Application Developer

Caltech is a world-renowned science and engineering institute that marshals some of the world''s brightest minds and most innovative tools to address fundamental scientific questions. We thrive on finding and cultivating talented people who are passionate about what they do. Join us and be a part of the diverse Caltech community.

Job Summary

NExScI at Caltech/IPAC has an opening for an Application Developer with a strong background in Unix software development to join the Keck Observatory Archive (KOA) development team. Come be a part of the team that is helping astronomers and data scientists all over the world access and explore the rich data sets available at KOA. NExScI (nexsci.caltech.edu) provides archive services, community support, science operations, and analysis tools related to the discovery and characterization of planets beyond our solar system (exoplanets) using data from observatories in space and on the ground.

You will work with a vibrant team of scientists and developers to prepare for t 2030s when Keck Observatory Archive to ingest and serve massive and complex new data sets delivered by new instruments. This work is part of a broader program to upgrade and modernize the archive infrastructure and provide new user services that respond to the rapid changes in the science analysis landscape.

Essential Job Duties

As a NExScI Application Developer, you will work with the engineering and scientific team members to develop systems that serve data to archive users. The work will, in part, involve exploring the use of agentic AI to deliver these systems:

• Support the development of new query infrastructures and end user services that offer fast access to complex data sets.
• Extending the archive infrastructure to ingest and organize scientific data into the archive.
• Automating and improving the management of our development environment through improved CI/CM processes within the GitHub repository.
• Implement systems for software library and OS version controls.
• Implement logging and metrics for reporting and status monitoring.
• Streamline deployment of software into test and production environments, through continuous integration, and troubleshoot runtime issues.

Basic Qualifications

If you have the following in your background, then we want to hear about your interest in joining our team:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related field, and a minimum of four years of relevant professional or academic experience in modern software engineering.
• Expertise in Python, Linux/UNIX environments, and shell scripting.
• Proficiency in AI/ML and experience with modern development and deployment tools, including Docker, Kubernetes, and Jenkins.
• Knowledge of configuration management practices and tools such as Git/GitHub and Jira.
• Strong communication, interpersonal, and teamwork skills, with the ability to work effectively in collaborative environments.

Preferred Qualifications

These additional qualifications may give you a strong start, though we still encourage you to apply even if you don't have all of them:

• Master's degree in Astronomy, Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Information Sciences, or a related field.
• Experience with web server administration, operations, and cloud services.
• Expertise in AI/ML, databases, and SQL.
• Experience with Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and modern cloud-based development environments.

Required Documents

• Full resume
• Cover letter
• Contact information for three professional references

Life at IPAC

People choose to work at IPAC for many reasons, and the casual, employee-centric culture often leads to fulfilling, long-term careers and positive relationships. Caltech's benefits program offers a quality, competitive benefits package that is affordable for you and the Institute. We also offer a 403(b) defined contribution plan to eligible staff as well as a Voluntary Retirement Savings (TDA) Plan. IPAC staff have access to the Institute's facilities, including the athletic center, libraries, on-site daycare, professional development and enrichment classes, and Athenaeum club membership.