Astronomy Group

Location:  Highfield Campus
Salary:   £32,348 to £39,745 Per annum
Full Time Fixed Term until 30th September 2024
Closing Date:  Thursday 08 September 2022
Interview Date:   To be confirmed
Reference:  1936422WF

You will join the Space Environmental Physics ground at the University of Southampton in the area of space plasma physics, You will work on a project studying the ability of solar wind transients to drive magnetic reconnection and turbulence within the transition layer of Earth’s bow shock. You will be exploring these fundamental shock processes with hybrid and fully kinetic particle-in-cell plasma simulations using the University of Southampton’s Iridis 5 supercomputing cluster. There is also potential to seek supporting observations from NASA’s Magnetospheric Multiscale mission.

To be successful, you will have or be close to being awarded a PhD or equivalent professional qualifications and experience in space plasma physics or another relevant research area along with demonstrable ability to conduct original research as evidenced, for example, by the generation of peer-reviewed publications. 

The Space Environment Physics group forms part of the Astronomy group at Southampton. The two groups have wide-ranging international collaborations involving large ground-based facilities (e.g. EISCAT, SuperDARN, LSST, 4MOST) and space missions (Cluster, MMS, THEMIS, INTEGRAL, NuStar, Astrosat). The Space Environment Physics group also has a strong interest in auroral observations; we have state-of-the-art optical instruments situated in the Arctic, which are used to study magnetosphere-ionosphere interactions. We are part of the School of Physics & Astronomy; 100% of the school’s research was rated world leading or internationally excellent for its impact on society in the last Research Excellence Framework, and the University of Southampton is in the top 1% of world universities and the top 10 of the UK’s research-intensive universities. 

As a school, we are committed to all of our staff achieving a healthy work-life balance, with flexible working hours and onsite childcare facilities. Committed to tackling gender inequality, we are Athena SWAN silver award recognised. We are particularly determined to address the under-representation of women in Physics and Astronomy, so we are delighted to have been awarded Project Juno Champion status. With a generous benefits package that includes a contributory pension scheme, competitive holiday allowance, subsidised health and fitness facilities, a cycle-to-work scheme and a range of discounts, this is a place where you are sure to excel.

The salary is in the range £32,348 - £ 39,745 per annum, and is dependent on experience. The post is available immediately. Informal enquires are very welcome, and should be directed to Dr Imogen Gingell (i.l.gingell@soton.ac.uk).

 The position is funded by Dr Imogen Gingell’s Royal Society University Research Fellowship. This is a fixed-term position due to funding restrictions.

Useful links:

Physics & Astronomy at Southampton http://www.phys.soton.ac.uk

Research at Southampton http://www.phys.soton.ac.uk/research

Space Environment Physics http://space.soton.ac.uk

Application Procedure:

You should submit your completed online application form at https://jobs.soton.ac.uk. The application deadline will be midnight on the closing date stated above. If you need any assistance, please call Jane Sturgeon (HR Recruitment Team) on +44 (0) 23 8059 4043 or email recruitment@soton.ac.uk  Please quote reference 1936422WF on all correspondence

Applications for Research Fellow positions will be considered from candidates who are working towards or nearing completion of a relevant PhD qualification.  The title of Research Fellow will be applied upon successful completion of the PhD.  Prior to the qualification being awarded the title of Senior Research Assistant will be given.