Post-doctoral or researcher position in stellar astrophysics

Closing date: July 18, 2025

Applications are invited for a fixed-term researcher position in the Stellar Physics Department of the Astronomical Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences. The successful applicant will work in the team of Dr. Michaela Kraus on modelling of stellar atmospheres and winds of pulsating blue supergiants.

Qualifications:
- PhD in Astronomy, Astrophysics, or a closely related field with a strong background in massive stars, stellar atmospheres, stellar winds and/or stellar pulsations.
- Knowledge in handling non-LTE radiative transfer codes such as CMFGEN or PoWR.
- Ability to work independently and collaboratively in an international research environment.

Application Deadline: July 18, 2025

Submission: by email to sekretariat@asu.cas.cz with the subject POSTDOC - KRAUS
Required application parts (all in PDF):
- cover sheet listing: full name, birth date, nationality, current position, short motivation (½ page max)
- curriculum vitae
- list of publications
- summary of the most significant research results achieved to date and proposed research project (2 pages max in total)
- recommendation letters (to be delivered separately)

Applicants must arrange for a minimum of two recommendation letters to be sent directly to the same electronic address as above. The letters may be issued up to 9 months before the application deadline.

The appointment is initially for one year; an extension until 31 December 2027 is expected upon satisfactory scientific performance. A necessary condition is to satisfy legal requirements for employment in the Czech Republic (EU member state). Salary will be based on the domestic level (cca 1800 EUR/month before taxes plus eventual bonuses; health insurance included). There is a possibility of staff accommodation in Ondrejov or private accommodation can be arranged.

The employment may start as early as September 1st 2025 or based on negotiations, but ideally not later than January 1st, 2026.

The most promising applicants may be invited for an online interview. Once the evaluation process is completed, all applicants will be notified.

Further information:

• http://www.asu.cas.cz for the list of working groups at the Institute. 
• http://www.euraxess.cz for details about the research employment and work conditions in Czech Republic. 
• http://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/comparison.jsp to compare cost of living.

Postdoctoral Position in Asteroid Physics at the Astronomical Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences

Closing date: 2025 September 1st

The Group of Asteroid Physics at the Astronomical Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Ondřejov, Czech Republic, invites applications for a postdoctoral position, which will be open from October 1, 2025 in the scope of the project “Physical and dynamical properties of potentially hazardous asteroids and support to asteroid space missions”funded by the Academy of Sciences within the Praemium Academiae 2024 award.

The successful candidate will work under the leadership of Dr. Petr Pravec (petr.pravec@asu.cas.cz) on physical observations of asteroids and on analysis, modeling and interpretation of the photometric and other data obtained for studied asteroids with the 1.54-m Danish telescope at the La Silla station of the European Southern Observatory, from collaborating stations and from public databases. The possible specific topics include, but are not limited to, characterization of binary and tumbling asteroids, and identification, dynamical and physical studies of separated asteroid pairs and clusters (young asteroid families), or other asteroid-related research aligned with the applicant’s prior expertise. Previous experience of the candidate in some of these research topics is welcome, but is not required. The candidate will work on the observations and their analyses with other members of the Asteroid Physics team, so a collaborative character is required.

Astronomical Institute is a Public Research Institution and the largest professional astronomical organization in the Czech Republic. It is located at Ondřejov Observatory near Prague (see http://www.asu.cas.cz/en/). The Asteroid Physics team has got significant achievements in studies of physical and dynamical properties of asteroids. Among their results are discoveries and characterization of binary asteroids (including the binary system Didymos-Dimorphos that was targeted by NASA’s DART spacecraft in 2022), separated asteroid pairs and clusters, tumbling asteroids (including asteroid Apophis that will make an extremely close approach to Earth in 2029), and modeling asteroid shapes and spins (e.g., asteroid Torifune that will be studied by JAXA’s Hayabusa2# spacecraft in 2026). They look forward to inviting a new postdoc who would further amend their scope in the field of asteroid research.

The appointment is initially for 15 months; an extension for another year (12 months) is expected upon satisfactory scientific performance. Salary will be based on the domestic level (cca 2000 EUR/month before taxes) and it includes health insurance. There is a possibility of institute accommodation in Ondřejov. The starting date of employment is expected to be the 1st of October 2025, but is negotiable.

Successful candidate must hold PhD degree not older than 15 years at the time of start of the employment (in case of maternity leave or long-term illness, these periods are not counted into the limit). Applications can be submitted before finishing PhD, in which case a statement from the supervisor stating the planned date of the defense should be included.

Applications must contain Curriculum Vitae, list of publications, and a specification of the research topic the applicant plans to contribute to. The applications are to be submitted by email to:

sekretariat@asu.cas.cz

Please, arrange for a minimum of two letters of reference to be sent directly to the same electronic address as above. The letters may be issued up to 9 months before the application deadline.

To receive full consideration, the application deadline is the 1st of September 2025 till the end of the day (Prague/Central Europe timezone). The receipt of applications will be acknowledged by email. Once the evaluation process is completed, applicants will be notified about the result. The institute reserves the right not to take any of the candidates.