Post-doctoral scientist position at the UCLouvain : Role of winds and oceanic interactions on sea ice changes in the Southern Ocean over the past millennium
Using a new reconstruction of sea ice extent and wind changes over the past millennium and sensitivity experiments performed with a climate model, the main objective of the project WINDSCOOP is to determine the impact at multi-decadal timescale of winds and oceanic processes on the sea ice cover. This will improve our understanding of the variability of the ice extent at this timescale and ultimately our ability to identify the origin of recent changes in sea ice extent and to predict future ones.
In this framework, applications are open for the following position:
Post-doctoral researcher
Starting date: 1st of September 2022 but can be negotiated Full time position for 24 months with possibility to extend to 36 months
Net monthly salary: 2300-2500 € (depending on seniority - this includes social insurance). Transportation to and from the workplace is covered. Location: Earth and Life Institute, Université catholique de Louvain, Belgium
The candidates must not have spent more than 2 years in Belgium over the last 3 years and should not have obtained their PhD more than 6 years before the starting date of the grant.
A new reconstruction of sea ice concentration and winds has been developed over the past months and is now available. The post-doctoral scientist will be responsible for an in-depth analysis of this reconstruction and to carry out sensitivity experiments with the ocean model NEMO driven by atmospheric reanalyses and with the climate model EcEarth. In particular, he/she will perform experiments in which the model winds will be nudged to observed winds. Both winds observations over the past decade and reconstructions for key periods of the past centuries will be used. Additional simulations in which the interactions with the ocean will be disabled will allow disentangling the direct contribution of the winds to sea ice changes from the one due to interactions with the ocean. On the basis on those experiments and analyses, the role of winds and of the feedbacks between ocean and sea ice in past and recent sea ice changes will be determined and quantified.
Required qualifications:
- To have a PhD in climatology or related field;
- To have published in peer-reviewed international journals;
- To have strong experience in programming and in managing large data sets;
- To have demonstrated good verbal and written communication skills in English;
- To have interest in working in a multidisciplinary team environment.
Previous experience in polar climate dynamics is an asset.
Applicants should send an e-mail to Hugues Goosse (hugues.goosse@uclouvain.be) (i) a statement of research experience, qualification and interest, (ii) a complete CV including a list of publications, and (iii) the name of two scientists who would agree to send a letter of recommendation
Review of the applications will start May 16th and the call will remain open until the position is filled.
PhD position in Critical Zone research (UCLouvain)
We are searching for one enthusiastic PhD student to become member of the LandSense research team:
“Pushing the boundaries of Critical Zone research: Unravelling hydrological controls on carbon and nutrient fluxes by integrating proximal sensing, field measurements and smart modelling” (https://sites.uclouvain.be/landsense/).
LandSense is a collaborative project between the Georges Lemaître Center for Earth & Climate Research (ELI-C, Professors Veerle Vanacker and Kristof Van Oost) and the Environmental Sciences pole (ELI-E, Professors Sébastien Lambot, Sophie Opfergelt) of the Earth & Life Institute (UCLouvain, Belgium) and the Earth Observation and Ecosystem Modelling laboratory (Professor François Jonard) of the University of Liège (ULiège, Belgium).
The LandSense project focuses on the spatio-temporal variation in soil hydrology and its controls on carbon and nutrients fluxes in hillslope-floodplain systems in both temperate and arctic regions. LandSense aims to improve the fundamental understanding of these key critical zone (CZ) processes and their interactions by collecting targeted measurements using advanced sensing methodologies (e.g., UAV-based sensors, geophysical instruments, LiDAR, spectroscopy) across spatial and hydrological gradients. This will be complemented with state-of-the-art chemical and isotopic characterizations, giving insights into the genesis and dynamics of the soil mantle. These observational insights will then be used to study process-feedbacks and inform coupled and integrated models of the CZ.
Within the frame of the LandSense project, the PhD topic is to develop an Integrated geophysical and geochemical approach to unravel the hydrological control on carbon and nutrient fluxes on an Arctic case study. The PhD student will quantify the impact of permafrost thaw on the relationships between soil topography, soil humidity, soil temperature, and C and nutrient fluxes. The PhD student will conduct research to (i) understand how the thaw depth, micro-topography and soil composition set the boundary conditions for soil water chemistry and (ii) discern the shorter-term effects related to soil moisture/temperature regimes, wet-dry cycles, freezethaw processes and soil water chemistry. To this end, high spatial and temporal data will be collected based on the combination of in-situ sensors and proximal (UAV) sensing.
