Astronomy Consulting Advisor

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: Astronomy Expert

Type: Contract

Compensation: $60–$80/hour

Location: Remote

Duration: ~2 months

Commitment: 20–40 hours/week

Role Responsibilities

• Write original and advanced IAO-style astronomy problems to challenge frontier AI models.
• Evaluate AI-generated solutions for correctness, clarity, and reasoning quality. Identify where models fail.
• Identify logical flaws, incomplete reasoning, or insufficiently rigorous derivations.
• Provide clear, concise, and correct solutions and reasoning , formatted in LaTeX .
• Maintain extremely high standards of precision, scientific rigor, and problem difficulty.
• Work independently and asynchronously to meet deadlines while improving AI model performance .

Qualifications

Must-Have

• Master’s or PhD in astronomy or a related field.
• Olympiad participant or medalist in the IAO or equivalent competitions.
• Proficiency in writing and formatting documents using LaTeX .
• Deep understanding of core theoretical and observational concepts in astronomy and astrophysics.
• Ability to articulate reasoning and derivations clearly in written form.
• Strong ability to evaluate the rigor and complexity of astronomy problems.
• Rigorous attention to detail in verifying solutions.

Start Date

• Rolling start dates; setup typically within 1–2 days of approval .

Application Process (Takes 20–30 mins to complete)

• Submit your resume or CV highlighting your astronomy background and relevant achievements.
• Complete a brief interview (20–30 minutes) .
• Submit a short form detailing your experience writing problems and competing in astronomy or related Olympiads.

Resources & Support

• For details about the interview process and platform information, please check:
• For any help or support, reach out to: [email protected]

PS: Our team reviews applications daily. Please complete your AI interview and application steps to be considered for this opportunity.