PhD Student (f_m_x) to study climate change siatures in Earth rotation variations [english] in Potsdam bei Deutsches GeoForschungsZentrum GFZ

Reference Number 8997

We are searching for a PhD candidate to study Earth rotation variability as caused by large-scale mass transport processes in, e.g., atmosphere, oceans and the continental hydrosphere. The Earth’s orientation is one of the key observables in global geodesy reflecting changes in global water mass distribution. It is therefore directly related to climate processes. The successful candidate is expected to investigate both polar motion and length-of-day variations derived from various global model data-sets available at the GFZ. In cooperation with national and international partners as part of a working group of the International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service (IERS), she will analyse signatures of large-scale coupled climate modes in modelled mass variations with the particular aim to further improve the prediction of the Earth’s orientation at time-scales from days to several months into the future.

Your responsibilities:

• Investigate relationships between Earth rotation variations and climatic processes
• Calculate and evaluate Earth orientation changes from model simulations of atmospheric, oceanic, and hydrological mass variations
• Analysis of predictability of individual components of the climate system for polar motion and length-of-day changes
• Collaborative work in a highly interdisciplinary and international team
• Presentation of your results at international conferences and project meetings
• Publication of your results in international scientific journals

Your qualifications:

• M.Sc. degree in climate sciences, meteorology, geodesy, geophysics, physics, mathematics or a related field
• Experience in time series analysis and statistics
• Skills in scientific programming (e.g., Matlab, Python, R or others)
• Team-minded and problem-solving abilities
• Good command of the English language

What we offer:

• Ambitious and varied tasks in a dynamic and international research environment
• State-of-the-art equipment
• Public service benefits
• Extensive training opportunities
• Professional career advice offered by our in-house Career-Centre
• Flexible working hours and conditions
• Support with finding a good work-life balance offered by benefit@work
• Institute day-care centre on site
• Working at the Albert Einstein science park on the Telegrafenberg in Potsdam
• Work place within walking distance of Potsdam main train station, or just a short ride on the shuttle bus