What it pays
Government survey numbers — not estimates, not ads.
Half of all Atmospheric and Space Scientists in the U.S. earn more than $99,070 a year — the middle 80% land between $53,060 and $161,890. About 10,000 people in the U.S. do this work. Figures are for the U.S. occupation group “Atmospheric and Space Scientists”. (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics survey, published 2025.) In India, Professionals earn about ₹38,298 a month on average — around ₹4.6 lakh a year (government PLFS survey via ILOSTAT, occupation-family figure).
$99,070typical pay / year
10,000people in this work
$161,890+top 10% earn
₹4.6 lakha year in India (family avg)
Think you get this job?Six quick questions on how it really works — with a hint and the reason behind every answer.
Test yourself →The work, task by task
These are the real jobs-to-be-done, not a wish list. Each task shows where we found it, and the prompt underneath is written for that exact task.
Analysing4
Interpret meteorological data
+Interpret the latest meteorological ensemble outputs for trajectory planning: compare wind shear, temperature…
Interpret meteorological data
+Interpret the latest meteorological ensemble outputs for trajectory planning: compare wind shear, temperature profiles, and turbulence probability across members, assess risk to the planned payload window, and recommend course corrections to the flight team.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft ExcelESCOjob descriptionsO*NET
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Report current weather conditions
+Report current upper-atmosphere and surface weather at Kennedy Space Center for the 24-hour launch window:…
Report current weather conditions
+Report current upper-atmosphere and surface weather at Kennedy Space Center for the 24-hour launch window: include wind profiles to 50 km, convective indices, cloud ceilings, precip probability, and any T+/- hold triggers; deliver within two hours to Launch Weather Officer Emma Reed.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft ExcelLinuxESCOjob descriptionsO*NET
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Compile atmospheric data for research
+Compile atmospheric datasets for the regional mesoscale study: gather radiosonde ascents, surface station…
Compile atmospheric data for research
+Compile atmospheric datasets for the regional mesoscale study: gather radiosonde ascents, surface station logs, and satellite sounding retrievals for January–June, quality-control time series, compute daily and monthly means and anomalies, and produce a single cleaned dataset and metadata file for the research team by Friday.
The tools that do the workIBM SPSS StatisticsMicrosoft Exceljob descriptionsWikipedia
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Investigate atmospheric phenomena
+Investigate the sudden stratospheric warming signature observed last month: pull temperature and geopotential…
Investigate atmospheric phenomena
+Investigate the sudden stratospheric warming signature observed last month: pull temperature and geopotential height profiles for 1–100 hPa over mid-latitudes, run composite anomalies, test correlation with zonal mean wind reversals, and draft a two-page hypothesis summary with supporting plots for the science lead.
The tools that do the workLinuxMicrosoft PowerPointjob descriptionsO*NET
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Keeping the record1
Compile data and prepare reports
+Compile telemetry and atmospheric measurement products into the monthly mission report: merge instrument…
Compile data and prepare reports
+Compile telemetry and atmospheric measurement products into the monthly mission report: merge instrument flight logs, ground-truth radiosonde comparisons, and derived wind-shear statistics, produce executive summary and appendices, and send the completed PDF to Program Manager Luis Ortega by Wednesday.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft WordMicrosoft ExcelESCOjob descriptions
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Make1
Develop new data collection instruments
+Produce requirements and a build-ready specification for a low-cost upper-atmosphere aerosol sampler: define…
Develop new data collection instruments
+Produce requirements and a build-ready specification for a low-cost upper-atmosphere aerosol sampler: define inlet geometry, sensor placement, particle size range, data rate and manufacturing tolerances, and deliver CAD-ready schematics plus a test plan for the prototype next quarter.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft WordESCOjob descriptions
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The daily work17
Present findings to government agencies
+Present the mission analysis briefing on atmospheric escape rates, key uncertainty bounds, and recommended…
Present findings to government agencies
+Present the mission analysis briefing on atmospheric escape rates, key uncertainty bounds, and recommended observation slots to the Department of Defense and NASA program officers next Tuesday, attach the slide deck and data appendix, and request a one-hour discussion slot.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft PowerPointMicrosoft Outlookjob descriptions
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Investigate atmospheric loss due to solar wind
+Run the solar wind interaction study comparing proton flux events from 2015–2025 against observed neutral…
Investigate atmospheric loss due to solar wind
+Run the solar wind interaction study comparing proton flux events from 2015–2025 against observed neutral loss rates, produce a reproducible analysis file and a short report for the planetary plasma group by Friday, and flag any events needing follow-up observations.
