What should I do to become a professional astronomer ?
Research in astronomy calls upon many scientific and technical disciplines ; it involves team work in which scientists, engineers, technicians and administrators collaborate closely in an international context.
Scientific and technical training
Just as in other scientific research disciplines, different kinds of career are possible : careers as technicians or engineers, research careers as well as careers spanning research and teaching. Moreover, every research activity is itself dependent on administrative careers related to the management and organization of institutions and projects
The purpose of astronomy
The purpose of astronomy, the science of the universe, is to study the motion, the nature and the evolution of celestial bodies and their related systems The field of study is huge, ranging from the closest to the most distant objects :
planets and their
satellites,
the Sun,
comets,
stars,
interstellar matter,
our Galaxy,
other galaxies,
quasars,
the geometrical structure and the origin of the universe.
Progress in astronomy is intimately linked to observational techniques. These range from giant ground based optical and radio telescopes to instruments on stratospheric balloons or sent into space ; the computational power of modern computers furnishes a means to model natural phenomena, and to fully exploit the data acquired from observation...
Research in astronomy brings into play many different disciplines (mathematics, physics, chemistry ...) ; team work is of the essence, involving a close collaboration between the researchers (the astronomers), the engineers and technicians, and the administrators, at both national and international levels.
Astronomy is a multifaceted activity, which can be approached either via the objects being studied or via the techniques used to study them. Some astronomers specialize in observation, others in theory and the creation of models, and still others in instrumentation ; however, these three kinds of activity are in fact complementary, and in practice the work of an astronomer can span several disciplines.
Observation involves the use of increasingly large and sophisticated instruments, in order to register and analyse the radiation sent to us by the celestial bodies, and thereby obtain as much information as possible about them. The instruments are designed and built by the astronomers, the engineers and the technicians. In general, the purpose of the observations, which have more often than not been prepared well in advance, is to test the predictions of the theorists.
Time on the large facilities is distributed as a function of the scientific interest of the candidate projects. The actual observations are generally of short duration. However, their analysis and interpretation is often very time consuming. The ultimate purpose of this work is to obtain as much information as possible about the objects being studied, and thereby determine their physical characteristics and the physical processes which govern their behaviour. This requires the use of very large computers ; theory is both used and developed further. The models created by theoretical astronomers on the basis of observation must then be tested by fresh observations.
Finally, the scientific results are published in specialized journals, in the proceedings of conferences or in books ; in this way, the information diffuses through the whole scientific community.
Science thus progresses, through the use of advanced techniques ; the ideas and the techniques evolve with time, for the greater benefit of all.
Télescope spatial Herschel de 3.5 m à Kourou avant lancement par Ariane 5
ESA
The careers
As in most other scientific research disciplines, there are two kinds of career :
They work in design offices, in electronics, in electromechanics, in mechanics, in information technology, in optics and optoelectronics and in instrumentation in general. The qualifications required range from the baccalauréat to an engineering diploma. The levels are as follows : :
Technician : Scientific or technical
Assistant-engineer : DUT, BTS (2 years)
Design engineer : Licenceø, Master (3 to 5 years)
Research engineer : engineering diploma awarded by a National engineering school, or a university (5 years), or a Ph.D.(8 years)
A permanent post with the CNRS or within the framework of higher education involves a competitive examination ; there are also fixed duration contracts (CDD).
There are two possibilities after the scientific baccalauréat :
preparatory classes for entrance to the Grandes Ecoles, followed by courses en the Ecoles Normales Supérieures or the Grandes Ecoles d’ingénieurs, and finally a Master 2 in Astronomy Astrophysics (6 years)
University : first degree in physics or mathematics, followed by a Master (5 years)
Whichever of these two options is adopted, they must be followed by a Ph.D. prepared in a laboratory ; the Ph.D. is financed by a 3 year research grant.
Researchers who have a post can then apply for the "Habilitation à Diriger des Recherches", a diploma which allows them to direct research students.
Competitive examinations must be passed to obtain a post ; there are various possibilities :
"Astronomes Adjoints" (CNAP) and university "Maîtres de Conférence" - assistant professors - (higher education, CNU) ; these posts involve a teaching charge
"chargés de recherche" - research fellows - with the CNRS
Studying for an astronomy degree is long and hard ; posts, essentially in pure research and in higher education, are severely limited at present (on the order of twenty posts a year for the entire discipline). On the other hand, the wide spectrum of knowledge acquired while studying this discipline opens the door to the industrial sector.
Le projet ELT, futur télescope européen géant de 40 m de diamètre
