Postdoctoral Research Positions at Penn State Center for Exoplanets & Habitable Worlds

The Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics and the Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds (CEHW) at Penn State invite applications for one or more Postdoctoral Researcher positions. Successful applicants will work with CEHW faculty on theoretical, observational, and/or instrumentation projects.  We are particularly interested in applicants interested in contributing to: (1)  planning, execution, analysis and science for planet surveys such as the near-infrared RV survey being conducted by the Habitable Zone Planet Finder on the 10m Hobby-Eberly telescope to discover planets around M dwarfs and/or the high-precision RV survey of solar-type stars being conducted with the NEID instrument on the WIYN 3.5m telescope; (2) improving technology, algorithms, and data analysis to mitigate stellar activity; (3)  precursor science for the Habitable Worlds Observatory using NEID and/or HPF; (4) characterization of the atmospheres and surfaces of exoplanets using JWST; (5) the search for extraterrestrial intelligence and 6) pushing forward instrumentation and techniques for precision spectroscopy and radial velocity to enable detection of terrestrial mass planets using existing instruments, as well as development of new instrumentation and experiments.

The successful applicant will contribute to a team of students and Ph.D. researchers, have opportunities to pursue independent research, and contribute to the vibrant scientific and public outreach efforts of the department. The successful applicant will have access to a variety of resources and collaborations available in CEHW, which includes faculty from the Departments of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Geosciences, and Meteorology, and is part of Penn State Planetary, a Consortium for Planetary and Exoplanetary Science and Technology. We welcome applications proposing connections to our sister centers, Penn State's Astrobiology Research Center, Extraterrestrial Intelligence Center, and Planetary System Science Center.

Applicants should have a Ph.D. in Astronomy, Physics, Planetary Science, Statistics, or a related field prior to the start date. The position start date is flexible. Review of applications will begin January 4th and continue until all positions are filled. Applications received by January 3, 2026, will receive full consideration.

This is a term position; length of the term will be discussed during the interview process. Continuation past the term length discussed will be based on university need, performance, and/or availability of funding.

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