Gaia Vacancies

 

Openings

 

2024-09-11 Opening for a Gaia science operations scientist

Today a job opening has been posted for a Gaia science operations scientist on the ESA Careers website. The deadline for applications is 2 October.

Gaia will end its operational life in the first half of 2025, after which the mission’s post-operations phase will begin. Four highly successful data releases (DRs) have been achieved so far, all of which were major, transformational events for the astronomical world. A fifth release, Gaia DR4, is currently being prepared for publication in 2026, and a final release, Gaia DR5, is expected to conclude the mission by the end of the decade. Gaia has a relatively long post-operations phase of five and a half years, reflecting the complexity of turning the basic observation data from 10.5 years of science operations into legacy data products of the highest quality.

As a Science Operations Scientist, you will be initially assigned to the Gaia mission, under the direct responsibility of the Mission Manager in the Mission Management and Science Operations Division within SCI-S. The role will later evolve into that of a Science Operations Scientist for an operational mission or mission in development.

Full details of this job opening can be found here.

 

ESA funding sources
Research Fellowships
ESA's Postdoctoral Research Fellowship programme is aimed at providing young scientists and engineers, holding a doctorate or the equivalent, with the means of doing research in space science and space applications. The Fellowships are open to nationals of ESA Member States and Canada (associated member). Fellows are hosted at one of the ESA establishments. All Fellowships in ESA's Science Support Office (SRE-S) at ESTEC belong to this category. More details are available from the Research Fellowship website.
Young Graduate Trainees
ESA's Young Graduate Trainee (YGT) programme offers recently graduated men and women, a one-year non-renewable training contract designed to give valuable work experience and to prepare for future employment in the space industry and/or research. More details are available from the ESA website.
Student placements
ESA's Internship Programme assists young people within its Member States interested in space and related areas. It helps them to meet their university requirements to carry out an internship as part of their degree course, and promotes their academic and professional development by placing them under the guidance of experienced professionals. More details are available from the ESA website.
 

General funding sources
European Commission: The Marie Curie Actions
In the Framework Programme of the Human Resources and Mobility initiative the European Commission provides funding to researchers and research organisations with a view to promoting new skills and participation in multinational research teams. More details on eligability and application procedures are available on the Marie Curie Actions website.
European Researcher's Mobility Portal
This web portal links to a full range of organisations offering training, mobility and career development opportunities for researchers across Europe. A special section is devoted to Fellowships and Grants.