PhD Studentship in Astronomy: Studying Massive Star Physics of Blue Supergiants with Asteroseismology (SYMPHONY)

Award Summary

100% fees (home or international) covered, and a minimum tax-free annual living allowance of £18,622 (2023-2024 UKRI rates). Also, significant funding to cover research costs and international conference travel is included.

Overview

A funded 4-year PhD position at Newcastle University on massive star asteroseismology is available through the UKRI Frontier Research Grant SYMPHONY [EP/Y031059/1]. Asteroseismology is the study of stellar pulsations, which telescopes capture as changes in surface brightness and provide constraints on the physics of stellar structure and evolution. The SYMPHONY project targets massive stars that eventually explode as supernovae and leave behind a neutron star or black hole. Forward asteroseismic modelling of a massive star’s pulsations reveals its interior rotation profile, (core) mass and age, which are currently not well known. The successful PhD candidate will utilise data from the NASA TESS mission and combine them with spectroscopy to constrain the physical interiors of single and binary massive stars using asteroseismology. Skills training will include astronomical data analysis and statistical modelling techniques. Experience in photometry, spectroscopy or evolutionary modelling is an asset.

Newcastle is a vibrant multi-cultural city in north-east England with excellent travel connections to London and Edinburgh. International travel for research stays and conferences, and strong research links to KU Leuven, Belgium are foreseen.

Female applicants and those from other minority groups are particularly encouraged to apply.

Number Of Awards

1

Start Date

8th January 2024

Award Duration

4 years

Application Closing Date

20th October 2023

Sponsor

EPSRC 

Supervisors

Dr Dominic Bowman, School of Mathematics, Statistics and Physics

Eligibility Criteria

This PhD studentship is available to all applicants who have a first class or 2:1 Masters degree in Astronomy, Physics or related discipline, or an international equivalent.

Enthusiasm for research, the ability to work independently and in a team, excellent analytical skills, and strong verbal and written communication skills (in English) are also essential requirements.

If English is not your first language, you must have IELTS 6.5 overall (with minimum of 5.5 in all sub-skills).

Home and international applicants (incl. EU) are welcome to apply and if successful will receive a full studentship.

Some international applicants may require an ATAS (Academic Technology Approval Scheme) clearance certificate prior to obtaining their visa.

How To Apply

To apply for a studentship, you must register and apply through the University’s Apply to Newcastle Portal

Once registered select ‘Create Application’ and then ‘Postgraduate’.

Use ‘Search Course’ to identify your programme of study:

• please apply for the 2023 academic year for January 2024 start
• you can search for the ‘Course Title’ using the programme code: 8839F
• please leave the ‘Research Area' field blank
• select ‘PhD Physics Experimental (full time)’ as the programme of study

You will then need to provide the following information in the ‘Further Details’ section:

• a ‘Curriculum Vitae’ (this is a mandatory field) - upload as a PDF document (max 2 sides of A4)
• a ‘Research Statement’ (this is a mandatory field) – upload as a PDF document (max 1 side of A4) describing your previous/ongoing experience and research interests
• the studentship code MSP074 in the ‘Studentship/Partnership Reference’ field 

Contact Details

For further details, please contact:

Dr Dominic Bowman

School of Mathematics, Statistics and Physics

E-mail: dominic.bowman@ncl.ac.uk

Telephone: +44 (0) 191 208 8318

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