VU University Amsterdam Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences
Amsterdam, 1081 (Noord-Holland), hours per week
Job description
At the department of Paleoclimatology & Geomorphology of the Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences, VU University Amsterdam, there is a vacancy for a 4-year PhD research candidate. The research project, entitled “Quantifying the role of permafrost in climate change by means of numerical modelling and evaluation using present-day process measurement data and the geological archive” is carried out in collaboration with the department of Hydrology and Geo-environmental Sciences and is subsidized by the Dutch Science Foundation (NWO). The project is part of an international effort with the Universities of Louvain-la-Neuve and Brussels (Belgium) and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (Germany), to develop the LOVECLIM earth system model.
Project summary
About 24% of the Earth’s current land surface is occupied by permafrost, which is defined as soil that remains below 0°C for two or more years. Model studies indicate that widespread permafrost degradation may occur in the 21st century as a response to anthropogenic climate warming. Especially in areas where the mean temperature is close to the freezing point, the expected changes are large. This permafrost degradation potentially has a large impact on human society in regions with permafrost, for instance leading to damage to infrastructures and buildings. In addition, thawing of permafrost could influence the climate system through several feedbacks. First, the emission of greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane) will increase from permafrost regions, resulting in a further enhancement of the greenhouse effect. Second, permafrost thawing has a strong influence on the surface hydrology, with several effects on climate. The precise impact of these two feedbacks is rather uncertain.
Requirements
Required education/skills:University Graduate
An improved quantification of the contribution requires computations with numerical climate models that explicitly include frozen-soil processes. Some of these processes are relatively slow (e.g., the thawing of ice-rich permafrost can take thousands of years), implying that these climate models have to be suitable to perform millennial-scale simulation experiments. This project aims to improve an existing earth system model of intermediate complexity by incorporating the two mentioned effects of permafrost. As a first step, the model is tested and improved using present-day measurements of greenhouse gas emissions, local climate and hydrology from permafrost regions. Subsequently, the model is used to perform transient simulations of past periods with rapid climate change (Dansgaard-Oeschger cycles and last deglaciation). For these periods there exists ample evidence of permafrost degradation/aggradation. The paleoclimate simulations are evaluated using proxy data. This project enables us to quantify the contribution of permafrost to climate change on various time scales.
Tasks of the PhD student
The PhD research candidate will study the role of permafrost in climate change at various time-scales using a numerical climate model and model-data comparisons. She/he will improve the land-surface scheme of an existing climate model by explicitly incorporating permafrost processes. The PhD research candidate will run this model for rapid climate transitions during the last glacial period, the modern climate and future scenarios.
Job requirements
An MSc in Earth Sciences, Physical Geography, Physics or Meteorology (or in a related field). The PhD research candidate is required to have experience in computer programming and an interest in paleoclimatology. The PhD research candidate needs to be proficient in spoken and written English.
Job type: Research / Advising
Workfield(s):
- Post-doctorates(Scientific discipline: Natural Sciences)
Organization
VU University Amsterdam
Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences
Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, has been a renowned cultural, scientific and commercial centre for many centuries. It was here, in 1880, that the VU University Amsterdam first opened its doors to students. VU stands for 'Vrije Universiteit', which means 'Free University'. Here, 'free' refers to freedom of state and church interference. Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam was established in 1880 by orthodox protestants. Nowadays it aims to be inspiring, innovative and involved.
Throughout the past century, the university has continued to expand. It now comprises twelve faculties and has teaching facilities for 18,000 students.
Click here for an overview of faculties and institutes: http://www.english.vu.nl/About_the_VU/
The university campus and university hospital are situated in the south-western part of Amsterdam, one of the most dynamic and fast-growing business districts in the Netherlands. The international airport of Schiphol-Amsterdam is 10 kilometres away, just 8 minutes by train. With more than fifty undergraduate (or bachelor’s) programmes and almost a hundred postgraduate (or master’s) programmes, the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam offers a wide choice of study options. The programmes are of a high quality, the atmosphere is very conducive to study, and the teaching staff is easily accessible.
The Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences is the result of the merger between the former Faculty of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Biology and the Institute of Environmental Studies. The Faculty is offering education and doing research in the fields of:
Earth Sciences (physical geography and geology)
Biology
Biomedical Sciences
Geoarchaeology
Public Health
Environmental Studies
Conditions of employment
Employment basis: Temporary for specified period
Duration of the contract: temporary
Additional conditions of employment:
The appointment will initially be for 12 months starting preferably spring 2008. After a successful evaluation the contract will be prolonged with 36 months. The employment will have to result in a written PhD thesis by the end of this period. Our fringe benefits of employment can be found at www.vu.nl/vacatures.
Salary
The salary is according to the standards for PhD researchers. Gross monthly salary starts at € 2.000,- during the first year and increases to € 2.558,- during the fourth year, based on a full-time employment.
Additional Information
Additional information can be obtained through one of the following links:
You can apply for this job before 15-04-2008 (dd-mm-yyyy) by sending your application to:
VU University Amsterdam
Faculty Earth and Life Sciences
Dr.J.M.R.M. Neutelings
De Boelelaan 1085
1081 HV Amsterdam
The Netherlands
E-mail: falw-vacatures@falw.vu.nl
When applying for this job always mention the vacancynumber 1.2008.00062.
