PhD Studentship: Solving the puzzle of contrasting Arctic and Antarctic sea ice changes

The global climate is unequivocally warming, but sea ice at both poles continues to surprise. Arctic sea-ice cover has remained relatively steady for the past ~20 years, following three decades of rapid decline. In the Antarctic, sea-ice cover remained stable for decades, but has declined dramatically since 2016. To explain the recent Arctic slowdown and Antarctic surge, and to avoid being taken by surprise again in the future, we need a deeper understanding of decadal sea-ice variability, its mechanisms and their representation in climate models.

This is important because changes in sea ice affect global climate and ecosystems, and credible sea ice predictions are needed for decision-making on climate change, biodiversity loss, and (inter)national security. You will be supported to co-design a project to address this research gap, that suits your interests and vision. You will apply innovative statistical methods (e.g., low-frequency component analysis, pattern recognition, emergent constraints) to observations and state-of-the-art climate models, to establish the processes that cause decadal sea-ice variability, the ability of climate models to represent these, and how they will respond to long-term climate change. You will gain skills in the following areas: weather and climate physics, oceanography, data analysis, numerical modelling, remote sensing, statistics, AI, and science communication.

You will benefit from the extensive training offered by the DLTP, Exeter, British Antarctic Survey, and Met Office; and on-the-job training provided by the supervisors, a designated post-doc ‘buddy’, and vibrant peer-to-peer support networks. You will join a small, well-established and productive team of leading UK and US scientists working on this topic (through an allied NERC-NSF funded project), which will provide a stimulating and supportive research environment, with opportunities for wider collaboration, including with stakeholders (e.g., UK government). You will also have opportunities to attend international conferences and training courses, some possibly in the Arctic.

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