Research Associate in Land Surface Modelling

Location: Silwood Park

Job Summary

The LEMONTREE project (www.imperial.ac.uk/news/217793/new-lemontree-project-aims-improve-earth) is developing a new generation of land-surface models designed to improve model simulations of the interactions between the land biosphere and climate.

LEMONTREE scientists carry out fundamental research on plant and ecosystem function using mathematical, computational and statistical tools. This advertisement is for a Research Associate in Land Surface Modelling, who will be responsible – in collaboration with a parallel role at the University of Reading – for the implementation of new model components developed by LEMONTREE, based on eco-evolutionaty optimality theory, in the JULES land surface model at the Met Office in Exeter and/or the CHTESSEL model at the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts in Reading. The position will form part of the group led by Professor Colin Prentice FRS, who is the Science Strategy Lead for LEMONTREE.

Duties and responsibilities

• You will implement new, parameter-sparse model components developed by LEMONTREE scientists for photosynthesis, respiration and transpiration by terrestrial ecosystems in the existing land surface model frameworks, and test their performance against standard benchmarks including eddy-covariance flux measurements.
• You will be actively engaged in international collaboration in the framework of the LEMONTREE Implementation working group.
• You will contribute to the training of early-career researchers in the LEMONTREE consortium, and help to develop a strategy to disseminate the project’s findings to the wider international land surface and climate modelling communities.

Essential requirements:

• Hold, or be near completion of, a PhD in climate science or a closely related discipline
• Extensive programming and computational experience, including FORTRAN programming and high-performance computing
• Practical experience in handling large global data sets
• Knowledge of applied mathematics and environmental physics at the required level for the role
• Broad, up-to-date knowledge of climate and land-surface modelling

Further Information

This is a full time, fixed-term position until 31^st December 2025. You will be based at Silwood Park Campus.

Candidates who have not yet been officially awarded their PhD will be appointed as a Research Assistant.

It will involve extensive collaboration with other groups in the international LEMONTREE consortium as well as close interactions with Professor Prentice’s research group and collaborators at Reading and elsewhere. We work flexibly, with many virtual meetings involving other LEMONTREE groups, but also monthly in-person meetings of the group at Silwood Park.

Candidates must fill in an online application form in order to be considered for the post. Please note this is a re-advertisement; previous applicants need not apply.

Should you require any further details on the role please contact Professor Prentice  (c.prentice@imperial.ac.uk).

Hybrid working may be considered for this role.  Staff working in roles that are suitable for hybrid working will normally be expected to work 60% of their time onsite. The opportunity for hybrid working will be discussed at interview.

More information is available on the following web page: Work Location Categories (from 30 September 2023) | Administration and support services | Imperial College London

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