The tools that do the workC++LinuxWikipedia
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Develop theories on atmospheric retention and loss
+Draft several testable hypotheses about why small planets retain thin atmospheres while similar bodies lose…
Develop theories on atmospheric retention and loss
+Draft several testable hypotheses about why small planets retain thin atmospheres while similar bodies lose them, include prior observational constraints, required measurements, and predicted signatures for each hypothesis, and circulate to the theory working group on Wednesday.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft WordWikipedia
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Evaluate the influence of magnetospheres on atmospheres
+Quantify how varying dipole strengths and plasma sheet dynamics change escape fluxes, generate comparative…
Evaluate the influence of magnetospheres on atmospheres
+Quantify how varying dipole strengths and plasma sheet dynamics change escape fluxes, generate comparative plots and a methods note, and send both to the magnetospheric modeling team and mission design by Monday for inclusion in the next proposal.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft ExcelIBM SPSS StatisticsWikipedia
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Study climate processes
+Assemble a concise climate-process review for the Venus analogue study: summarize radiative transfer,…
Study climate processes
+Assemble a concise climate-process review for the Venus analogue study: summarize radiative transfer, convective overturn, and photochemical coupling with citations, highlight measurement gaps, and send to the instrument team and principal investigator by Friday.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft WordMicrosoft PowerPointESCO
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Estimate or predict the effects of global warming over time for specific geographic regions.
+Estimate future regional climate impacts for the North Atlantic shipping lanes and the Gulf of Mexico by…
Estimate or predict the effects of global warming over time for specific geographic regions.
+Estimate future regional climate impacts for the North Atlantic shipping lanes and the Gulf of Mexico by running ensemble projections to 2050 under RCP4.5 and RCP8.5, quantify sea surface temperature, storm frequency, and sea level change with uncertainty bands, and produce a two‑page brief for program managers by next Wednesday.
The tools that do the workIBM SPSS StatisticsO*NET
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Analyze satellite imagery
+Analyze the latest multispectral satellite passes over the Sahara and Sahel from the last 48 hours, identify…
Analyze satellite imagery
+Analyze the latest multispectral satellite passes over the Sahara and Sahel from the last 48 hours, identify dust plumes, cloud tops and convective cells, produce geolocated masks and a short anomaly report for the ops team within four hours.
The tools that do the workLinuxjob descriptions
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Write Python scripts for data processing
+Write a Python data pipeline that ingests daily telemetry and radiance tables, applies quality flags,…
Write Python scripts for data processing
+Write a Python data pipeline that ingests daily telemetry and radiance tables, applies quality flags, recalibrates brightness temperatures, aggregates to 0.25° grids, and outputs NetCDF files and a CSV summary of missing data for the archive.
