversion rates.

Failing Elements
Learn more `div.hero-slider__track > article.panel > div.panel__content > a.flex-flow`

These items highlight common accessibility best practices.

Visible text labels that do not match the accessible name can result in a confusing experience for screen reader users. Learn more about accessible names.

Why this matters

Performance issues directly impact user engagement and conversion rates.

Failing Elements
https://www.nationalacademies.org/legal/privacy `div#onetrust-group-container > div#onetrust-policy > p#onetrust-policy-text > a`

○Interactive controls are keyboard focusable

○Interactive elements indicate their purpose and state

○The page has a logical tab order

○Visual order on the page follows DOM order

○User focus is not accidentally trapped in a region

○The user's focus is directed to new content added to the page

○HTML5 landmark elements are used to improve navigation

○Offscreen content is hidden from assistive technology

○Custom controls have associated labels

○Custom controls have ARIA roles

●`[aria-*]` attributes match their roles

●`[aria-hidden="true"]` is not present on the document `<body>`

●`[role]`s have all required `[aria-*]` attributes

●Elements with an ARIA `[role]` that require children to contain a specific `[role]` have all required children.

●`[role]`s are contained by their required parent element

●`[role]` values are valid

●`[aria-*]` attributes have valid values

●`[aria-*]` attributes are valid and not misspelled

●Buttons have an accessible name

●Image elements have `[alt]` attributes

●`[user-scalable="no"]` is not used in the `<meta name="viewport">` element and the `[maximum-scale]` attribute is not less than 5.

●ARIA attributes are used as specified for the element's role

●Elements with `role="dialog"` or `role="alertdialog"` have accessible names.

●`[aria-hidden="true"]` elements do not contain focusable descendents

●Elements use only permitted ARIA attributes

●Background and foreground colors have a sufficient contrast ratio

●Document has a `<title>` element

●`<html>` element has a `[lang]` attribute

●`<html>` element has a valid value for its `[lang]` attribute

●Links are distinguishable without relying on color.

●Links have a discernible name

●Lists contain only `<li>` elements and script supporting elements (`<script>` and `<template>`).

●List items (`<li>`) are contained within `<ul>`, `<ol>` or `<menu>` parent elements

●No element has a `[tabindex]` value greater than 0

●Heading elements appear in a sequentially-descending order

●Skip links are focusable.

●Document has a main landmark.

●Deprecated ARIA roles were not used

●Uses ARIA roles only on compatible elements

●Identical links have the same purpose.

○`[accesskey]` values are unique

○`button`, `link`, and `menuitem` elements have accessible names

○ARIA input fields have accessible names

○ARIA `meter` elements have accessible names

○ARIA `progressbar` elements have accessible names

○Elements with the `role=text` attribute do not have focusable descendents.

○ARIA toggle fields have accessible names

○ARIA `tooltip` elements have accessible names

○ARIA `treeitem` elements have accessible names

○The page contains a heading, skip link, or landmark region

○`<dl>`'s contain only properly-ordered `<dt>` and `<dd>` groups, `<script>`, `<template>` or `<div>` elements.

○Definition list items are wrapped in `<dl>` elements

○ARIA IDs are unique

○No form fields have multiple labels

○`<frame>` or `<iframe>` elements have a title

○`<html>` element has an `[xml:lang]` attribute with the same base language as the `[lang]` attribute.

○Input buttons have discernible text.

○`<input type="image">` elements have `[alt]` text

○Form elements have associated labels

○The document does not use `<meta http-equiv="refresh">`

○`<object>` elements have alternate text

○Select elements have associated label elements.

○Cells in a `<table>` element that use the `[headers]` attribute refer to table cells within the same table.

○`<th>` elements and elements with `[role="columnheader"/"rowheader"]` have data cells they describe.

○`[lang]` attributes have a valid value

○`<video>` elements contain a `<track>` element with `[kind="captions"]`

○Tables have different content in the summary attribute and `<caption>`.

○All heading elements contain content.

○Image elements do not have `[alt]` attributes that are redundant text.

○Tables use `<caption>` instead of cells with the `[colspan]` attribute to indicate a caption.

○`<td>` elements in a large `<table>` have one or more table headers.

All checks on this page are automated. Results are estimates - run targeted manual reviews when the score affects a release decision.