Senior Instrumentation Engineer

Background:

The Giant Magellan Telescope is the most powerful ground-based telescope ever engineered. It was designed to push the boundaries of human knowledge and discover the unknown. With unmatched image quality, seven of the world’s largest mirrors will launch our view into the universe to uncover the cosmic mysteries of dark matter, investigate the origins of chemical elements, and search for signs of life on distant exoplanets for the first time.

The 30-meter class telescope is under construction at Las Campanas Observatory in Chile’s Atacama Desert, one of the best locations on Earth to view the heavens. From this unrivaled vantage into the southern sky, the Giant Magellan Telescope will produce the sharpest and most detailed images ever taken of our universe, ten times greater than the famed Hubble Space Telescope and four times the James Webb Space Telescope.

When complete in the late 2020s, the Giant Magellan Telescope will be the largest public-private funded science project in history. The endeavor was founded by an international consortium of leading universities and research institutions representing five countries, and is managed by the GMTO Corporation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Pasadena, California. Our culture is impactful, inclusive, and fearlessly innovative. We solve the most difficult engineering challenges and scientific questions with talented individuals who share a passion for revolutionizing humanity’s knowledge of the universe.

We invite you to join our team and leave your mark on astronomy’s future and beyond.

The Universe Awaits.

Job Summary:
The Senior Instrumentation Engineer will play a key role in the development of the first generation of GMT instruments during their design, construction, and commissioning phases. The successful candidate will be the primary technical point of contact between the instrument development groups and the Project Office.
In addition, the Senior Instrumentation Engineer will provide technical guidance to the instrument teams regarding GMT designs and interfaces, monitor contracted work, manage progress reviews, help to standardize engineering solutions between the instruments, and work with the GMT Systems Engineering team to establish acceptance and commissioning procedures.
The Senior Instrumentation Engineer will also be responsible for write reports and proposals related to instrument development and make presentations to the GMT Science Advisory Committee, at conferences, and at project reviews.
This position will require travel to various GMTO member locations vendor premises, and the GMT site in Chile.

Job Duties:
• Work with the Instrument Manager in guiding the instrument program for GMT.
• Act as the technical point of contact between the instrument groups and the rest of the Project.
• Assist the Instrument Manager in working with the GMTO Contracts/Procurement department to preparing contract documents such as Requests for Proposals, statements of work, technical specifications, and other documents related to the instrument development.
• Monitor the technical progress of instrument teams during all phases of an instrument’s development via regular progress meetings and reviews.
• Monitor instrument assembly, integration, and test activities (at the partner institution site and at the telescope).
• Prepare and deliver presentations at technical reviews and conferences.
• Evaluating cost and schedule estimates for technical feasibility.
• Assist instrument teams in assessing instrument performance on the telescope, maintenance strategies, and operational strategies.
• Assist the instrument and GMT teams in specifying and developing interfaces.
• Support the preparation of integration, test, and commissioning plans in consultation with the instrumentation teams and other systems within the GMT.

Essential Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities:
• M.S. degree in Engineering or related field.
• Minimum of 7 years of post-degree, hands-on experience with the development of astronomical instrumentation on ground-based optical/infrared telescopes.
• Broad technical competency/knowledge in the development of astronomical instrumentation.
• Ability to communicate effectively with diverse groups of scientists, engineers, and managers.
• Excellent organizational, leadership, and project management skills
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Experience creating requests for proposal, statements of work, technical specifications, and evaluation procedures for vendors.
• Experience developing cost and schedule estimates.
• Thorough understanding of the principles of systems engineering.
• Experience creating integration, testing, and commissioning plans,
• Experience developing technical, operational, maintenance, and performance requirements for instruments flowing from higher-level requirements.

Desired Skills, Knowledge, and Abilities:
• Ph.D. in Engineering or related field with 7 years post-degree, hands-on experience with the development of astronomical instrumentation on ground-based optical/infrared telescopes.