The tools that do the workLinuxjob descriptions
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Generate weather graphics for users
+Produce three user-ready weather graphics for mission control showing 48‑hour surface wind, cloud cover, and…
Generate weather graphics for users
+Produce three user-ready weather graphics for mission control showing 48‑hour surface wind, cloud cover, and precipitation probability for the launch corridor, formatted for 1920x1080 displays with source captions and a short captioned slide for tomorrow morning’s briefing.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft PowerPointMicrosoft Exceljob descriptions
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Calibrate remote sensing equipment
+Calibrate the thermal infrared sensor on the smallsat by scheduling the onboard blackbody runs, compute gain…
Calibrate remote sensing equipment
+Calibrate the thermal infrared sensor on the smallsat by scheduling the onboard blackbody runs, compute gain and offset corrections from the calibration sequence, update the instrument calibration table, and log the uncertainty estimates to the system record today.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft Exceljob descriptions
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Collaborate with environmental data analysts
+Coordinate with the environmental data analysts in Environmental Analytics Group to merge our orbital aerosol…
Collaborate with environmental data analysts
+Coordinate with the environmental data analysts in Environmental Analytics Group to merge our orbital aerosol optical depth time series with their surface station PM2.5 dataset, agree on harmonised QC rules, produce a merged file and a joint methods note by Friday.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft OutlookMicrosoft Exceljob descriptions
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Collect air samples from monitoring stations
+Collect air samples from the three rooftop monitoring stations at Cape Canaveral between 0600 and 0900…
Collect air samples from monitoring stations
+Collect air samples from the three rooftop monitoring stations at Cape Canaveral between 0600 and 0900 tomorrow, label bottles with station name and UTC time, record GPS and instrument serial numbers, verify chain-of-custody and upload sample log to the lab before 1200.
The tools that do the workLinuxjob descriptionsO*NET
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Prepare forecasts or briefings to meet the needs of industry, business, government, or other groups.
+Prepare a two-page operational forecast briefing for launch customers summarising upper-atmosphere winds,…
Prepare forecasts or briefings to meet the needs of industry, business, government, or other groups.
+Prepare a two-page operational forecast briefing for launch customers summarising upper-atmosphere winds, temperature profiles, and turbulence risk for launches on Thursday, include confidence bands and recommended T-0 windows, circulate to operations and payload teams by 1700 today.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft PowerPointMicrosoft ExcelO*NET
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Perform managerial duties, such as creating work schedules, creating or implementing staff training, matching staff expertise to situations, or analyzing performance of offices.
+Create next month's duty roster and a training plan matching technician experience to sensor maintenance…
Perform managerial duties, such as creating work schedules, creating or implementing staff training, matching staff expertise to situations, or analyzing performance of offices.
+Create next month's duty roster and a training plan matching technician experience to sensor maintenance tasks, flag gaps for immediate hire, run a two-week cross-training schedule starting Monday and send the plan to the mission manager and HR by Friday noon.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft ExcelMicrosoft OutlookO*NET
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Measure wind, temperature, and humidity in the upper atmosphere, using weather balloons.
+From Site Alpha, launch three helium balloons at 0500 on Saturday to profile temperature, humidity, and wind…
Measure wind, temperature, and humidity in the upper atmosphere, using weather balloons.
+From Site Alpha, launch three helium balloons at 0500 on Saturday to profile temperature, humidity, and wind to 30 km, verify radiosonde calibrations beforehand, log ascent rates and instrument IDs, and upload raw profile files to the central archive within four hours of launch.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft ExcelO*NET
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Teach college-level courses on topics such as atmospheric and space science, meteorology, or global climate change.
+Design a 10-week graduate course syllabus on atmospheric and space-weather coupling with weekly topics,…
Teach college-level courses on topics such as atmospheric and space science, meteorology, or global climate change.
+Design a 10-week graduate course syllabus on atmospheric and space-weather coupling with weekly topics, reading list, assessment methods, and two lab exercises, circulate the draft to the department chair and submit final copy by next Wednesday.
The tools that do the workMicrosoft WordO*NET
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Conduct wind assessment, integration, or validation studies.
+Run a wind assessment for the proposed launch corridor using last three years of sounding and lidar data,…
Conduct wind assessment, integration, or validation studies.
+Run a wind assessment for the proposed launch corridor using last three years of sounding and lidar data, validate model outputs against observed shear profiles, produce a concise report with recommendations for flight constraints by Tuesday EOD.
The tools that do the workIBM SPSS StatisticsMicrosoft ExcelO*NET
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