The PhD student will receive a four-year PhD scholarship from UCLouvain. We welcome applications from motivated, curious students with experience in environmental research. Ideal candidates will have a MSc in geography, bioscience or civil engineering, hydrology and hydrogeophysics, or any related field; a strong quantitative and statistical background; excellent written and oral communication skills in English, an ability to work in field settings and interact with other members of the LandSense team; and interest in soil hydrology, C cycling and Earth Observation.
The Institution
The candidate will be hosted at the Earth and Life Institute (ELI) of the UCLouvain in Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium (https://uclouvain.be/en/research-institutes/eli). Additional information regarding UCLouvain can be found at http://www.uclouvain.be. The candidate will work under the supervision of Prof. Sophie Opfergelt and Prof. François Jonard.
Interested? The application should be sent in one single PDF including a motivation letter, a curriculum vitae (mentioning your study grades) and the names and contact details of two referees. The application deadline is August 31, 2022. The positions will remain open until filled by excellent candidates. Applications should be sent to landsense@uclouvain.be.
Postdoctoral fellowship on Arctic and Antarctic sea ice-ocean modelling (UCLouvain)
Global climate model simulations still have significant biases in the
extent of summer Arctic and Antarctic sea ice. One of the reasons is the
coarse resolution of the models, which forbids an adequate
representation of the processes that control the evolution of the ice
edge, such as the interactions between sea ice and oceanic eddies, the
influence of landfast ice, the role of coastal currents, the complex
bathymetry, ... In this context, the Georges Lemaître Centre for Earth
and Climate Research (TECLIM) / Earth and Life Institute (ELI) of the
Université catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain), Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
is seeking a postdoctoral fellow for conducting and comparing thoroughly
simulations with the global sea ice-ocean general circulation model
NEMO4-SI3 driven by an atmospheric reanalysis at two different
horizontal resolutions, namely 1° and 1/12°, in order to determine how
resolution impacts the model mean state and the model ability to
reproduce the summer sea ice extent record lows observed recently in
both the Arctic and Antarctic.
The successful candidate should have a PhD in ocean/sea ice modelling or
related fields, and should have published in peer-reviewed scientific
international journals. Experience in polar oceanography/glaciology is
an asset. Advanced programming, post-processing and data
managment/analysis skills are required. He/she should be fluent in
English due to the multiple interactions planned with other members of
TECLIM and should have demonstrated ability in team working.
The position is offered for 24 months, from September-October 2022 (the
exact starting date can be negociated). Note that it is only accessible
to researchers who did not spend the last 2 years in a Belgian lab and
who have less than 6-yr experience after their PhD thesis defense. The
net monthly salary (incl. social insurance) will amount to 2550-2750
EUR, depending on seniority. Public transportation to and from the
workplace will be covered.
Applicants should send by e-mail to Thierry Fichefet
(thierry.fichefet@uclouvain.be) (i) a statement of research experience,
qualification and interest, (ii) a complete CV, including a list of
publications, and (iii) the name of two scientists who would agree to
write a letter of recommendation. Review of the applications will start
on June 15th. The call will remain open until the position is filled.
One Postdoctoral researcher (2 years) position, on “Sustainable sourcing policies for biodiversity protection, climate mitigation, and improved livelihoods in the cocoa sector”
Researchers will contribute to the Biodiversa SUSTAIN-COCOA project on “Sustainable sourcing policies for biodiversity protection, climate mitigation, and improved livelihoods in the cocoa sector”, a collaboration between ETH-Zurich, SEI-Stockholm, UCLouvain, Alliance for Biodiversity and CIAT, and University of Queensland.
The UCLouvain – SEI team is led by Profs Patrick Meyfroidt and Goedele Van den Broeck, and Dr Erasmus zu Ermgassen at UCLouvain, and Dr. Toby Gardner at SEI.
Contracts will be based on Belgian regulations, depending on prior research experience, and will include the benefits of Belgian social security such as health insurance.
Candidates should submit a CV, a cover letter detailing qualifications and research interests, and names and contacts of three referees to:
Prof. Patrick Meyfroidt - patrick.meyfroidt@uclouvain.be
The review of applications will start on June 24, 2022.