Postdocotral fellow in carbon cycle modelling - Hiring in process/Finished, not possible to apply

Subject description
The Inverse Modelling group at the Department of Physical Geography and Ecosystem Science (INES), Lund University, together with the ICOS Carbon Portal seek a post-doctoral fellow to work on the quantification of biogenic and anthropogenic CO2 emissions based on assimilating relevant observational data.

Together with international collaborators the Inverse Modelling group develops and applies inverse modelling / data assimilation systems that employ a range of observations to constrain surface-atmosphere CO2 exchange fluxes. These systems are widely used in a variety of projects, in particular to the EU funded project CoCO2 (https://coco2-project.eu).

ICOS Carbon Portal, hosted by the same department, together with the ICOS central facilities and the scientific community, develops operational data products and services building on ICOS observations that analyse the state of the carbon cycle of Europe. These data products and services are built around state of the art computer models that need to be adapted to run at Carbon Portal and deliver results that inform scientists, policy makers and the general public.

Work duties
The main duties involved in a post-doctoral position is to conduct research. There will be no teaching duties during this fellowship. The position shall include the opportunity for three weeks of training in higher education teaching and learning.

The post-doctoral fellow shall perform the following duties:

• Carry out further development, testing and application of a fossil fuel data assimilation system (FFDAS), either stand alone or in a coupled carbon cycle data assimilation system (CCFFDAS)
• Conduct experiments to simultaneously study biogenic carbon cycling and anthropogenic fossil fuel emissions constrained by potential remotely sensed atmospheric CO2 concentrations with a focus on Europe
• Setting up and running a demonstrator of regional atmospheric inversion models for CO2 and connecting the input and output data pipelines to Carbon Portal
• (co-) Developing the user friendly interfaces that control the regular model updates and analyse the data products, targeted at scientists, the general public and policy makers

The research will be carried out at INES, Lund University with the possibility of international collaborative work with CoCO2 research partners. Participation in international meetings and workshops, and communication activities related to the research work is expected.

Qualification requirements
Appointment to a post-doctoral position requires that the applicant has a PhD, or an international degree deemed equivalent to a PhD, within the subject of the position, completed no more than three years before the date of employment decision. Under special circumstances, the doctoral degree can have been completed earlier.

Additional requirements:

• Excellent programming skills, preferably in Fortran and Python
• Expertise in the field of Carbon Cycle science and processes determining the fluxes of carbon dioxide and methane
• Experience with inversion modelling / data assimilation frameworks applied to the carbon cycle
• Skills in management of big data and the FAIR principles
• Very good oral and written proficiency in English

Assessment criteria and other qualifications
This is a career development position primarily focused on research. The position is intended as an initial step in a career, and the assessment of the applicants will primarily be based on their research qualifications and potential as researchers.

Particular emphasis will be placed on research skills within the subject.

For appointments to a post-doctoral position, the following shall form the assessment criteria:

• A good ability to develop and conduct high quality research.

Consideration will also be given to good collaborative skills, drive and independence, and how the applicant’s experience and skills complement and strengthen ongoing research within the department, and how they stand to contribute to its future development.

Terms of employment
This is a full-time, fixed-term employment of 3 years.
The period of employment is determined in accordance with the agreement “Avtal om tidsbegränsad anställning som postdoktor” (“Agreement on fixed-term employment as a post-doctoral fellow”) between Lund University, SACO-S and OFR/S , dated 2 February 2022.

Instructions on how to apply
Applications shall be written in English and be compiled into a PDF-file containing:

• résumé/CV, including a list of publications,
• a general description of past research and future research interests (no more than two pages),
• contact information of at least two references,
• copy of the doctoral degree certificate, and other certificates/grades that you wish to be considered.