Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Solar Physics

About the position

A position as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow is available at the Solar-Stellar research group of the Rosseland Centre for Solar Physics (RoCS) at the Institute of Theoretical Astrophysics (ITA).

Preferably starting date is 1st July, 2026, with latest 1st of October, 2026. The start date is flexible within the stated window.

The appointment is a full-time position and is for a period of three years (10% of which is devoted to career promoting work, usually in the form of teaching activities).

Place of work is Rosseland Centre for Solar Physics, Institute of Theoretical Astrophysics at Blindern, Oslo.

No one can be appointed for more than one Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at the University of Oslo.

Project description

The position is funded by the Research Council of Norway through the Researcher Project for Early Career Scientists (FRIPRO)  ReCon²: “Resolving the Solar Convective Conundrum: A Full-Physics Approach to Solar Convection” (project period 01.04.2026–01.10.2029) and led by Dr. Andrius Popovas.

The long-standing solar convective conundrum is the mismatch between convective flows inferred from helioseismology and flows predicted by state-of-the-art simulations. ReCon² addresses this by advancing simulation realism and by enforcing quantitative validation against helioseismic constraints. The project combines surface-cooling-driven convection, compressible fluid dynamics, and magnetic fields in ultra-high-resolution models to test whether the discrepancy is primarily a consequence of insufficient realism in earlier modelling.
A central part of the project is quantitative validation of simulated convective flows against published helioseismic constraints, using depth-dependent velocity amplitudes and scale-dependent diagnostics extracted from the simulations. Further details about the project can be found here.

The successful candidate will contribute to the main goals of the project, with emphasis on data analysis and quantitative comparison to observations/helioseismology, and (depending on profile) contribution to software and analysis pipeline development.

Typical tasks include:

• Analysis of large-scale simulation outputs (local and/or global solar convection simulation datasets), including spectra, flow statistics, and diagnostics relevant to helioseismic inference.
• Development and maintenance of robust, reproducible analysis workflows (Python and/or Julia-based; HPC-oriented handling of large datasets).
• Depending on competence: contributing to research software development supporting simulations and/or data workflows (HPC/parallel environments), and open/reproducible release of data and analysis scripts under FAIR principles.
• Dissemination through high-impact journal publications and conference presentations in solar physics / computational astrophysics.

The main purpose of a postdoctoral fellowship is to provide the candidates with enhanced skills to pursue a scientific top position within or beyond academia. To promote a strategic career path, all postdoctoral research fellows are required to submit a professional development plan no later than one month after commencement of the postdoctoral period.

What skills are important in this role?

The Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences has a strategic ambition to be among Europe’s leading communities for research, education and innovation. Candidates for these fellowships will be selected in accordance with this, and expected to be in the upper segment of their class with respect to academic credentials.

Required qualifications:

• Applicants must hold a degree equivalent to a Norwegian doctoral degree in astrophysics, solar physics, computational science, or a closely related field. The doctoral degree must be awarded and the public defence successfully completed before the start date of the position.
• Documented research experience relevant to at least one of the following scientific areas:
  • Numerical simulations of solar/stellar convection and/or MHD (fully compressible CFD; turbulence in stratified flows). 
  • Helioseismology / asteroseismology, including quantitative comparison to observations (e.g., mode properties, local-helioseismology diagnostics, forward modelling).
  • Wave–convection interaction and/or excitation and propagation of acoustic waves in stratified media; building synthetic observables from simulations.
  • Signal processing / spectral analysis relevant to convection and waves (e.g., spherical-harmonic or Fourier analysis, power spectra, cross-spectra, filtering, mode fitting).
  • Inverse problems / inference applied to astrophysical flows (e.g., inversion methods, Bayesian/statistical inference, uncertainty quantification)
• Strong programming and data-analysis competence; ability to produce reproducible workflows.
• Experience with version control (e.g., Git) and documented workflows is expected.
• Fluent oral and written communication skills in English.

Desired qualifications:

• Experience with helioseismic analysis methods (e.g., inversion products, mode constraints, forward modelling, or comparable observational–simulation comparison frameworks).
• Experience working with large HPC-produced datasets and/or high-performance computing environments.
• Experience in compiled languages and performance-oriented environments (e.g., Fortran/C/C++ and parallel programming concepts).
• Experience with open-science practices (version control, documented pipelines, FAIR-aligned releases).

