Resarch Associate/Post-Doctoral Fellow

at  University of Canterbury

Te Kura Aronukurangi | School of Earth and Environment

Located in Ōtautahi | Christchurch, Aotearoa | New Zealand

• Full-time (37.5 hours per week)
• Fixed term for 1.5 years
• Salary range $61,007.08 p.a. - $91,000 p.a.

The School of Earth and Environment has an opportunity for a Research Associate/Postdoctoral Fellow to participate in a research project, “Testing the limits of data fusion algorithms and SAR images for detecting moving objects: Emperor penguins as a case study”.
We seek a highly motivated individual with a research background in Animal Movement, Spatial Ecology, Geospatial Information Systems, Statistical Modeling, RADAR Remote Sensing or similar.
In this role you will undertake research to examine methods of data fusion (from animal tracking data and remote sensing) for identification of animals on images, and for predicting movement patterns given environmental covariates. Specifically, you will work to develop and validate methods for assessing high-resolution synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery to quantify emperor penguins and their habitats.
The fellowship is externally funded for 1.5 years. You will have completed a PhD in Ecology, Statistics, Remote Sensing, or a closely related subject. Applicants nearing completion of their PhD in the stated subject area, will also be considered.
To be successful in this role you will have excellent communication skills and written English, strong quantitative and data analysis skills, the ability to work creatively and independently, and a strong research background.
You will be mentored by Associate Professor Michelle LaRue and Professor Wolfgang Rack and located within the School of Earth and Environment at University of Canterbury, Christchurch. The position will also involve extensive collaboration with project partners at the British Antarctic Survey, University of Colorado Boulder, NASA, and University of Waikato.