Intern in the Space Environments and Effects Section

Internship Opportunity in the Directorate of Technology, Engineering and Quality

Our team and mission

This position is based at the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) - Noordwijk, Netherlands

The Space Environments and Effects Section (TEC-EPS) supports the development of ESA missions and programmes by investigating the space environments within which they will operate, assessing likely effects, providing risk assessments, and defining mitigation methods.

Environments addressed include high-energy radiation from radiation belts, solar particle events and cosmic rays; plasmas encountered in planetary magnetospheres, the solar wind and artificially-generated charges and fields on spacecraft; dust, micro-meteoroids and non-trackable debris, as well as planetary atmospheres. In support of this, the Section initiates and manages related technology R&D activities on environments and effects models, and oversees a wider range of space environment monitoring hardware activities. The Section also maintains extensive collaboration networks in the relevant domains.

Field(s) of activity for the internship

Topic of the internship: Space Radiation Monitor Data Analyses

The aim of this opportunity is to perform analyses on the data obtained from the in-orbit network of radiation instruments on various key ESA missions including MTG-I, Sentinel-6, EDRS-C, Galileo, INTEGRAL, Proba-1a and Proba-V. Of interest are the energetic proton and electron fluxes measured by these devices at different times in the Earth’s radiation belts and during Solar Particle Events.

You will work closely with Section members dealing with these instruments and related analyses and will learn a range of methods used in the domain. The radiation environment data will be processed, analysed, cross-compared, and provided as input to possible environmental model improvements.

Aspects to be addressed include:

• Accuracy of the response functions of the different instruments;
• Data cleaning and processing methods;
• Data organisation;
• Comparisons of the results from the different instruments;
• Dedicated analyses of selected Solar Particle Events;
• Prediction of radiation fluxes in key orbital locations;
• Comparisons to environmental model predictions.

As an outcome of the activity, a final report will be prepared, and a final presentation given.

Behavioural competencies

Result Orientation

Operational Efficiency

Fostering Cooperation

Relationship Management

Continuous Improvement

Forward Thinking

Education

You must be a university student, preferably in your final or second-to-last year of a university course at Master’s level, and you need to remain enrolled at your University for the entire duration of the internship.

Additional requirements

The working languages of the Agency are English and French. A good knowledge of one of these is required. Knowledge of another Member State language would be an asset.

You shall have a demonstrated knowledge of space radiation environments along with experience in data processing and analysis and relevant IT tools.

Knowledge and background in space radiation monitors or related instrumentation is an asset.

Other information

ESA is an equal opportunity employer, committed to achieving diversity within the workforce and creating an inclusive working environment. We therefore welcome applications from all qualified candidates irrespective of gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, beliefs, age, disability or other characteristics. Applications from women are encouraged.

At the Agency, we value diversity, and we welcome people with disabilities. Whenever possible, we seek to accommodate individuals with disabilities by providing the necessary support at the workplace. The Human Resources Department can also provide assistance during the recruitment process. If you would like to discuss this further, please contact us via email at contact.human.resources@esa.int.

Please note that applications are only considered from nationals of one of the following States: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Nationals from Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and Slovenia, as Associate Member States, or Canada as a Cooperating State, can apply as well as those from Bulgaria, Croatia and Cyprus as European Cooperating States (ECS).