Weekly Working Hours: 37
Fixed Term Contract: End Date: 18 months from start date
Welsh Language: Not Applicable
Job Description:
About the Role
The position is initially being offered for 18 months, however an extension beyond this date will be considered if external project funding allows nearer the time.
About the Role
This is an exciting opportunity to work on a joint European Space Agency (ESA) and Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) mission that will launch in early 2026. The role is initially for 18-months; an extension beyond this date will be considered if external project funding allows nearer the time. The mission is planned with a nominal 3-years in-orbit, with an increasing requirement for detector optimisation and calibration as the mission progresses due to the damage that the detector will receive in the space radiation environment.
The Centre for Electronic Imaging (CEI) is a research centre based within the School of Physical Sciences at the Open University (OU). The CEI is a collaboration between the OU and Teledyne e2v (T-e2v), a world-leading manufacturer of scientific and industrial image sensors. The CEI is dedicated to conducting research into advanced imaging technologies for science applications and conducts its research in collaboration with many universities, agencies and companies including the UK Space Agency (UKSA), European Space Agency (ESA), NASA and T-e2v.
One such mission is the joint ESA –CAS Solar Magnetospheric Ionospheric Link Explorer (SMILE), due to launch in early 2026, which will study the interaction between the Earth’s magnetosphere-ionosphere system and the solar wind on a global scale. The CEI is part of the SMILE Soft X-ray Imager (SXI) consortium and has been responsible for the testing, modelling and verification of the performance of the mission-critical detector (CCD) used in the SMILE SXI instrument. As the post-launch phase of operations approaches, the CEI will continue to lead on detector performance monitoring, in-orbit optimisation and vital calibration activities which will ultimately maximise the science return of the instrument.
We are seeking to appoint an enthusiastic individual to join the CEI SMILE project team as a Detector Scientist. The role holder will be engaged in many aspects of the in-orbit operations in collaboration with the instrument leads at University of Leicester (UoL), including development, planning and execution of CCD calibration, managing device anomalies, monitoring performance, and optimisation of operations. Alongside analysis of in-orbit data, the role holder will run and maintain the CEI’s CCD ground test system, replicating any device anomalies or performance modifications in the laboratory to better understand and improve in-flight performance.
The successful candidate will be trained by the team as necessary to enable them to work with the CEI SMILE project team on the maintenance and operation of the CCD camera test system, including the associated data acquisition and analysis software. Results from the analysis of in-orbit data and the ground-based CCD testing will be used to optimise their performance in the SMILE flight camera and provide experimental data to support in-orbit operations.
The role holder will also attend regular project meetings and conferences, deliver progress reports and interface with team members and external scientists and engineers from theUoL, Mullard Space Science Laboratory (MSSL), UKSA and ESA. In addition, the role holder will have the opportunity to be involved in a variety of other research projects across the CEI, including other space missions and mission concepts for ESA (e.g. Euclid, Theseus, X-ray Interferometry) and NASA (e.g. the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope).
Key Responsibilities
Skills and Experience
Essential:
Desirable:
Essential Requirements
To apply for this role please submit the following;
You will need to have your CV and Supporting Statement ready ahead of submitting the electronic application.
Next Steps
Interview date: Likely to be W/C 28 July via MS Teams.
Candidates will be notified as soon as possible after the closing date whether they have been shortlisted for interview.
Work location
This role is contractually aligned to our Milton Keynes office and it is expected that attendance on our Milton Keynes campus will be required on a daily basis as this is a laboratory based position.
Flexible working
We are open to discussions about flexible working. Whether it’s a job share, part time, compressed hours or another working arrangement. Please reach out to us to discuss what may work for you and the role.
For informal enquiries about this position, please contact David Hall at david.hall@open.ac.uk
The Open University is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion which is reflected in our mission to be open to people, places, methods and ideas. We aim to foster a diverse and inclusive environment so that all in our OU community can reach their potential. We recognise that different people bring different perspectives, ideas, knowledge, and culture, and that this difference brings great strength. We strive to recruit, retain and develop the careers of a diverse pool of students and staff, and particularly encourage applications from all underrepresented groups. We also aspire to make The Open University a supportive workplace for all through our policies, services and staff networks.
Closing Date: 20 July 2025
Location: | Milton Keynes |
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Salary: | £38,249 to £55,755 |
Hours: | Full Time |
Contract Type: | Fixed-Term/Contract |
Placed On: | 27th June 2025 |
Closes: | 20th July 2025 |
Job Ref: | 867 |
Type / Role:
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