Job description
At the department of Paleoclimatology & Geomorphology of the Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences, VU University Amsterdam, there is a vacancy for a 4-year PhD research candidate. The research project, entitled “Quantifying the role of permafrost in climate change by means of numerical modelling and evaluation using present-day process measurement data and the geological archive” is carried out in collaboration with the department of Hydrology and Geo-environmental Sciences and is subsidized by the Dutch Science Foundation (NWO). The project is part of an international effort with the Universities of Louvain-la-Neuve and Brussels (Belgium) and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (Germany), to develop the LOVECLIM earth system model.
Project summary
About 24% of the Earth’s current land surface is occupied by permafrost, which is defined as soil that remains below 0°C for two or more years. Model studies indicate that widespread permafrost degradation may occur in the 21st century as a response to anthropogenic climate warming. Especially in areas where the mean temperature is close to the freezing point, the expected changes are large. This permafrost degradation potentially has a large impact on human society in regions with permafrost, for instance leading to damage to infrastructures and buildings. In addition, thawing of permafrost could influence the climate system through several feedbacks. First, the emission of greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, methane) will increase from permafrost regions, resulting in a further enhancement of the greenhouse effect. Second, permafrost thawing has a strong influence on the surface hydrology, with several effects on climate. The precise impact of these two feedbacks is rather uncertain.
Requirements
Required education/skills:University Graduate
An improved quantification of the contribution requires computations with numerical climate models that explicitly include frozen-soil processes. Some of these processes are relatively slow (e.g., the thawing of ice-rich permafrost can take thousands of years), implying that these climate models have to be suitable to perform millennial-scale simulation experiments. This project aims to improve an existing earth system model of intermediate complexity by incorporating the two mentioned effects of permafrost. As a first step, the model is tested and improved using present-day measurements of greenhouse gas emissions, local climate and hydrology from permafrost regions. Subsequently, the model is used to perform transient simulations of past periods with rapid climate change (Dansgaard-Oeschger cycles and last deglaciation). For these periods there exists ample evidence of permafrost degradation/aggradation. The paleoclimate simulations are evaluated using proxy data. This project enables us to quantify the contribution of permafrost to climate change on various time scales.
Tasks of the PhD student
The PhD research candidate will study the role of permafrost in climate change at various time-scales using a numerical climate model and model-data comparisons. She/he will improve the land-surface scheme of an existing climate model by explicitly incorporating permafrost processes. The PhD research candidate will run this model for rapid climate transitions during the last glacial period, the modern climate and future scenarios.
Job requirements
An MSc in Earth Sciences, Physical Geography, Physics or Meteorology (or in a related field). The PhD research candidate is required to have experience in computer programming and an interest in paleoclimatology. The PhD research candidate needs to be proficient in spoken and written English.
Job type: Research / Advising
Workfield(s):
- Post-doctorates(Scientific discipline: Natural Sciences)
Organization
VU University Amsterdam
Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences
Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, has been a renowned cultural, scientific and commercial centre for many centuries. It was here, in 1880, that the VU University Amsterdam first opened its doors to students. VU stands for 'Vrije Universiteit', which means 'Free University'. Here, 'free' refers to freedom of state and church interference. Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam was established in 1880 by orthodox protestants. Nowadays it aims to be inspiring, innovative and involved.
Throughout the past century, the university has continued to expand. It now comprises twelve faculties and has teaching facilities for 18,000 students.
Click here for an overview of faculties and institutes: http://www.english.vu.nl/About_the_VU/
The university campus and university hospital are situated in the south-western part of Amsterdam, one of the most dynamic and fast-growing business districts in the Netherlands. The international airport of Schiphol-Amsterdam is 10 kilometres away, just 8 minutes by train. With more than fifty undergraduate (or bachelor’s) programmes and almost a hundred postgraduate (or master’s) programmes, the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam offers a wide choice of study options. The programmes are of a high quality, the atmosphere is very conducive to study, and the teaching staff is easily accessible.
The Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences is the result of the merger between the former Faculty of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Biology and the Institute of Environmental Studies. The Faculty is offering education and doing research in the fields of:
Earth Sciences (physical geography and geology)
Biology
Biomedical Sciences
Geoarchaeology
Public Health
Environmental Studies
Conditions of employment
Employment basis: Temporary for specified period
Duration of the contract: temporary
Additional conditions of employment:
The appointment will initially be for 12 months starting preferably spring 2008. After a successful evaluation the contract will be prolonged with 36 months. The employment will have to result in a written PhD thesis by the end of this period. Our fringe benefits of employment can be found at www.vu.nl/vacatures.
Salary
The salary is according to the standards for PhD researchers. Gross monthly salary starts at € 2.000,- during the first year and increases to € 2.558,- during the fourth year, based on a full-time employment.
Additional Information
Additional information can be obtained through one of the following links:
- About the organization (http://www.vu.nl)
- About the department (http://www.falw.vu.nl/english/index.cfm)
- About the function (http://www.vu.nl/vacatures)
You can apply for this job before 15-04-2008 (dd-mm-yyyy) by sending your application to:
VU University Amsterdam
Faculty Earth and Life Sciences
Dr.J.M.R.M. Neutelings
De Boelelaan 1085
1081 HV Amsterdam
The Netherlands
E-mail: falw-vacatures@falw.vu.nl
When applying for this job always mention the vacancynumber 1.2008.00062.
