9 replies to this topic

[kingloufassa]

Hello community, 

First, I'd like to mention I'm an amateur astronomer who recently built my first telescope (pictured below). I'm also a software developer currently looking for new employment.

I'd like to combine my two passions if possible and find a software development job related to astronomy. I thought I'd ask here in case anyone has any tips or leads. 

I'm also looking to network with any other software devs in the astro community. Maybe we can build a side project together someday

[TOMDEY]

Nice Scope! Depending on your level of education and experience --- might consider > researching jobs with the government in the arena of imaging satellites and such things... photogrammetry, astronomy, space exploration, robotic satellites. etc. If you're a USA citizen... and young... they of course support professional "state of the art" activity in image analysis. Most professionals learn and develop their skills by enlisting in the military and get their (free!) training and experience there. The huge advantage is that your ~tuition~ is provided as part of the assignment --- and then, when your enlistment(s) are up --- the GI Bill will additionally pay for your B.S. and M.S. almost entirely. That most often lands a civilian job in the same arena. That has been the career path of most of my associates at work, including myself. (In my case it was optics.) For what it's worth... aerospace typically pays a lot more than astronomy.    Tom

[oldphotonm]

That's an interesting truss structure... where did you find the design or did you come up with it on your own?

[kingloufassa]

Nice Scope! Depending on your level of education and experience --- might consider > researching jobs with the government in the arena of imaging satellites and such things... photogrammetry, astronomy, space exploration, robotic satellites. etc. If you're a USA citizen... and young... they of course support professional "state of the art" activity in image analysis. Most professionals learn and develop their skills by enlisting in the military and get their (free!) training and experience there. The huge advantage is that your ~tuition~ is provided as part of the assignment --- and then, when your enlistment(s) are up --- the GI Bill will additionally pay for your B.S. and M.S. almost entirely. That most often lands a civilian job in the same arena. That has been the career path of most of my associates at work, including myself. (In my case it was optics.) For what it's worth... aerospace typically pays a lot more than astronomy.    Tom

Thanks Tom! I'm 40 years old and already a mid level software developer. My undergraduate degree was in philosophy. I probably don't have the credentials to break into aerospace (unless I can network my way in). I appreciate the advice!

[kingloufassa]

That's an interesting truss structure... where did you find the design or did you come up with it on your own?

Hi Gordan, 

It was a mix of different designs I found online, and a lot of trial and error. It's actually built from a Walmart shoe rack and tent poles I had laying around. I had to add the cables to keep it from loosing collimation.

Works pretty well though. It took about a year working on it in my spare time. 

[oldphotonm]

It was a mix of different designs I found online, and a lot of trial and error. It's actually built from a Walmart shoe rack and tent poles I had laying around. I had to add the cables to keep it from loosing collimation.

Works pretty well though. It took about a year working on it in my spare time. 

 

It's a little hard to judge from the picture so I'll ask:

 

Aperture and f ratio?

 

Based on flowers etc in your pic, I'd guess 14 to 16 inches and maybe f/5??

 

Natural finish or are you planning to stain/polyurethane your baby?

 

Very nice! 

[kingloufassa]

It's a little hard to judge from the picture so I'll ask:

 

Aperture and f ratio?

 

Based on flowers etc in your pic, I'd guess 14 to 16 inches and maybe f/5??

 

Natural finish or are you planning to stain/polyurethane your baby?

 

Very nice! 

Thank you, it's quite a bit smaller actually. It's an 8 inch F/6. I had no idea how it was going to turn out so I didn't want to invest too much in going bigger. 

The base also turns into a box and holds many of the parts. The idea was to have a lightweight travel scope, but it turned out a bit heavier than I wanted. I had to add some extra weight to the base to get it to balance properly. 

I'll probably finish it with a natural stain/polyurethane. I still have some more adjustments to make. Thanks for the curiosity!

Edited by kingloufassa, 19 March 2025 - 11:19 AM.

[555aaa]

Get the book “fundamentals of Astrodynamics and its applications” by Vallado and also the USAF training book “fundamentals of Astrodynamics” by Bate, Mueller, White, and Saylor. That stuff is all about orbit dynamics. There is a solid market for people with that knowledge in SSA which is a big industry now. The other track is on the science side but all that is getting cut now. Frankly it’s not your coding skill that is useful because the PhDs they have now can code. Every Astronomer writes software.

[kingloufassa]

Get the book “fundamentals of Astrodynamics and its applications” by Vallado and also the USAF training book “fundamentals of Astrodynamics” by Bate, Mueller, White, and Saylor. That stuff is all about orbit dynamics. There is a solid market for people with that knowledge in SSA which is a big industry now. The other track is on the science side but all that is getting cut now. Frankly it’s not your coding skill that is useful because the PhDs they have now can code. Every Astronomer writes software.

Interesting. Thanks for the suggestion!

Edited by kingloufassa, 19 March 2025 - 05:36 PM.

[gordtulloch]

Most people in Astronomy building data collection and analysis applications appear to be astronomers, not compsci grads (I've been in pro software development for 40 years FWIW).  This impression is partly based on sitting in on VAST (Virtual Astronomy Software Talks) sessions. You can access them here.  Python has particularly enabled this, I think.  It makes sense since someone trained as an astronomer will have a ton of domain knowledge that a typical developer won't have. Plus I suspect they would have little patience for debates on how to code things "properly" which is definitely a popular pastime for compsci types!