Computer Engineer

Summary

The Submillimeter Array (SMA), located on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, is a pioneering radio-interferometer designed for astronomical observations in the major submillimeter atmospheric windows. Its eight antennas are equipped with superconducting mixer receivers operating in the 200 - 400 GHz frequency range.

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Duties

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• Duties listed at Full Performance Level GS-14.
• Design, develop, and maintain
  
  monitoring and control systems for
  
  observatory operations which are
  
  primarily written in C and running
  
  on Linux and Unix like systems
• Modify observatory control tools
  
  to improve system stability,
  
  robustness, automated fault
  
  detection
• Design, develop, maintain, and
  
  enhance the SMA-X message-passing
  
  interface using Redis to support
  
  communication between distributed
  
  observatory software components.
• Lead systems-level software design
  
  and implementation of the SMA
  
  upgrade roadmap to improve
  
  observing capacity, operational
  
  efficiency, and overall system
  
  performance
• Lead the development of next generation data formats and
  
  software tools to support
  
  interoperability and joint analysis
  
  with other observatories, including
  
  ALMA and NOEMA
• Lead the adoption and
  
  implementation of software
  
  engineering best practices, including
  
  version control, code reviews, CI/CD,
  
  automated testing, and GitHub-based
  
  development workflows.
• Establish and maintain standardized
  
  repository structures, coding
  
  standards, data-sharing protocols,
  
  APIs, build systems, deployment
  
  procedures, and development tools.
• Perform other related duties as assigned.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• May be required to pass a Pre-employment Background Investigation
• May be required to serve a one year probationary period
• Must maintain a Bank Account for Direct Deposit/Electronic Transfer
• U.S. Citizenship is required
• Must file Confidential Statement of Employment and Financial Interests

Qualifications

Basic Requirements:

A. Degree: Engineering. To be acceptable, the program must: (1) lead to a bachelor's degree in a school of engineering with at least one program accredited by ABET; or (2) include differential and integral calculus and courses (more advanced than first-year physics and chemistry) in five of the following seven areas of engineering science or physics: (a) statics, dynamics; (b) strength of materials (stress-strain relationships); (c) fluid mechanics, hydraulics; (d) thermodynamics; (e) electrical fields and circuits; (f) nature and properties of materials (relating particle and aggregate structure to properties); and (g) any other comparable area of fundamental engineering science or physics, such as optics, heat transfer, soil mechanics, or electronics.

OR

B. Combination of education and experience college-level education, training, and/or technical experience that furnished (1) a thorough knowledge of the physical and mathematical sciences underlying engineering, and (2) a good understanding, both theoretical and practical, of the engineering sciences and techniques and their applications to one of the branches of engineering. The adequacy of such background must be demonstrated by one of the following:

1. Professional registration or licensure Current registration as an Engineer Intern (EI), Engineer in Training (EIT)1, or licensure as a Professional Engineer (PE) by any State, the District of Columbia, Guam, or Puerto Rico. Absent other means of qualifying under this standard, those applicants who achieved such registration by means other than written test (e.g., State grandfather or eminence provisions) are eligible only for positions that are within or closely related to the specialty field of their registration. For example, an applicant who attains registration through a State Board's eminence provision as a manufacturing engineer typically would be rated eligible only for manufacturing engineering positions.

2. Written Test Evidence of having successfully passed the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE)2 examination or any other written test required for professional registration by an engineering licensure board in the various States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico.

3. Specified academic courses Successful completion of at least 60 semester hours of courses in the physical, mathematical, and engineering sciences and that included the courses specified in the basic requirements under paragraph A. The courses must be fully acceptable toward meeting the requirements of an engineering program as described in paragraph A.

4. Related curriculum Successful completion of a curriculum leading to a bachelor's degree in an appropriate scientific field, e.g., engineering technology, physics, chemistry, architecture, computer science, mathematics, hydrology, or geology, may be accepted in lieu of a bachelor's degree in engineering, provided the applicant has had at least 1 year of professional engineering experience acquired under professional engineering supervision and guidance. Ordinarily there should be either an established plan of intensive training to develop professional engineering competence, or several years of prior professional engineering-type experience, e.g., in interdisciplinary positions. (The above examples of related curricula are not allinclusive.)

Specialized Experience:

In addition to the Basic Requirements, applicants must have specialized experience. Grade 14: To qualify for the Grade 14 level, applicants must possess at least one year of specialized experience (Federal or other) equivalent to the GS-13 level that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform the duties of this position. This specialized experience must include a minimum of 10 years of professional expertise in developing, maintaining, and optimizing software for scientific operations, including real-time and user-facing aspects, for a world-class observatory. Qualified candidates will have extensive experience in the programmatic control of antennas, telescopes, correlators, and associated high-precision instrumentation, ensuring the seamless integration and performance of complex astronomical research systems.

This position has a mandatory education requirement; you must furnish a copy of your transcript of college work completed (unofficial copy is acceptable) or a copy of your degree certificate. Non-submission may result in you being rated ineligible for the position.

Applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Education

Please refer to Qualifications Section.

Additional information

Veterans Employment Opportunities Act (VEOA): If you are applying for a VEOA appointment, you must be a veteran and must be honorably separated and either a preference eligible or have substantially completed 3 or more years of active service. ("Active Service" under this law means active duty in a uniformed service and includes full-time training duty, annual training duty, full-time National Guard duty, and attendance, while in the active service, at a school designated as a service school by law or by the Secretary concerned.) A veteran who is released under honorable conditions shortly before completing a 3-year tour is also eligible.

Noncompetitive Appointment Authorities: The following links contain information on the eligibility requirements to be considered under a noncompetitive appointing authority:

• • Primary Appointing Authorities for Career and Career-Conditional Appointments
  • Hiring Authorities for Veterans
  • People with Disabilities
  • The Smithsonian does not pay relocation expenses.
  • A recruitment bonus may be paid.
  • The Smithsonian Institution is an equal opportunity employer. Additional information can be found on our website at (

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Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.