Postdoctoral Research Associate – Pan-Arctic Earth System Modeler

12 December 2024 - 31 January 2025

Are you interested in improving the ability of Earth system models to simulate energy, water, carbon, and biogeochemical cycles in the Arctic? The Next Generation Ecosystem Experiments in the Arctic (NGEE Arctic) project at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has a position open now for a postdoctoral researcher with a background in multiscale modeling and model-data integration. The goal for this position is to apply knowledge gained over the past twelve years from multiple intensively studied field sites in Alaska to the development and evaluation of new land processes in an Earth system model at the pan-Arctic scale.

You will work as an integral part of the large and collaborative NGEE Arctic team and will play a critical role in integrating new Arctic ecosystem process knowledge into the DOE’s Energy Exascale Earth System Model (E3SM). As the NGEE Arctic project moves into its fourth and final phase the science focus is on improved process representation at multiple spatial scales up to and including the pan-Arctic. Multiple process representations have already been developed and evaluated, independently, at site scales. In Phase 4 we will explore the integrated system behavior with all new process representations operating together. The processes being explored include:

• Improved representation of fractional inundated area under the influence of permafrost thaw in polygonal tundra
• Lateral water transport down hillslopes in regions of continuous and discontinuous permafrost
• Interactions among snow, vegetation, and permafrost during accumulation and melt periods
• New vegetation physiology parameterizations for arctic tundra plant types
• Dynamic tundra vegetation biogeography in response to changing climate
• Improved representation of soil biogeochemical processes in frequently inundated tundra ecosystems