PhD Position on Climate Dynamics

Join the Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research Utrecht (IMAU) and research the interactions between the Atlantic ocean circulation and the Amazon Rainforest.

Your job

The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) and the Amazon rainforest play important roles in the Earth’s climate system. Both of these subsystems have been marked as tipping elements and global climate change seems to push both to their tipping point. While both subsystems have been studied in isolation, it is yet largely unknown how they may interact and affect each other’s tipping behaviour. For example, an AMOC collapse could redistribute rainfall across the Amazon and thereby affect its internal forest-rainfall feedback. Conversely, changes in forest cover distributions would affect the energy and water balances in the Amazon, which might affect the AMOC. With this PhD position at IMAU, and another PhD project at the Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, we aim to improve our understanding of the coupling between these important climate subsystems, using models of different complexity and a combination of mathematical, numerical and data analysis methods. You can find the other vacancy at PhD Position in the Field of Climate Tipping.The AMOC plays an important role in the global climate system, influencing temperature and rainfall patterns globally. A collapse of the AMOC would dramatically change Earth’s climate, leading for example in cooling of Europe, changes in the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) and precipitation changes in the Amazon rainforest. At IMAU, the potential of tipping of the AMOC has been studied for many years using, amongst others, models of different complexity, ranging from conceptual box models to state-of-the-art Global Climate Models (GCMs).

The Amazon rainforest is the world’s largest rainforest. It contributes to massive amounts of CO2 storage and rainfall production for South America. Amazon dieback could be dramatic for the continent, but might also have global effects. For instance, it could lead to additional atmospheric CO2, changes in moisture transport into and/or out of the region, and alterations to large-scale atmospheric circulation patterns. At the Copernicus Institute, the Amazon rainforest and its spatially cascading transitions have been studied for years using custom made data analysis and modelling methods.

Within the NWO-Summit project EMBRACER, two PhD candidates will build synergies between the approaches taken at IMAU and the Copernicus Institute and address AMOC-Amazon interactions in detail, in particular the role of atmospheric teleconnections and of changing spatial heterogeneities in both the AMOC and the Amazon. In the specific sub-project at IMAU, existing GCM simulations in which AMOC undergoes a collapse will be analysed to understand its effects on Amazon rainforest, collapse, and similarly understand the effects of Amazon removal on the AMOC. Based on these results, specific aspects of AMOC-Amazon interactions will be studied, by performing dedicated GCM simulations.

Your qualities

We are looking for inspiring and driven candidates who have:

• a MSc in physics, applied mathematics, meteorology, geosciences or a related field;
• excellent skills in scientific programming and numerical / statistical analysis of simulated and observed data;
• basic knowledge of (geophysical) fluid dynamics;
• excellent writing and communication skills;
• experience with climate modelling (considered an advantage).

Selection will be made solely based on qualifications without regard to gender, religion or national origin. Disabled applicants with comparable qualifications will be given preference. Candidates should be able to demonstrate motivation, a strong eagerness to learn, and the ability to work both independently and as part of a team.

Our offer

We offer:

• a position for four years;
• a working week of 38 hours and a gross monthly salary between €2,901 and €3,707 (salary scale P under the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (CAO NU));
• 8% holiday pay and 8.3% year-end bonus;
• a pension scheme, partially paid parental leave and flexible terms of employment based on the CAO NU.