[Hiring] Research Associate III @The University of Alabama in Huntsville

Role Description

The UAH Lab for Applied Science (LAS), under the Earth System Science Center (ESSC) in Huntsville, Alabama, is seeking a highly motivated Research Associate to support the Biological Diversity and Ecological Conservation (BDEC) research and application activities at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. This position will focus on technical aspects of remote sensing applications, including:

• Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR)
• Imaging spectroscopy
• Thermal analysis

The role will involve:

• Processing and analyzing multi-source satellite data
• Building and evaluating data products
• Supporting the translation of research outputs into practical, user-oriented tools and services
• Contributing to the development, testing, and refinement of remote sensing workflows
• Supporting cross-center collaboration, technical coordination, and capacity-building activities

Qualifications

• A Bachelor’s degree in remote sensing, geospatial science, geography, Earth science, environmental science, engineering, or a related field
• 2 to 4 years of verifiable, full-time work experience
• Demonstrated experience processing and analyzing satellite remote sensing data, including optical imagery and SAR
• Strong technical skills in Earth observation data workflows, including image preprocessing, validation, and tool development
• Experience applying geospatial machine learning or foundation model workflows to remote sensing datasets is highly desirable
• Proficiency in Python, R, or similar programming languages used for spatial data analysis, remote sensing automation, and geospatial modeling
• Familiarity with NASA Earth science datasets, remote sensing products, and applied conservation or biodiversity applications
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills and experience working with diverse groups of people
• Ability to work collaboratively in a technical, interdisciplinary team and communicate clearly with scientists and stakeholders

Requirements

• A Master's or PhD in remote sensing, geospatial science, geography, Earth science, environmental science, engineering, or a related field (desired)
• At least 1 year of verifiable full-time experience in remote sensing, geospatial analysis, or a closely related technical field (desired)
• Experience with SAR processing and analysis for environmental or ecological applications (desired)
• Experience working with HLS, hyperspectral, GeoNEX, Prithvi, or similar Earth observation data pipelines (desired)
• Experience developing validation protocols for remote sensing products (desired)
• Experience supporting NASA, federal, state, or conservation partners in applied Earth observation (desired)
• Experience creating documentation, tutorials, and training materials for technical users (desired)

Benefits

• Published Salary: $52,216-$64,985