Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Exoplanetary Sciences
Deadline: 15.05.2026
Publisert
The University of Oslo is Norway’s oldest and highest rated institution of research and education with 26 500 students and 7 200 employees. Its broad range of academic disciplines and internationally esteemed research communities make UiO an important contributor to society.
Centre for Planetary Habitability (PHAB) is a Norwegian Centre of Excellence that provides a stimulating and well-funded research environment. PHAB’s main goal, based on detailed studies of Earth and our solar system, is to develop predictive models to identify habitable planets around other stars. PHAB research activities comprise three interrelated research themes: (1) Planets and Early Earth, (2) Modern Earth and (3) Exo-Earths. The centre was established in 2023 and will consist of approximately 70 full time and part time professors and researchers, PhD Research Fellows and Postdoctoral Research Fellows.
About the position
Position as Postdoctoral Research Fellow as part of the research project GIANTS is available at the Centre for Planetary Habitability (PHAB), Department of Geosciences, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Oslo (UiO).
Starting date 20.10.2026 or as soon as possible thereafter.
The appointment is a full-time position and is for a period of three years (10% of which is devoted to other career-promoting work, usually in the form of teaching activities).
No one can be appointed for more than one Postdoctoral Research Fellowship at the University of Oslo.
Place of work is PHAB, the Department of Geosciences at Blindern, Oslo.
Project description
This position is associated with the Centre for Planetary Habitability (PHAB) and linked to the Giant Impact Accretion of Terrestrial Systems (GIANTS) project, funded by the Research Council of Norway. The work will be carried out in close collaboration with the GIANTS Team and colleagues at PHAB, offering an opportunity to contribute to a collaborative international research environment.
GIANTS is a five-year theoretical and numerical modelling project focused on the late stage of terrestrial planet formation involving giant impacts around the Sun and other stars. The project applies state-of-the-art computational physics methods, particularly Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) with self-gravity, shocks, strength and geological equations of state, to simulate hypothesized giant impacts, and especially, to establish their systemwide consequences and corollaries. For example, a giant impact on Venus would have delivered significant alien crust to the Earth, and vice-versa. The Moon-forming collision might have been a "hit-and-run-return’’ where accretion happened only on the second try.
The main work is to model giant impacts using a high-heritage SPH model supported by the Team, and from those outcomes, run dynamical evolution models (N-body) to investigate the occurrences of subsequent collisions, using a surrogate model for giant impacts trained on SPH simulations, and then to analyse the results in the context of the geophysics, geochemistry and dynamics of the terrestrial planets.
What distinguishes this approach is its focus on post-giant-impact systemwide dynamics, and the exchanges between planets of their unaccreted "runners" (escaping projectile planets) and lesser remnants and debris. The goal is to make specific giant impact formation hypotheses more predictive and testable, through this end-to-end approach, with a particular emphasis on the Earth, Moon, Venus, Mercury, and Mars, but also terrestrial planets around e.g. a red dwarf star with orbital periods of days, where giant impacts would happen in a strongly accelerated frame of reference.
The successful candidate will take a leading role in these computational studies of planetary collisions and their dynamical aftermaths. This position is intended for an ambitious and self-directed researcher who possesses advanced skills in computational modelling and a strong publication record. The ideal applicant will demonstrate the ability to carry out independent research with limited supervision while working constructively within a broader, well-integrated team.
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 planetary science, astrophysics, geophysics, physics, or a closely related discipline
The doctoral dissertation must have been submitted for evaluation by the application closing date for the current position - only applicants with an approved doctoral thesis and public defence are eligible for appointment
Applicant must have an established record running SPH simulations of planetary collisions, or using high-resolution particle codes and/or N-body codes in topics of planetary geophysics or astrophysics
Sufficient programming experience to handle large-scale numerical modeling and analysis, and management of computational workflows
Strong publication record relative to career stage
Strong skills in scientific analysis, interpretation of modelling results, and publication-driven research
Ability to work independently, efficiently, and with clear scientific judgment
Fluent oral and written communication skills in English
Desired qualifications:
Strong background in planetary geophysics and impact processes
Working knowledge of modern theories of terrestrial planet formation
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:
Self-motivated; able to initiate, lead, and complete research projects without close supervision
Able to collaborate well within a research group and with international partners
Strong written and oral communication skills
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
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.
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)
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. The description should highlight peer-reviewed publications and specify why they are selected for this position
Names and contact details of 3 references (name, relation to candidate, e-mail and telephone number)
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.