All candidates and projects will have to undergo a check versus national export, sanctions and security regulations. Candidates may be excluded based on these checks. Primary checkpoints are the Export Control regulation, the Sanctions regulation, and the national security regulation.

What are we looking for in you?

Personal skills:

• Ability to work both independently and as part of a team
• Ability to work precisely in a structured manner and swiftly adapt to new tasks
• Good communication and collaboration skills
• Positive attitude and the ability to handle hectic periods

Employment in the position is based on a comprehensive assessment of all qualification requirements applicable to the position, including personal skills.

We can offer you

• Exciting and meaningful tasks in an organization with an important societal mission, contributing to knowledge development, education, and enlightenment that promote sustainable, fair, and knowledge-based societal development
• Committed colleagues in a good working environment
• Good welfare schemes.
• Opportunity of up to 1.5 hours a week of exercise during working hours.  
• A workplace with good development and career opportunities
• Postdoctoral development programmes.
• Membership in the Statens Pensjonskasse, which is one of Norway's best pension schemes with beneficial mortgages and good insurance schemes
• Salary in position as Postdoctoral Fellow, position code 1352 in salary range NOK 595 000 - 690 000, depending on competence and experience. From the salary, 2 percent is deducted in statutory contributions to the State Pension Fund

We need different perspectives in our work

UiO is an open and internationally oriented comprehensive university that strives to be an inclusive and diverse workplace and academic environment. You can read more about UiO’s work on equality, inclusion, and diversity at uio.no.

We fulfill our mission most effectively when we draw upon our variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives. We are looking for great colleagues, could you be the next one?

We will do our best to accommodate your needs. Relevant adjustments may include modifications to working hours, task adaptations, digital, technical, or physical adjustments, or other practical measures.

We especially encourage women to apply. 

If you have an immigrant background, a disability, or CV gaps (Norwegian), we encourage you to indicate this in the job application portal. We always invite at least one qualified candidate from each group for an interview. In this context, disability is defined as an applicant who identifies as having a disability that requires workplace or employment-related accommodations. For more details about the requirements, please refer to the Employer portal (Norwegian).

The selections made in the job application portal are used for anonymized statistics that all state employers include in their annual reports. More information about gender equality initiatives at UiO can be found here. 

We hope you will apply for the position with us.

How to apply

The application must include:

• Cover letter (statement of motivation, summarizing scientific work and research interest)
• A short (1–2 page) research statement describing (i) relevant expertise, (ii) how the applicant’s profile fits ReCon², and (iii) which track the applicant is strongest in: helioseismic/observational validation and/or software/data pipeline development.
• CV (summarizing education, positions, pedagogical experience, administrative experience and other qualifying activity) 
• Copies of educational certificates, academic transcript of records 
• A complete list of publications and up to 5 academic works that the applicant wishes to be considered by the evaluation committee
• Names and contact details of 2-3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and telephone number) and reference letters. The letters should be sent directly to Dr. Andrius Popovas (andrius.popovas@astro.uio.no) by the application deadline. 

Application with attachments must be submitted via our recruitment system Jobbnorge, click "Apply for this job".

When applying for the position, we ask you to retrieve your education results from Vitnemålsportalen.no. If your education results are not available through Vitnemålsportalen, we ask you to upload copies of your transcripts or grades. Please note that all documentation must be in English or a Scandinavian language.

General information

The best qualified candidates will be invited for interviews.

Please see the guidelines and regulations for appointments to Postdoctoral fellowships at the University of Oslo.

If an applicant has applied for and been granted funding for a fulltime research stay abroad while being employed as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow, the employment will be prolonged with the equivalent time as the research stay, but for no longer than of twelve months ( thus extending the employment to a maximum of four years)

No one can be appointed twice as a Postdoctoral fellow financed with funds from The Research Council of Norway (NFR).

Applicant lists can be published in accordance with Norwegian Freedom of Information Act § 25. When you apply for a position with us, your name will appear on the public applicant list. It is possible to request to be excluded from this list. You must justify why you want an exemption from publication and we will then decide whether we can grant your request. If we can't, you will hear from us.

The University of Oslo has an agreement for all employees, aiming to secure rights to research results a.o.