Astrophysicist 16-42

Trust Fund (Non-Federal), Indefinite

The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) invites applications for the position of Astrophysicist within the Chandra X-ray Observatory’s High Resolution Camera (HRC) Instrument Principal Investigator (IPI) team.  SAO’s Chandra X-ray Center (CXC) operates the Chandra X-ray Observatory under contract with NASA.  The employee will undertake a significant role in the HRC IPI team working with both team members and CXC staff to maximize the scientific return of the data obtained by the Chandra X-ray Observatory.  The employee will report to the HRC Principal Investigator, and will participate in all aspects of operations of the flight instrument including monitoring health and safety, analyzing in-flight calibration data, and interacting with CXC staff to ensure long-term functioning of the instrument. The employee is also expected to develop an independent research program in high-energy astrophysics, and will have access to HRC Guaranteed Time Observer science data. The employee will work with the PI and the other collaborators  primarily  in the areas of extragalactic astronomy, AGNs, black holes, jets, clusters of galaxies, galaxy formation, formation of structure, cosmology, and surveys. We solicit applications from researchers in all areas of astronomy, but encourage applications from candidates whose research interests overlap those described above.  We particularly encourage applicants with experience in analyzing data from HST and Spitzer who will complement the interests of our group. We seek a candidate with a strong publication history and demonstrated ability to successfully write proposals. Previous experience with X-ray instrumentation, either optics or detectors, is desirable but not a requirement.

A thorough knowledge of astronomy, physics, or astrophysics, and demonstrated experience working with astronomy data, is required.  The successful candidate will have advanced knowledge of modern computer techniques, simulation and data analysis techniques, and conceiving, designing, overseeing the development and testing of new software aimed at producing new scientific products for general use. The successful candidate will have experience with programming languages commonly used in the astrophysics community such as Python, C/C++, IDL, perl, or Fortran in a UNIX/LINUX environment. The candidate will communicate the results of her or his analyses via scientific papers, technical memoranda, conferences, or meetings. We offer an invigorating environment working in partnership with CXC scientific and engineering staff to produce the highest quality data from the Chandra X-ray Observatory.

Duties include:

• Participate in the operation of the Chandra HRC instrument, ,including reviewing command loads, monitoring of the health and safety of the instrument, and supporting diagnosis of satellite and instrument anomalies
• Analyze in-flight calibration to evaluate the performance and temporal evolution of the flight instrument
• Develop new algorithms for HRC trend analysis
• Conduct scientific research in high energy astrophysics and extragalactic astronomy
• Write observing proposals to gain access to international observatories
• Contribute to the intellectual environment of the Chandra X-ray Center and SAO
• Work as part of a team.

We will only accept applications online for this position.

Applicants will be required to submit the names, addresses, email addresses, and telephone numbers of three professional references.

To view the complete vacancy announcement and online application procedures, please visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/GetJob/ViewDetails/447459700