Astrophysics Expert - Computational Specialist

About the job

Mercor connects elite creative and technical talent with leading AI research labs. Headquartered in San Francisco, our investors include Benchmark , General Catalyst , Peter Thiel , Adam D'Angelo , Larry Summers , and Jack Dorsey .

• Position: Computational Astrophysics & Cosmology Expert
• Type: Contract
• Compensation: $70–$100/hour
• Location: Remote
• Commitment: 15–20 hours/week

Role Responsibilities

• Design challenging computational problems to evaluate AI capabilities in scientific software usage.
• Develop problems requiring strategic planning and experimentation to uncover hidden data insights.
• Test and refine problems against state-of-the-art AI models to achieve target difficulty.
• Utilize Astrophysics & Cosmology expertise with tools like astropy for problem creation.
• Work independently and asynchronously to refine problem designs based on feedback.

Qualifications Must-Have

• Graduate-level training in a relevant STEM field ( MS, PhD, or equivalent ).
• Proven proficiency with scientific software libraries through research or professional work.
• Strong Python skills for writing problem setups and solution validators.
• Ability to work in a Linux/terminal environment with remote compute sandboxes.
• Available for 15–20 hours/week .

Preferred

• Experience across multiple domains or tools.
• Familiarity with benchmark or evaluation design.
• Background in scientific teaching or exam/problem-set design.
• Experience with computational reproducibility and containerized environments.