The Hartebeesthoek Radio Astronomy Observatory (HartRAO) is located 60km West of Johannesburg, South Africa. It is a National Facility of the National Research Foundation (NRF).
The 26m radio telescope operates in multiple bands from 18 cm to 1.3 cm. It is equipped for astronomical and geodetic VLBI and single-dish radiometry, spectroscopy and pulsar timing. A queue-scheduler provides fully automated single-dish observing. The 15m telescope operates at 2.3+8.4 GHz. Current research areas include interstellar masers, pulsars, AGN's and radio supernovae. HartRAO is a member of the European VLBI Network (EVN) and operates with the AT-LBA. HartRAO provides support to the Karoo Array Telescope project (KAT-7 and MeerKAT) as needed. The SKA-SA Project and HartRAO are involved in the establishment of an African VLBI Network through the redevelopment of redundant large satellite antennas as radio telescopes and the building new telescopes. This is a precursor to the implementation of SKA Phase 2 in Africa.
A vacancy of the Operations Astronomer exists at the HartRAO facility. Please visit: our website for more details.
A pool car system is currently in operation to provide transport to and from work. Salary is on the South African market-related scale. The salary package is configurable for individual needs and includes retirement benefits, medical aid, generous leave and sick leave.
