PhD position at ETH Zurich in paleo-ice sheet modelling

Published: Oct 13, 2015 by The PISM Authors

See the official position announcement here.

We are looking for a candidate who is interested in taking part in the research project “Modelling the ice flow in the western Alps during the last glacial cycle” which is a joint initiative between ETH Zurich and the University of Bern (Prof. Christoph Raible and Dr. Juan Jose Gomez-Navarro). The objective is to better understand the chronology of the last glaciation over the Alps via a modelling approach. The core of this doctoral research will be to model the ice flow and the glacial extent in the western Alps during the last glacial cycle. For that purpose, the PhD student will set up and run the Parallel Ice Sheet Model (PISM) on the clusters of the Swiss National Supercomputing Centre. The crucial step in setting up in PISM will be to include high-resolution climate simulation results, which will be conducted at the University of Bern. The combination of the two state-of-the-art models (ice flow and climate) will give a new insight of the ice flow field prevailing in the western Alpine region during some periods of interest like the last glacial maximum (22000 BP) and an earlier period (65000 BP). The final goal of the PhD will be to compare the new model results to the geomorphological evidence left on the Swiss landscape during the last glacial cycle (e.g. moraines, erratic boulders) in collaboration with quaternary geologists of EHT Zurich. The PhD student will be supervised by Dr. Guillaume Jouvet and Prof. Martin Funk.

The ideal candidate has a master degree either in geophysics, earth sciences, physics, applied mathematics, computer science, or a related field, and a keen interest in modelling of geophysical processes. Previous experience in computer modelling and scientific programming languages (C/C++, Python, Matlab) is an asset. Good writing and communication skills as well as the motivation to fruitfully collaborate within an interdisciplinary framework are essential, in particular with our climate modelling partners at the University of Bern.

For additional information please refer to www.glaciology.ethz.ch or contact Dr. Guillaume Jouvet, jouvet@vaw.baug.ethz.ch (no applications).

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