Job description
At Lumen Nebula Institute, we push the boundaries of astronomical discovery by turning complex telescope data into meaningful insights. This full-time position is based in Pasadena, CA, with a collaborative, cross-disciplinary team of astronomers, software engineers, and data scientists. You will contribute to cutting-edge research projects and help build scalable data pipelines and analysis tools that accelerate science delivery.
The ideal candidate blends domain knowledge in astronomy with strong software engineering practices, a fluency in Python and data analytics, and a passion for open science and reproducible research. We offer a supportive, inclusive environment, competitive compensation, and opportunities to present findings at conferences and in high-impact journals.
Responsibility
- Design, implement, and maintain end-to-end data pipelines for astronomical survey and time-domain datasets.
- Collaborate with observational astronomers to translate science goals into testable analyses and software features.
- Develop reproducible analysis workflows using Python, Astropy, Jupyter, and Git, including data quality checks.
- Apply machine learning and statistical methods for object classification, anomaly detection, and time-series analysis.
- Optimize performance of large-scale data processing on HPC clusters or cloud environments.
- Build and maintain data products, dashboards, and visualization tools for project teams and outreach.
- Document workflows, contribute to open-source projects, and publish results with rigorous methodology.
Qualification
- PhD or MSc in Astronomy, Astrophysics, Computer Science, or a closely related field.
- Strong Python programming experience and software development practices.
- Experience with astronomical data formats (FITS, HDF5), Astropy, and catalog cross-matching.
- Proficiency with SQL and NoSQL databases; experience building data pipelines.
- Experience in Linux/Unix environments, HPC or cloud-based computing.
- Demonstrated track record in research, publications, or presentations; strong communication skills.
- Ability to work collaboratively in multidisciplinary teams and communicate complex ideas clearly.