Postdoctoral Scholar – Terrain-Modified Cloud Research

1 June 2024 - 31 October 2024

The Department of Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Washington is seeking a Postdoctoral Scholar to study how large-scale transport of upstream properties and terrain-modified cloud and mesoscale processes affect wintertime orographic precipitation during The Snow Sensitivity to Clouds in a Mountain Environment (S2noCliME) Field Campaign in the Park Range of Colorado.

Simulations with the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model (or a similar framework) will be used to simulate storms during the field campaign, including higher resolution large eddy simulations with WRF-LES that resolve finer features of the flow around the terrain.  The postdoc will evaluate the fidelity of the simulations and use them to address questions about the relative roles of upstream conditions (e.g., moisture and aerosols), large-scale meteorology and mesoscale flowfield and cloud processes in producing the observed snowfall during S2noCLIME. The field phase of the project will be in Winter 2025 at the Storm Peak Laboratory at Steamboat Springs ski area in CO. There will be an opportunity to participate in the field during the data collection period from December 1st, 2024 – March 31st, 2025.