AusSRC Senior Project Scientist
The Curtin Institute of Radio Astronomy is seeking to appoint the Senior Project Scientist for the Australian SKA Regional Centre.
- Continuing contract, full time (part time considered, min 0.8 FTE)
- Easily accessible location, salary packaging, and end of trip facilities
About us
The Curtin Institute of Radio Astronomy (CIRA) is a multi-disciplinary research institute engaged in a range of projects involving or motivated by radio astronomy. CIRA’s activities draw together academic research and professional staff from a variety of science, engineering, and computing disciplines to tackle unique and demanding challenges in radio astronomy. CIRA is the lead organisation and operator of the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA), half of the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR), a member of the Australian SKA Regional Centre Joint Venture, and a key participant in the international SKA project.
CIRA celebrates diversity and is an equal opportunity employer. We encourage applications from all cultures, races, nationalities, genders, identities, and abilities meeting the requirements outlined in this role, and are committed to preserving our principles of equitable and inclusive work and study environments.
The Australian SKA Regional Centre (AusSRC)
The Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO) is an intergovernmental organisation tasked with building and operating the world’s largest radio telescopes. In order to fully exploit the scientific output of the immense amount of data flowing from the telescopes, the SKAO is working with science communities across the world through SKA Regional Centres (SRCs), which are nationally lead hubs that form the basis of a global compute and science support infrastructure.
The Australian SKA Regional Centre (AusSRC) is Australia’s portion of this international network and has been funded – by the Australian Government through the Department of Industry, Science, and Resources (DISR) – $63 million from FY 2022/23 to 2030/31, to establish and build capability to support the Australian and international SKA science communities, thereby ushering in the next era of astronomical discovery and advanced data processing.
For the next few years of the AusSRC program, the primary focus will be on facilitating and enhancing the scientific output of Australian SKA Precursors: the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) and the Australian SKA Pathfinder (ASKAP). Working with science teams as well as local resource providers, the AusSRC will help to develop scalable post-processing and data analysis strategies and automated workflows that could eventually be applied to data from the SKA telescopes. Effort will also be directed to establishing and prototyping various aspects of the international SRC Network, including data distribution and archiving frameworks, operational requirements and pipelines, and user interfaces.
Your new role
The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), Curtin University, Pawsey Supercomputing Centre, and The University of Western Australia (UWA) are the four foundation partners formally collaborating to support and develop the AusSRC into a long-term national facility. We are now seeking personnel for key leadership roles that will guide and expand the AusSRC beyond its Design Study / prototype phase. The role of Senior Project Scientist will be employed by Curtin University, line managed by the CIRA Executive Director. Functional management of day-to-day activities of this role will be the responsibility of the AusSRC Director.
Responsibilities:
- Work as one of the senior personnel in the AusSRC management team, providing vision and leadership for the overall program and an individual team of 5-10 personnel;
- Liaise with scientists and science teams from MWA and ASKAP to determine project requirements and refine development objectives;
- Assist with the science project selection process based on requirements and goals from the SKAO and the international SRC Network;
- Coordinate and support user systems and services including the provision of suitable community training tools and events;
- Participate in the development and verification of the international SRC Network and SKA Science Data Archive, particularly focusing on UX/UI requirements to ensure users are able to access the global network to perform data analysis and produce publishable scientific results;
- Conduct independent research utilising SKA and precursor telescopes; and
- Establish links, develop strategies and collaborative projects with Australian science teams and research projects that can assist with achieving the above goals.
If you have any queries in relation to the requirements of the role please contact Dr Karen Lee-Waddell, AusSRC Director at [email protected]
Alternatively, call the Curtin Institute of Radio Astronomy and the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research Phone: (+61) 08 9266 4669.
To learn more about CIRA, please visit the below websites:
www.astronomy.curtin.edu.au
www.icrar.org
www.mwatelescope.org
www.skatelescope.org
https://aussrc.org
Join us!
Your application should include a cover letter, your CV and separate document addressing the selection criteria (noted below) to allow us to assess your suitability for this role.
Essential Criteria:
- A doctorate in a relevant discipline area such as physics, astronomy, or computer sciences and work experience in a related field;
- Experience leading science research teams with an understanding of astronomy and/or radio telescopes;
- Good motivational skills and strong organisational skills; and
- The ability to communicate openly, effectively, and respectfully with personnel, stakeholders, and external agencies in the interests of good business practice, collaboration, and enhancement of the AusSRC’s reputation.
Desirable Criteria:
- A record of successful leadership and management of teams, promoting diversity and developing an inclusive, high-performing culture, including recruitment, capability development and performance management; and
- Experience with low frequency radio telescopes and data products.
Applications close: Sunday 8th October 2023 10PM AWST
Applicants should note that prior to appointment, you will need to have a current National Police Records check, and undergo character, integrity, and reference checks. Please note that this position may be subject to a WA state government vaccination mandate. If requested, you will be required to provide evidence of your vaccination status prior to employment.
We encourage non-Australian citizens/residents to apply however you will require work rights in Australia that match the tenure of this role, and you must be willing to relocate to Perth, Western Australia for the duration of the position. Visa sponsorship and relocation support may be considered for the preferred candidate.
If you have any queries in relation to the application process, please contact our careers team at [email protected].
Disclaimer
Curtin reserves the right at its sole discretion to withdraw from the recruitment process, not to make an appointment, or to appoint by invitation, at any time. We reserve the right to remove the advert earlier than the date on the advert.
