Boundary Layer Postdoctoral Fellow I
Job Title: Boundary Layer Postdoctoral Fellow I
Position Term: 1-Year, with the possibility of extension. This position is available for a qualified applicant to start right away.
Relocation: Relocation assistance is available for this position.
Work Authorization: UCAR|NCAR will not sponsor a visa for this position.
Where You Will Work: Located in Boulder, Colorado, the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) is one of the world’s premier scientific institutions, with an internationally recognized staff and research program dedicated to advancing knowledge, providing community-based resources, and building human capacity in the atmospheric and related sciences. NCAR is sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and managed by the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR).
Formed in 2005, the Earth Observing Laboratory (EOL) the is one of the seven laboratories of NCAR, the National Science Foundation’s Federally Funded Research and Development Center. EOL's mission is to provide leadership in observing facilities, field project support as well as research and data services needed to advance the scientific understanding of the Earth system. EOL manages the majority of NSF’s Lower Atmosphere Observing Facilities (LAOF) and deploys them in support of observational field campaigns, ranging from single investigator projects to large complex campaigns that involve multiple investigators, agencies, and platforms, nationally and internationally. EOL deploys its systems for research by scientists from universities, NCAR, and government agencies, as well as for education. An integral part of EOL’s mission is to develop the next generation of LAOF and to provide management and archiving of data from past supported campaigns. In order to ensure progress in the atmospheric sciences, EOL supports a wide-range of research areas within the Earth system science, ranging from microscale to mesoscale to climate process studies, and employs LAOF platforms and systems that reach from the surface of the Earth to the lower stratosphere and beyond.
EOL's In-Situ Sensing Facility (ISF) provides measurements made directly in the environment as well as profiling measurements of the lower atmosphere. ISF aims to serve the advanced observational needs of the atmospheric science community by providing a flexible, state-of-the-art backbone measurement capability applicable to a wide range of experimental needs - emphasizing advanced sensor capabilities, sensor integration, system mobility, and the ability to deploy to remote or difficult locations.
EOL's Remote Sensing Facility's (RSF) mission is to serve the observational needs of the atmospheric science community by developing and deploying state-of-the-art radar and lidar instrumentation. RSF is committed to providing and analyzing cross-cutting measurements in interdisciplinary research thereby continuing EOL's leadership in the discipline of remote sensing. The combination of ground-based scanning and airborne remote sensors provides measurements of atmospheric parameters essential for realization of the societal and scientific benefits outlined in the EOL Strategic Plan. These high-resolution, large-domain, remotely-sensed observations of clear air and precipitation are otherwise unobtainable. For more information on EOL please see the Join Our Team page.
What You Will Do: To acquire post-graduate research experience by conducting boundary-layer research and assisting in the design of the Lower Troposphere Observing System (LOTOS), a new observing system for study of the atmospheric Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL) that is currently under development in the NCAR Earth Observing Laboratory. Research will be defined and directed by an EOL staff member and includes predefined research objectives and deliverables as well as occasional participation in field projects to gain broader experience with EOL instrumentation.
Responsibilities:
Helps to design and build LOTOS by engaging in several activities that may include:
• Interacting with the NSF research community, at society meetings or other venues, to refine the observational goals and thus instrument selection for LOTOS.
• Working with the LOTOS team to identify capabilities required for scanning radar and lidar observations to probe the PBL, to guide selection of the number and types of radars to be included in LOTOS.
• Working with the LOTOS team to investigate the feasibility of using GPS tomography for the retrieval of the three-dimensional (3D) distribution of the PBL water vapor field.
• Working with the LOTOS team to define integrative data products and displays for LOTOS observations.
• Scoping the effort to develop quality control software tools for each type of LOTOS observation.
• Contributing to development of proposals to fund LOTOS, potentially leading development in some areas.
• Working with the unmanned aircraft system (UAS) community to identify partnerships for expanding LOTOS observations.
Defines LOTOS lidar scanning strategies, by writing a lidar simulator for sampling Large Eddy Simulation (LES) output. Adaptive scanning strategies may be included. Evaluates this simulator (and the underlying LES) using lidar data from past EOL field campaigns.
Prepare results for publication in peer-reviewed journals and for presentations at meetings and conferences. Prepare and deliver summary reports or project progress reports as needed.
What You Need:
Education and Years of Experience: Ph.D in atmospheric science, oceanography, hydrology, mathematics, statistics or a related area obtained within the last 5 years.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:
● Knowledge of PBL dynamics, including surface fluxes, time evolution of unstable and stable boundary layers, entrainment fluxes, and effects of complex terrain.
● Working knowledge of high-end programming languages, such as Python, Matlab, R.
● Experience working with time series, time/height, or volume scan data.
● Demonstrated skill in oral and written communication.
● Ability to work independently and as part of a diverse, multi-cultural research team.
Desired but not required:
● Working knowledge of instrument data quality issues.
● Exposure to using atmospheric model output.
Applicant Notes:
- Please note that while the position description details both minimum requirements as well as desired skills and experience, we want to remind applicants that you do not need to have all the desired skills and experience to be considered for this role. If you have the passion for the work along with experience in a related field, you are encouraged to apply. We can provide on-the-job training for the rest.
- All newly hired employees are subject to pre-employment screening.
- Personally Identifiable Information" (PII) is non-public information that is personally identifiable to a single individual. PII may include information such as name, address, email address, phone number, social security number, passport number, credit card information, and other related information. You may be required to enter or submit your PII to a third party on behalf of UCAR for the purpose of identity verification in order to conduct transactions as part of this position. You may also be required to handle PII of UCAR employees as part of performing the requirements of this position.