Post Doctoral Research Associate in the School of Physical Sciences

at  The Open University UK

Post Doctoral Research Associate in the School of Physical Sciences
Advert Reference Number: 552
Job Location: Milton Keynes, Remote/Hybrid
Department: School of Physical Sciences
Salary: £37,999 to £45,163
Closing Date: 12th February 2025
Weekly Working Hours: 37
Contract Type: Fixed Term Contract
Fixed Term Contract: End Date: 31st January 2027
Welsh Language: Not Applicable
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SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

Essential:

• A PhD in atmospheric physics, or a closely related field
• Excellent knowledge and experience of planetary atmospheric science
• Experience in running planetary atmospheric climate models
• Experience in Fortran or Python programming
• A track record of peer-reviewed journal publications commensurate with career stage
• Ability to communicate research results effectively as demonstrated by a record of conference talks and posters commensurate with career stage
• Good oral and written communication skills
• Good reporting and data presentation skills
• The ability to work as part of a team and under your own initiative.

Desirable:

• A broad understanding of the key physical processes/science questions of relevance to the Venusian atmosphere
• Experience in data assimilation techniques
• Experience in testing and validating atmospheric models against spacecraft observations

For any queries regarding the scientific aspects of the role, please contact Dr James Holmes (james.holmes@open.ac.uk). For queries relating to the application process, please email your query through to careers@open.ac.uk quoting the reference number and job title.

ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS

To apply for this role please submit the following;
CV and personal statement, up to 1,000 words, you should set out in your personal statement why you’re interested in this role and provide examples of where your skills and experience meet the essential and desirable criteria for this role as detailed above.
Work location
It is anticipated that a hybrid working pattern can be adopted for this role, where you can work from home and the office. However, as this role is contractually aligned to our Milton Keynes office it is expected that you will attend the office at least two days per week, and in response to business needs.
Flexible working
We are open to discussions about flexible working. Whether it’s a part time, compressed hours or another working arrangement. Please reach out to us to discuss what works best for you.
Early Close: We reserve the right to close adverts sooner than the closing date.

ABOUT THE ROLE

This post is funded through STFC Consolidated Grant funding to develop and perform experiments with a Venus Global Climate Model in preparation for future missions. The role holder will contribute to the Faculty’s research objectives by having responsibility for undertaking numerical modelling research relating to planetary atmospheres.
The upcoming ESA EnVision mission to Venus, launching in 2032, carries a payload that will search for thermal, morphological, and gaseous signs of volcanic and other geological activity on Venus. Despite numerous observations of Venus to date, the presence of a thick cloud barrier means it remains unknown whether the variable presence of sulfur species in the upper atmosphere of Venus is a sign of past or present volcanic activity. This ambitious project seeks to investigate atmospheric signatures of active volcanism on Venus and determine whether it is possible to link unambiguously the presence of sulfur species in the upper atmosphere with active volcanism through remote sensing observations. The role will involve the development, application, and analysis of high-resolution global climate simulations of the atmosphere and comparison with spacecraft observations made using remote sensing instruments. The role holder will become part of The Open University spaceflight and atmospheric modelling team and will have the opportunity to collaborate with international partners across Europe.

This project offers:

• The chance to work as part of an exciting international team modelling the atmosphere of Venus to perform new experiments that will inform future missions
• A chance to develop state of the art Venus atmospheric models
• An opportunity to develop skills relating to modelling complex systems
• An opportunity to develop a good portfolio of published research in Venus science and atmospheric research
• Experience in working with spacecraft data

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

1. To develop, design and perform Venus climate modelling experiments
2. To perform preliminary investigation of Venus atmospheric data assimilation experiments
3. To assist the project team in developing and testing new code for fast access of large data sets
4. To assist the project team in interpreting and archiving model output
5. To write papers on the research and publish them in peer-reviewed journals, and to present findings at international conferences and workshops
6. To carry out administrative tasks associated with the work, such as writing of project reports and documenting experiments and code updates