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SA Job Announcement

SA Job Announcement

Owned by Josh Walawender
Last updated: Jul 17, 2020 by Luca Rizzi
5 min read

New Draft

 

Staff Astronomer

Are you an astronomer that enjoys working with instruments, data analysis, and loves observing as much as making discoveries?  Do you enjoy working closely with some of the best astronomers in the field? Would you like to join a high-performance team of like-minded scientists responsible for instrumentation and observing support at a renowned astronomical observatory, working with the biggest telescopes on the planet and residing in one of the world’s most uniquely beautiful and diverse locations?

 

All qualified applicants, including women, protected veterans, and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply for the Staff Astronomer position at the W. M. Keck Observatory.

 

The W. M. Keck Observatory (WMKO) on the Big Island of Hawaii operates the world’s two largest optical/infrared telescopes from the summit of Mauna Kea.  The Observatory seeks a Staff Astronomer that is a motivated self-starter, thrives in a team environment, has knowledge of ground-based optical and near-IR observing techniques and instrumentation, has a keen interest in data reduction, data analysis, and who appreciates the chance to work at the cutting edge of discovery in astronomy.

 

The successful applicant will join WMKO’s existing team of Staff Astronomers responsible for assisting visiting observers in using the instruments; maintaining, calibrating, and improving WMKO’s suite of world-class astronomical instrumentation; supporting data reduction; and participating on instrument building teams during development and commissioning of future instruments. The Staff Astronomers work primarily at WMKO headquarters in Waimea, renowned as one of Hawaii’s most livable communities, and travel to the Maunakea summit for occasional work as required. Team members can allocate up to 20% of their time to active astronomical research.

 

While certain key job duties like night support are expected of all Staff Astronomers, the numerous other job duties that exist at WMKO allow each individual to grow and develop within their own area of emphasis.  For example, a Staff Astronomer who has interest and skills in software can focus more towards software development and working with WMKO’s Scientific Software group, while a Staff Astronomer with interest in hardware and instrumentation can focus on hands on instrument work in conjunction with our instrument engineers and technicians. Another field of expertise open to Staff Astronomers is the technology and science of adaptive optics including laser guide star AO. Candidates for this position are encouraged to think about how they might specialize.

 

Required minimum qualifications are a Ph.D. in astronomy, physics, or engineering; relevant experience may be substituted for a degree. The candidate should have an Interest and/or experience with scientific instrumentation as well as experience observing and/or working at an astronomical observatory; Candidates must be capable of working effectively with visiting observers and coordinating multi-disciplinary instrument commissioning and maintenance teams.

 

 

Ideas from Coffee Discussion

  • Make clear that there are desired skills, but that an individual can carve out a path based on their skills and interests. Put in examples of instrument person, software person, etc.

  • Make clear that there are opportunities for advancement and leadership of projects.

  • This draft looks very good. A good fraction of our workload is night support. I think this (working nights on a regular basis) should be explicitly mentioned in the announcement. It might seem obvious that working nights is a requirement, but it is not the same to perform sporadic observations for your own scientific research, which is what the average astronomer would be used to, than to spend nights supporting other astronomers’ observations.

  • I am concerned about “team members expected to dedicate 20% of their time to active astronomical research“. I think it would be more realistic to say “team members can have up to 20% of their time to do astronomical research“.

  • I am not sure we still need a PhD as a requirement. I would say it’s desirable.

Draft Paragraph from Josh

While certain key job duties like night support are expected of all SAs, the numerous other job duties which exist at an observatory allow each individual SA to find their own area of emphasis.  For example, a Staff Astronomer who has interest and skills in software can focus on software development and working with WMKO’s Scientific Software group, while a Staff Astronomer with interest in hardware and instrumentation can focus on hands on instrument work in conjunction with our instrument engineers and technicians.  Candidates for this position are encouraged to think about how they might specialize.



Existing Draft from Randy

Are you an astronomer that enjoys working with instruments, data analysis, and loves observing as much as making discoveries?  Do you enjoy working closely with some of the best astronomers in the field? Would you like to join a high-performance team of like-minded scientists responsible for instrumentation and observing support at a renowned astronomical observatory, working with the biggest telescopes on the planet and residing in one of the world’s most uniquely beautiful and diverse locations?

All qualified applicants, including women, protected veterans, and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply for the Staff Astronomer position at the W. M. Keck Observatory.

The W. M. Keck Observatory (WMKO) on the Big Island of Hawaii operates the world’s two largest optical/infrared telescopes from the summit of Mauna Kea.  The Observatory seeks a Staff Astronomer that is a motivated self-starter, thrives in a team environment, has knowledge of ground-based optical and near-IR observing techniques and instrumentation, has a keen interest in data reduction, data analysis, and who appreciates the chance to work at the cutting edge of discovery in astronomy.

The successful applicant will join WMKO’s existing team of Staff Astronomers responsible for assisting visiting observers in using the instruments; maintaining, calibrating, and improving WMKO’s suite of world-class astronomical instrumentation; supporting data reduction; and participating on instrument building teams during development and commissioning of future instruments. The Staff Astronomers work primarily at WMKO headquarters in Waimea, renowned as one of Hawaii’s most livable communities, and travel to the Mauna Kea summit for occasional work as required. Team members are expected to dedicate 20% of their time to active astronomical research.

Required minimum qualifications are a Ph.D. in astronomy, physics, or engineering; relevant experience may be substituted for a degree. The candidate should have an Interest and/or experience with scientific instrumentation as well as experience observing and/or working at an astronomical observatory; Candidates must be capable of working effectively with visiting observers and coordinating multi-disciplinary instrument commissioning and maintenance teams.

Application

Apply to join a skilled and deeply committed team of professionals who enable exciting and important astronomical discoveries. Submit a cover letter and resume telling us how your background and passion relate to the position.  Cover letters can be addressed to Jeannette Mundon in the Human Resources Office.