Senior Research Fellow

The Curtin Institute of Radio Astronomy (CIRA) comprises more than 50 staff and PhD students, primarily focused on radio astronomy research, but also spanning many other aspects of observational astronomy, radio astronomy engineering, applications of high performance computing in astronomy, and astrophysics theory (including simulation).

CIRA comprises one half of the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR) Joint Venture with The University of Western Australia, as well as being a node of both the ARC Centre of Excellence for All-sky Astrophysics (CAASTRO), and its successor, ASTRO-3D. CIRA researchers maintain excellent linkages with these and other national and international groups, and, in addition CIRA has excellent access to the nearby $80M Pawsey Supercomputing Centre.

CIRA is at the forefront of low-frequency radio astronomy research as the manager and operator of the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA; http://www.mwatelescope.org). The MWA is an SKA precursor; it has been fully operational since 2013, undertaking a number of important science programs whose results are contributing to the design process for SKA_LOW (www.skatelescope.org).  It has recently completed a major upgrade phase that involved a doubling of the baseline length, improving both resolution and sensitivity, via the reduced confusion limit.

CIRA has active research groups working in pulsars and fast transients, accretion physics, and low-frequency radio astronomy (primarily continuum surveys and the Epoch of Reionization). The new Senior Research Fellow will join the pulsar astrophysics group, and will also collaborate closely with staff members in the broader group working on fast radio transients.

Your new role

The Curtin Institute of Radio Astronomy (CIRA) seeks a Senior Research Fellow to undertake an independent research program in the field of pulsars and fast transient science, working within the pulsar astrophysics group led by Dr Ramesh Bhat. The proposed research should be aligned with or complementary to existing core research threads, which are focused around the high time resolution capabilities of the MWA and span a broad range of topics in pulsar astrophysics.  These include studies of the pulsar emission mechanism, millisecond pulsars, pulsar polarimetry, and probes of the interstellar medium. The successful applicant will establish her or his own research program in pulsar science, alongside actively contributing to ongoing technical development, particularly in applications related to searching and timing pulsars with the MWA. They will be expected to supervise undergraduate and postgraduate research students, participate in competitive grant applications, and engage in appropriate service or teaching-related activities both within CIRA and the broader University. Active engagement with existing and upcoming major facilities is also encouraged, including but not limited to Parkes, UTMOST, GMRT and MeerKAT. Observational skills and expertise at radio wavelengths, using both single-dish facilities and interferometric arrays, are particularly valuable.

You will bring to the role

• A PhD in a relevant discipline
• Proven knowledge of pulsar or high-time resolution science
• Demonstrated ability to conduct research and publish high-quality papers
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills