JOB VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT
Research Engineer (ACA Control), National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ)
NAOJ announces a Research Engineer position at the NAOJ ALMA Project to work on themaintenance and development of the Atacama Compact Array control software.
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1. Job Title: Research Engineer (ACA Control), one position
2. Division and Location: NAOJ ALMA Project, Mitaka (Japan)
3. Area of Expertise: Software, Radio Astronomy, and Interferometry
4. Job Description:

This position is for a person who is based in Mitaka, at NAOJ Headquarters, and contributes
to the maintenance and development of the Atacama Compact Array (ACA a.k.a. MoritaArray) control software. The successful candidate is expected to take the role of team leaderof the ACA Control team in the future. The ACA is currently composed of twelve 7m antennas
operated as an interferometer, four 12m antennas operated as single-dish telescopes, the ACA
correlator who processes the signals coming from all antennas, and the related electronics andcontrol hardware and software. As the ALMA Project is upgraded in the coming decade, aspart of ALMA2, the backend electronics including correlators will be modified. The successfulcandidate will provide the technical expertise and the leadership to contribute the control
software that guarantees a transition towards the upgraded system. She/he is expected to leadinternational discussion and collaboration in close coordination with the NAOJ ALMA ProjectComputing Manager. Her/his major responsibilities for the first few years are as follows:⚫ maintenance and trouble-shooting of ACA correlator software;⚫ development, maintenance, and trouble-shooting of ACA spectrometer software; and⚫ maintenance of computers and IT devices for the systems above.
To fulfill these responsibilities, she/he is required to have deep expertise in softwaredevelopment. Good knowledge of radio astronomy and radio interferometry will be consideredvaluable assets. She/he is also required to have good communication skills and good English
proficiency to clearly convey Japan’s position in discussions at face-to-face meetings, videoconferences, and teleconferences while establishing and maintaining good relationship with
the Joint ALMA Observatory and North American and European Executive partners. She/heis required to have basic communication skills in Japanese to negotiate with companies inJapan.
5. Terms of Appointment:

The successful candidate should be able to start as soon as reasonably possible after the job
offer has been accepted.
The term of the contract will continue up to the end of the Japanese fiscal year in which theResearch Engineer reaches NAOJ's mandatory retirement age of 65, including a probation
period of six (6) months at the start of the contract.
6. Qualifications:(1) Minimum Educational Requirement: bachelor’s degree or equivalent in computing science,
astronomy or related fields;

(2) Other Requirement: Capability to join, discuss and collaborate in English-speaking teams;
strong interpersonal communication skills and ability to work in a team with diverse
cultural background will be considered important assets for this position.
7. Required Application Materials: (*To be prepared in English. Any other language will not be accepted)(1) A cover letter;(2) A curriculum vitae;(3) Your commitment and plan to fulfill the duties (font size 12pt, max. 5 pages in A4 paper size);(4) A list of publications and conference presentations, including copies of up to 3 contributions;(5) Copy of any National Certification related to the job contents;(6) Contact information of at least 2 people who could provide your recommendation for this position(email address and phone number);(7) Your address (e-mail and phone) for prompt contact and the email address of your current
supervisor or line manager; and(8) At least one reference letter. Note that your current supervisor or line manager cannot be yourreference. Please ask your references to upload the letters directly using the URL indicated in 9
before the application deadline. Applicants are responsible for ensuring that the letters arrive before
the application deadline.
8. Application Deadline: 2022-03-04, 12:00 (Japan Standard Time)
9. Submission:

Applicants are required to apply via the NAOJ Nextcloud on the web. Please access the application form
at the following URL:
https://forms.office.com/r/FHSHubqM8R
After you submit the initial form, you will receive an email showing the URLs for (a) uploading yourapplication documents, and (b) for your reference letters.
Once you get the URL(a) for your application documents, please upload the files corresponding to thedocuments (1) through (7) stated in 7. These files must be in PDF format (max 50MB each, 100MB intotal, at most 10 files).
Please ask your references to upload their letters via the URL(b) you receive for this purpose.
The file name of application documents should be stated applicants name, applied project and position.
If you have any question related to the job description, contact;
Alvaro.Gonzalez_AT_nao.ac.jp (replace _AT_ with @)Alvaro Gonzalez, NAOJ ALMA Project Manager, NAOJ
Subject of e-mail: “Question on JD of Research Engineer (ACA Control) of NAOJ ALMA Project”
If you have any question related to the other items, contact,
E-mail address: apply-ALMA-researcheng20220304_AT_nao.ac.jp (replace _AT_ with @)Subject of e-mail: “Question on Research Engineer (ACA Control) of NAOJ ALMA Project”
10. Labor Conditions:(1) Work Type and Work Hours:
The Discretionary Labor System for Professional Work shall be applied.
(Standard work hours: 38.75 hrs/week, from 8:30 to 17:15 with an hour intermission)(2) Holidays:
Saturdays and Sundays, National Holidays, New Year holidays (December 29th - January 3rd),
Annual paid leave (20days: to be prorated for the first year), Summer holidays (3 days)(3) Social Insurances:

MEXT Mutual Aid Association (health insurance), Employees' Pension Insurance, Employment
Insurance, Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance(4) Remuneration:
Salary: The amount of an annual salary shall be determined based on the school career and job experiencesin accordance with the NINS regulations (NINS, or the National Institutes of Natural Sciences, is an
executive institute that manages NAOJ). The payment will be made monthly in 12 equivalents.
Allowances: Dependent allowance, residential allowance, commutation allowance, and the otherallowances will be paid when the requirements based on the NINS regulations are all filled. The equivalentof the term-end allowance and the diligence allowance shall be included in the annual salary.
Salary Increase: Once a year in accordance with the performance evaluation
Retirement Allowance: Shall be paid
11. Remarks:• Candidates selected in the final short list may be interviewed by the selection committee either via theinternet or face-to-face. The expense for the interview will not be covered by NAOJ.
• If the selection committee deems that there is no qualified candidate for this position, it is possible noone will be selected.
• NINS Employee Regulations shall be applied to this position.
• Smoking is prohibited on the premises excluding designated outdoor smoking areas.
• Policy for Equal Employment Opportunity: Abiding by the Equal Employment Opportunity Act for
Men and Women, NAOJ is committed to the realization of a society with gender equality.
- If two candidates are deemed equal in their performance evaluation, NAOJ will take positive action toemploy women.
- If you have taken a leave(s) such as for maternity, child care, and/or family care, please indicate it in yourcurriculum vitae. We will consider it when assessing your performance.
For further information about NAOJ's efforts to achieve gender equal society, see
https://www2.nao.ac.jp/~open-info/gender-equality/en/• Information submitted in your application documents will not be used for any purpose other than theselection process and for contacting you with necessary notices in connection with the selection. Once theselection process is complete, we will securely dispose of all application documents and personal
information, except for those submitted by the successful candidate.
12. Name of recruiterInter-University Research Institute Corporation, National Institutes of Natural Sciences (NINS), National
Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ)