PhD Case award at the University of Leeds

A NERC fully funded PhD CASE AWARD at the University of Leeds in collaboration with the Met Office, available immediately.

Application Deadline: 7 June 2013

This fully-funded award is available from October 2013 (or before) for a UK/EU candidate. It is based in one of the foremost climate change research groups in the country and supported by the Met Office.  You would be based at Leeds and regularly visit the Met Office.

Supervisors: Professor Piers Forster, Professor Douglas Parker with Dr Timothy Andrews (Met Office)

The award pays all fees, lab and travel costs. It also pays a tax-free stipend of £13,726 annually. As part of the CASE award the student receives an additional £1500 each year from the Met Office, plus £1250 on completion of the thesis.

For further information see: http://www.see.leeds.ac.uk/admissions-and-study/research-degrees/icas/forsterandparker2/

To apply please contact Michelle Lesnianski, m.lesnianski@leeds.ac.uk or visit http://www.see.leeds.ac.uk/admissions-and-study/research-degrees/how-to-apply/.

For informal enquiries, please contact Professor Piers Forster p.m.forster@leeds.ac.uk

Research background and aims: Rainfall forecasts are one of the most uncertain elements of climate change prediction. For many locations current climate models do not even agree whether it will get wetter or drier. Understanding the Earth’s energy budget has proved very useful for predicting large scale changes to the Earth’s temperature. The aim of the project would be to extend the energy budget understanding and approach to regional changes, combining with weather-based process studies to develop a new theory for understanding how we might expect local precipitation to change in the future.

Objectives: The objectives are aligned with the student’s development and interests in mind. To begin, pre-existing climate model simulations (CMIP5) could be utilized to develop the students understanding of climate models and the tools required to analyse complex data. Various hypotheses could be tested.  For example, how well does regional rainfall scale with global and local temperature change on various timescales? Can any of the inter-model spread in projected patterns of rainfall changes be related to known uncertainty in their global temperature response (climate sensitivity)? Are other uncertainties more important for regional rainfall, such as uncertainties in forcing and dynamical responses?  Does the energy budget approach provide a link between robust high cloud feedbacks in the tropics and the patterns of rainfall change?

Potential for high impact outcome: This PhD project uses the existing world leading expertise within the School of Environment at the University of Leeds and at the Met Office to address arguably one of the biggest uncertainties in climate change. By developing new theory as well as running and analysing state of the art climate model results, it will have the potential to have a major effect on climate science.

Requirements: A good first degree (1 or high 2i), or a good Masters degree in a physical or mathematical discipline, such as mathematics, physics, geophysics, engineering or meteorology. Experience with computing under a Linux operating system is of advantage.