Observatory Director

Las Cumbres Observatory (LCO) invites applications for the Observatory Director, who will be responsible for the scientific, operational, engineering, and financial management of the institution, including fund-raising. LCO is a private, non‑profit 501(c)(3) corporation based in Santa Barbara, California.

The Las Cumbres Observatory was originally designed as a rapid follow‑up facility for the Vera

C. Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST). The LSST is expected to begin imminently. The majority of LCO time is allocated to large, coherent science programs ranging in size from a few hundred to a few thousand hours of observing time per semester. These Key Projects include neutron star mergers identified by their gravitational wave signatures; studies of supernovae and other exploding transient sources;

obtaining a census of black hole and exoplanet masses from microlensing; understanding the early evolutionary phases of exoplanet formation; transiting exoplanets; AGN monitoring; evolution of massive stars; and investigating the nature of asteroids and comets, and participating in planetary defense missions to help protect the Earth.

LCO’s global robotic network comprises 27 telescopes with unique capabilities in time domain astrophysics. The sites are distributed in longitude around the world to provide 24‑hour coverage on any accessible target. The network includes the two 2‑meter Faulkes Telescopes at Haleakala, Hawaii, and Siding Spring, Australia, thirteen 1‑meter telescopes at six sites, and twelve 0.35‑meter telescopes at six sites. All the telescopes except the 1m in Israel have optical imagers.

The 2‑meter telescopes also have robotic low‑resolution (FLOYDS) spectrographs. At four sites, high‑resolution (NRES) spectrographs are fed by fibers from the 1‑meter telescopes. The entire network operates as a single integrated observatory, driven by a scheduler that can optimally reschedule the entire network every few minutes.

In addition to the core scientific goals, LCO is committed to education and expanding scientific literacy. LCO’s flagship education program is the Global Sky Partners that supports 35‑40 independent education programs around the world that can utilize LCO telescope time to achieve their goals. LCO is developing tools that can expand the reach of LCO into classrooms.

LCO has a substantial endowment. It is also supported by a combination of grants from private foundations and governmental organizations, including some of its scientific partners. Additional income comes from sales of network time for scientific research and philanthropic donations. A critical part of the Director’s responsibility is continuing to attract these resources.

LCO is located in close proximity to the University of California, Santa Barbara, and the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics. LCO also maintains close relationships with a number of institutions worldwide.

The Observatory Director will guide the future direction of LCO, maintaining it as a world‑leading scientific institution. This includes overseeing a series of key scientific projects with partner institutions to exploit the unique capabilities of the network, and managing a scientific, engineering, and administrative staff of approximately 35 people worldwide. Other duties include oversight of the organization’s budget and sustained efforts to raise funding to support operations and further development.

• A PhD in astronomy, astrophysics, or a related field;
• Involvement in frontier scientific research;
• A demonstrated ability to inspire and guide a team of scientists, engineers, technicians, and administrative support personnel;
• 5 years or more of functional experience at an observatory, or other major scientific research facility;
• Several years of program management experience, with responsibility for budget planning and administration;
• Demonstrated success leading fundraising and development;
• Prior experience working collaboratively with other institutions.

The Observatory Director position will report to the LCO Board of Directors. The expected range for this position is $275,000 to $325,000. An…