Rubin Observatory is extending the deadline for nominations from the science community to serve on the Rubin Users Committee (UC) to December 5, 2021.
Nominations and especially self-nominations from anyone interested in serving on the UC are very welcome.
The Rubin UC must include a broad range of scientific and technical expertise. At this time, nominations are particularly (but not exclusively) encouraged from individuals who:
- are at an early career stage (postdocs and junior faculty),
- identify as under-represented in astronomy (by race, gender, etc.), and/or
- work at a US institution.
Also encouraged are nominations from those with expertise in:
- gravitational weak lensing,
- astrometric and photometric calibration techniques,
- solar system science, or
- survey database techniques.
Nomination form: see below (also in Appendix A of RDO-051.lsst.io)
Return to: Michael Strauss (strauss at astro dot princeton dot edu)
Due: December 5 2021
A full description of the Rubin Users Committee, including its role, responsibilities, and the membership criteria, can be found in the Charge to the Users Committee (RDO-051).
The Users Committee:
- The UC will be the formal interface for feedback from the science community regarding the quality and efficacy of the Rubin data products and services (e.g., the Rubin Science Platform).
- The UC will solicit and aggregate community feedback, meet twice a year, and report to Rubin leadership their recommendations for improvements to maximize scientific productivity as well as equitable access and inclusive practices.
- The initial focus of the UC will be on the Data Previews, and then the UC will stand throughout the life of Rubin Observatory operations.
- Travel funding will be provided to support one of the two yearly UC meetings being face-to-face (and virtual attendance will always be an option), but service on the Users Committee is not a paid position.
- UC members are appointed by the Rubin Science Advisory Committee (SAC) for an initial term of two years, with the potential to be renewed yearly for up to four years total.
UC Membership Criteria:
- The UC members shall all be active users of the Rubin data products and services, including the Rubin Science Platform, or users of relevant precursor surveys, simulated data, and/or the LSST Science Pipelines.
- UC members should represent the diversity of the community in race and ethnicity, gender, career stage, and type and location of institution of employment. The UC will have members from the US, Chilean, and International Programs communities.
- The UC members’ scientific expertise shall cover the breadth of the LSST core science themes, and also cover the full richness of other science areas that Rubin will impact.
- All UC members must have Rubin data rights (ls.st/RDO-013).
- Individuals who are employed by NOIRLab, SLAC, or Rubin Observatory are not eligible for UC membership.
Nomination Form:
Please create the nomination form as a document (preferably a PDF) with the following components and email it to Michael Strauss (strauss at astro dot princeton dot edu), chair of the Rubin Observatory Science Advisory Council (SAC). The contents of these forms will be seen only by the Rubin SAC members and the Rubin Observatory operations director.
Self-nominations are encouraged!
- Nominee name.
- Nominee email.
- Nominee institutional affiliation.
- Nominated by (if not a self-nomination).
- Career stage that best describes the nominee for the next two years (e.g., graduate student; postdoctoral researcher; research staff scientists / engineer; junior / senior / emeritus professor).
- Science Collaborations (if any) the nominee is a member of.
- Nominee’s Rubin-related science interests (up to one paragraph).
- Nominee’s experience with the Rubin Science Platform, LSST Science Pipelines; other relevant experience with the Rubin Observatory data products and services such as Data Preview 0 or Stack Club; or technical experience with relevant precursor surveys such as, e.g., HSC, KIDS, or DES (up to one page).