Astronomer

The Minor Planet Center (MPC) is the single worldwide location for receipt and distribution of positional measurements of minor planets, comets and outer irregular natural satellites of the major planets. The MPC is responsible for the identification, designation and orbit computation for all of these objects. This involves maintaining databases of observations and orbits, tracking the discoverer of each object, and announcing discoveries to the rest of the world. The MPC operates at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory as part of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA), located in Cambridge, MA.

The MPC would like to hire an astronomer to participate in the processing of observational data submitted to the Minor Planet Center, and participate in research involving orbits, orbital elements, the orbit determination of minor planets and other activities related to the functioning of the Minor Planet Center. 

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Grade 11

1.  Function as part of a team in the processing of orbital elements and related information received by the Minor Planet Center. This includes checking data for both reliability and relevance, consulting with the contributors when appropriate. 
2.  Function as part of a team to use existing procedures for making more sophisticated identifications of newly reported objects with minor planets observed only very perfunctorily in the past, so that new objects can as a result be considered known and their orbits added to the main database. 
3.  Function as part of a team to design and develop modifications to current techniques for the determination of orbits from observations.
4.  Function as part of a team to discover and correct errors in the MPC’s orbital and observational databases.
5.  Function as part of a team to apply new procedures for determining the orbits of minor planets. 
6.  Assist in the preparation of reports on activities by the Minor Planet Center and on related activities by the national and international community.
7.  Assist in the preparation of papers on such analyses and related topics for publication in scientific journals and presentation at scientific meetings.

 
Grade 12
In addition to the duties for the grade 11, the grade 12 Astronomer will: 

1.  Lead efforts to design and develop modifications to current techniques for the determination of orbits from observations.
2.  Lead efforts to discover and correct errors in the MPC’s orbital and observational databases.
3.  Lead efforts to apply new procedures for determining the orbits of minor planets.