CSIRO Postdoctoral Fellowship - Climate regimes

• Are you a highly motivated recent (or near) PhD graduate with expertise in Applied Mathematics, Theoretical Physics or Geophysical Fluid Dynamics?
• Prestigious Postdoctoral Fellowship on offer - kick-start your research career
• Join CSIRO's Ocean & Atmosphere world leading team of researchers

The Position

Postdoctoral Fellowships at CSIRO provide opportunities to scientists and engineers, who have completed their doctorate and have less than three years relevant postdoctoral work experience. These fellowships will help launch their careers, provide experience that will enhance their career prospects, and facilitate the recruitment and development of potential leaders for CSIRO.

This position will contribute to the CSIRO Decadal climate forecast project team by investigating the changing characteristics of coupled ocean-atmosphere regimes at time scales from synoptic to inter-decadal. There remain many unanswered fundamental questions as to the causal relationships between the various dynamical climate modes and how those relationships influence the frequency and intensity of extremes. Causality is of primary importance as it is defined in terms of the predictability of the climate states and regimes at any given time. Current climate time series analysis methods are largely based on analysis of empirical climate teleconnection indices and assumptions of statistical stationarity. 

In order to study the predictability and causality of regimes in weather and climate systems, you will use 1) dynamical systems theory to understand the relationship between extremes and local attractors and 2) novel nonstationary nonparametric timeseries analysis methods applied to forecast model and observational data. 

Your duties will include:

• Working closely with the climate forecast team leader, carry out innovative, impactful research of strategic importance to CSIRO that will, where possible, lead to novel and important scientific outcomes.
• Carry out fundamental and innovative research on the causal relationships and predictability of the drivers of climate variability and regimes.
• Engage and collaborate with the CSIRO decadal prediction project.
• Use theory, coupled climate model simulations and observations to explore and understand key dynamics of the ocean-atmosphere coupling that results in climate predictability on multi-year time scales.

Location: Hobart, TAS
Salary: AU $80K - $91K plus up to 15.4% superannuation
Tenure: Specified term of 3 years
Reference: 56622

To be successful you will need:

• A completed or submitted PhD in either applied mathematics, theoretical physics or fluid dynamics with a strong academic record and demonstrated publications of relevance to the position.
• Specific expertise in time series analysis and or dynamical systems theory.
• Advanced computational skills including code development and shell scripting.
• The ability to work effectively as part of a multi-disciplinary, regionally dispersed research team, plus the motivation and discipline to carry out autonomous research.
• A record of science innovation and creativity, plus the ability & willingness to incorporate novel ideas and approaches into scientific investigations.

How to Apply:

Please upload one document only containing both your CV/Resume and cover letter providing enough information relevant to this position to enable the selection panel to determine your suitability. If your application proceeds to the next stage you may be asked to provide additional information.

Applications will close on Sunday 20 May, 2018

Who we are:

The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).


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