What are the working conditions for astronomers?

There are two general places where astronomers are employed:
universities and the national observatories and laboratories. If you
are at a university, teaching is part of your duties, as is
supervising graduate students. At the national observatories, you
don't teach, but you are often responsible for designing and building
new instruments for the telescopes and helping other astronomers when
they come to use the observatory. Both the university and the
national observatory positions are advertised in the same places, and
the application process is much the same. Professional astronomers
spend a lot of time studying data and using computers to do
simulations and large calculations. The accomdations are not
glamourous, but they do the job. I have been talking here about
professional astronomy, where you paid to do forefront research.
There are many other ways to enjoy astronomy. Many people have their
own small telescopes and study the night sky that way. They are often
the first to find new comets. Other positions include telescope
operators and other positions at the observatories themselves. These
positions do not require as much formal education as a professional
astronomer.

Jennifer Johnson

Back to the Ask An Astronomer page.