The Finnish Centre for Astronomy with ESO (FINCA) and the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Turku is seeking 1-2 postdoctoral researchers to conduct research on interacting supernovae, in particular 2D/3D radiation-hydrodynamic simulations using high-performance computing (HPC) and comparison to observational data. The positions are fixed-term for two years and start immediately, preferably no later than 1 May 2026.

The University of Turku (UTU) is a world-class multidisciplinary research university which offers interesting challenges and a unique vantage point to national and international research and education. The Finnish Centre for Astronomy with ESO (FINCA) is a national research institute in Finland, with its headquarters within the UTU campus. Turku is an affordable, pleasant city to live in, located in southwest Finland where the weather is temperate and transport connections are good via Helsinki, Stockholm, and Copenhagen. FINCA takes care of Finnish co-operation with the European Southern Observatory (ESO), and practises and co-ordinates multi-wavelength astronomical research with all Finnish universities in the field, and participates in researcher training.

Our Stellar Explosions research group at UTU is actively pursuing various supernova/transients projects using mainly the ESO facilities and the Nordic Optical Telescope (NOT). UTU is also a consortium member in several instrumentation projects, most notably the wide-band spectrographs the Son of X-Shooter (SOXS) at the ESO NTT and the NOT Transient Explorer (NTE) at the NOT, with guaranteed future observing time. UTU is a co-owner of the NOT, a member of the Gravitational-Wave Optical Transient Observer (GOTO), and two ESO Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) instrument consortia MICADO and MOSAIC.

Project context and job description

The postdoctoral researcher(s) will be working at UTU as part of a research project funded by the Research Council of Finland: "Radiation-hydrodynamic simulations of interacting supernovae", within a Finland-Japan special collaboration scheme with partners from Japan including University of Tokyo, Kyoto University, Yamagata University, and National Astronomical Observatory of Japan. The project aims to simulate time-evolving supernova-CSM interaction with varying physical parameters, and construct grids of photometry, spectroscopy, and polarimetry based on the radiative output, to be compared with actual observational data. Candidates with observational expertise are also encouraged to apply as the project requires working closely with observational data, with a component of new observations including those to be conducted using SOXS.

Our research group had recently started a pathfinder HPC project on interacting supernova simulations using the LUMI (Large Unified Modern Infrastructure) supercomputer, located in Kajaani, Finland, which is the flagship supercomputer of the European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) and in the top 10 fastest supercomputers globally. One postdoctoral

 researcher is expected to use LUMI to follow up on this pathfinder project and expand the simulations both physically and computationally, by including wider supernova-CSM parameter sets, AI and machine learning techniques, and GPU programming.

 The simulation results will be compared to observational data obtained using facilities worldwide including ESO and NOT.

Who we are looking for

A successful applicant needs to

•  have the ability to conduct independent research work
• possess good collaboration skills
• be fluent in the English language
• hold a doctoral degree in astronomy or related fields

Prioritized applicants are expected to

• have a strong experience in hydrodynamic simulations and radiation transfer, preferably with interest in applying novel computational techniques, in order to optimize the computations
• experience with supernovae/transients and observations is an advantage for the first (theory) position, and a requirement for the second (observational) position

The position(s) will be based in Finland, with significant travel plans to Japan to work with the collaborators. If necessary, the selected applicant(s) will spend several weeks around the beginning of the employment period in Japan to learn the initial process of the simulations. The selected applicant(s) may also be involved in related computational activities done by the Japanese partners.

The fixed-term position starts as soon as possible, preferably by 1 May 2026, and will last for two years. There is a possibility for an extension in Finland (up to 6-12 months), or Japan (contingent on the availability of funds and applicant’s interest in sending funding applications).

We value collegiality and promote equality, diversity, and inclusivity. We encourage all qualified applicants with different backgrounds to apply for our open positions.