SKA Program Development Office (SPDO)
System Engineer - Ref: EPS/10489
The 12-person SPDO design team, under the leadership of the Project Manager and the Project Engineer, is responsible for the SKA system design, and is drawing together the technology developments and design work generated within globally distributed SKA projects. Its principal goal is to produce a top-level, costed system design for the SKA by the end of 2012. System Engineering will play a crucial role in producing this design.
The System Engineer will work closely with and support the Project Engineer, who is the overall project technical lead, in the development and analysis of the full spectrum of the SKA’s system level requirements. The System Engineer will furthermore be required to perform and oversee the prioritisation and the translation and mapping of these requirements into a system design within an iterative process involving science, cost and technology trade-offs.
The post holder will be based at the Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics at the University of Manchester, GB, the host for the SPDO in the period 2008-2012. The appointment is full-time until 31 March 2012, with the possibility of an extension, subject to funding availability.
You will have:
- Formal engineering training or equivalent in a relevant field;
- Expert knowledge of system engineering, including contemporary system design techniques and tools;
- Demonstrated system design experience, including previous senior system roles within large projects;
- Experience in forming an effective interface between science and engineering teams;
- Good English oral and written communication skills, willingness to present SPDO work in international and other forums, ability to work closely with regional SKA engineering staff from a variety of cultures, and willingness to travel to the regional centres;
- Willingness to undertake training in the financial, occupational health and safety, equal employment opportunity, and human resource management procedures applicable to the SPDO; and
- Corporate membership of, or eligibility for membership of, recognized national and international engineering institutes.
Application deadline: 12 September 2010.
Tasks, selection criteria and an application form for this position are available via the University of Manchester website.
If you are unable to go online, you can request a hard copy of the details from EPS HR Office, The University of Manchester, Sackville Street Building, Manchester, M60 1QD, UK Tel: +44 (0)161 275 8837; Fax: +44 (0)161 306 4037 or email: eps-hr@manchester.ac.uk. All correspondence should quote reference number EPS/10489.
Further information can be obtained from Kobus Cloete, Project Manager, SKA Program Development Office, email: cloete@skatelescope.org, tel: +44 (0)161 2754081.
If you have not been contacted by 10 October 2010, you should assume that, on this occasion, your application has not been successful. We would, however, like to take this opportunity to thank you for your interest in The University of Manchester.
CSIRO Astronomy and Space Science
Deputy Chief - Astronomy and Space Science
CSIRO Astronomy and Space Science, a new division which operates the Australia Telescope National Facility (ATNF), the Canberra Deep Space Communication Complex (CDSCC) and is building the Australian SKA Pathfinder (ASKAP), is seeking to appoint an outstanding individual to the key leadership role of Deputy Chief.
As a trusted advisor to the Chief and key member of the Executive Team the Deputy will play a key role in the development of a strategic vision for CSIRO’s astronomy and space science portfolio with specific emphasis on positioning Australia to host the Square Kilometre Array. In addition, the appointee will have direct responsibility for a range of activities and capabilities across radio science and engineering, radio astronomy operations, project management and support. The Deputy Chief will also be the interface for various CSIRO corporate functions including finance, human resources, communications and health, safety and environment.
To be considered for this role you will need to have a minimum of 5 years leadership experience in a research or technology based organisation. You will have excellent organisational skills and the ability to think strategically and anticipate and manage problems in a complex and dynamic. The position is available for an initial term of three years, which may be extended by mutual agreement. CSIRO offers a generous remuneration package.
For further information on this opportunity, please go to the job advertisement (Reference Number 2010/555) on the CSIRO Careers Website or alternatively contact Phil Diamond, Chief, Astronomy & Space Science.
The closing date for the advertisement is 4th October 2010.
International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research
PhD Scholarship (EoR Detection)
This scholarship comes with a salary of AU $30,000 p.a. for 3 years, with a possible 6 month extension, and is available to international candidates only.
This PhD project would involve the design and construction of one or more precision horns (and other, smaller, frequency-independent antennas), the design of allied broadband matching and low-noise amplifier systems, the implementation of precise antenna metrology and calibration systems, the development of data acquisition and processing systems in association with an EoR research team, and the visualization, interpretation and presentation of data.
The EoR experimental system would be located at the Murchison Radioastronomy Observatory in Western Australia, with development being undertaken at ICRAR/Curtin in Perth under the supervision of Professor Peter Hall. The project would suit an engineer or physicist with an interest in antennas, RF systems and DSP, with the emphasis between topics being adjustable to cater for individual preferences. For more information contact Prof. Peter Hall. Application deadline: 31 August 2010.
This scholarship comes with a salary of AU $30,000 p.a. for 3 years, with a possible 6 month extension, and is available to international candidates only.
Faint Astronomical Signals from Galaxies
This project will start by focussing on new and archival data from the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope in the Netherlands, which currently has the best backend instrumentation of any similar telescope for conducting this type of observation. This will allow the measurement of the 21cm neutral hydrogen line in galaxies around 2 billion years ago.
The project will later shift to using early data from the Australian SKA Pathfinder, a next-generation radio telescope currently being constructed in Western Australia. Both aspects of the project will be conducted as part of a collaboration between astronomers at ICRAR and at the ASTRON institute in the Netherlands and will require the candidate to spend some of their time in the Netherlands. The project will be based at The University of Western Australia under the supervision of Professor Lister Staveley-Smith. For more information contact Prof. Lister Staveley-Smith. Application deadline: 29 October 2010
Star Formation Connection in Gas-rich Galaxies
Recent observational results on the relationship between the star formation rate and the local gaseous and stellar content of galaxies imply that: (i) galaxy disks maintain a state of critical equilibrium, (ii) the molecular component of the interstellar medium (ISM) forms stars at a surprisingly constant efficiency, and (iii) star formation has a feedback effect on the ISM turbulence which stabilises the disk.
Combined, these results imply that the distribution of star formation within galaxies is largely set by the rotation curve of the galaxy and the mass distribution of the stellar disk. This project will thoroughly test this prediction for a comprehensive selection of galaxies which represent a range of galaxy mass. In addition, the mass distribution of the galaxies will be dissected, resulting in demographics of the parameters describing the structure and angular momentum of the baryons (e.g. stellar disk scale length and central surface brightness) and by deduction, that of the dark halo.
These results will be compared with cosmological simulations with the aim of constraining the input physics of the simulations (such as the nature of dark matter). The project will be based at The University of Western Australia under the supervision of Winthrop Professor Gerhardt Meurer. For more information contact Prof. Gerhardt Meurer. Application deadline: 29 October 2010
Curtin University of Technology, Perth, Australia
Research Fellowships: Applications Open
The Curtin Research Fellowship scheme aims to attract high quality post doctoral researchers with excellent potential for providing future academic and research leadership at the University. It is highly competitive and continues to be amongst the most prestigious fellowship schemes in Australia. Applications are encouraged in the area of astronomy and astrophysics, within the Curtin Institute of Radio Astronomy (CIRA) and the Curtin node of the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR). ICRAR is a Joint Venture between Curtin University and The University of Western Australia. Astronomers at Curtin are involved in a wide range of observational, theoretical and instrument-based projects, primarily in radio astronomy but also at other wavelengths. Curtin University is also a partner in the recently awarded ARC Centre for All-sky Astrophysics (CAASTRO).
The call for applications in 2010, for commencement in 2011, refers to a targeted research-only fellowship with two streams:
- Early Career Researcher Fellowship: Suitably qualified applicants who received their PhD within the last five years.
- Senior Research Fellowship: Suitably qualified applicants with more than five years post-doctoral experience.
Applicants interested in a Fellowship focused on astronomy and astrophysics should contact Prof. Steven Tingay to discuss areas of astrophysics research at Curtin and proposal ideas. For further details regarding applications, see our web pages. Application deadline: 13 September 2010.
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