The Heising-Simons Foundation is accepting applications for their 2025 51 Pegasi b Postdoctoral Fellowship program in Planetary Astronomy. The fellowship provides an opportunity for recent doctoral researchers to conduct innovative observational, theoretical or instrumentation research in planetary astronomy.

The Ohio State University, including the Department of Astronomy, is one of the eligible host institutions for the program, and offers unique opportunities for 51 Pegasi b Fellows. 

OSU is an institutional member of the Large Binocular Telescope, the world's largest aperture optical telescope on a single mount, enabling unique exoplanet observations with the cutting-edge high-resolution spectroscopic capabilities of iLocater and PEPSI. OSU also plays a leading role in the exoplanet science elements of the NASA Roman Galactic Bulge Time Domain Survey, supported by a vibrant group of faculty, postdocs, graduate students, and undergraduates. 

Our astronomical instrumentation program develops next-generation instruments for exoplanetary research. Faculty members are actively involved in missions such as Twinkle and the Habitable Worlds Observatory. Additionally, OSU provides extensive research resources including high-performance computing (HPC) and access to large spectroscopic surveys such as the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). 

The Department supports a diverse community of over 20 postdocs in Astronomy and the Center for Cosmology and AstroParticle Physics (CCAPP), fostering inclusivity through regular talks, a bi-weekly Diversity Journal Club, a weekly social Astro Tea, and annual development workshops. The entire OSU astronomy community engages with daily ‘Astro Coffee’ which is known for its timeliness, interaction, and consistent and broad participation across students, postdocs, and faculty members. 

Notable exoplanet faculty and staff include Scott Gaudi, Ji Wang, Jonathan Crass, Marshall Johnson, Jennifer Johnson and Marc Pinsonneault, who are involved in various programs, missions and instrumentation projects spanning exoplanets and the planet-star connection. 

Fellowship applications are being accepted from July 9 through October 4, 2024. 

For further information about 51 Pegasi b Fellowship opportunities at OSU, please contact Prof. Ji Wang.