NOIRLab's Data Management and Software division is seeking a Software Development Engineer II to integrate and optimize backend technologies, observatory control systems, and infrastructure engineering to ensure observatory uptime, scientific data integrity, and operational safety.
Requirements
- Extensive, proven experience with Python, C and C++
- Extensive, proven experience designing, building and maintaining distributed systems or services in a real-time or data-intensive environment
- Proven high-level proficiency of software engineering fundamentals, including algorithms, data structures, concurrency, version control, CI/CD, etc.
- Extensive, proven experience working with APIs, network protocols or hardware integration
- Proven high-level proficiency in problem-solving and debugging, including experience with live systems and production-quality software
- Python, C and C++ middleware and control software for observatory systems
- Linux-based environments with system-level scripting and service orchestration
Responsibilities
- Design, implement and maintain backend services and middleware for telescope and instrument control
- Develop and operate observability tools and dashboards to monitor system telemetry and health
- Collaborate with hardware and instrumentation teams to integrate software and hardware interfaces
- Own the identification and resolution of critical production faults with precision and speed
- Build and improve CI/CD pipelines to streamline deployment and rollback processes
- Automating deployments and infrastructure management for robust, repeatable releases
- Integrating new instruments into the control ecosystem
Other
- 4+ years of professional software engineering experience in backend or systems programming roles
- Clear and effective communicator, adept at documenting and conveying technical information to non-technical audiences
- Comfortable working with a remote, globally distributed team
- Physically capable of working at the KPNO site, located at an elevation of approximately 6,800 ft.
- Provide onsite system support and maintenance at an elevation of approximately 6,800 ft.
