Antarctic sea ice has behaved strangely over the last few decades. Despite global warming, the ice cover slowly expanded, until it suddenly plummeted in 2016. BAS is leading a major new multi-institute project to better understand what drives these changes in sea ice, with interdisciplinary partners across the UK and internationally.
We are recruiting a 3-year position to lead the coupled climate modelling for this project. This position will use and develop HadGEM3, the UK’s national climate model, to study how Antarctic sea ice responds to climate forcing and how it is influenced by oceanographic processes.
The successful applicant will harness new field and satellite observations collected as part of this project, and collaborate with other modellers developing new parameterisations of sea ice physics. We expect this position to lead to a step-change in HadGEM3’s representation of Antarctic sea ice. The model advancements will be incorporated into the Met Office’s climate projections for the IPCC.
Qualification
PhD in physics, maths or similar discipline, or equivalent experience.
Duties
- Develop the UK’s high-resolution coupled climate model (HadGEM3) to improve its representation of Antarctic sea ice, using new model physics developed in a standalone model.
- Validate the model using new in-situ and satellite observations of Antarctic sea ice, the ocean freshwater budget, and turbulent mixing.
- Perform experiments with the model applying idealised scenarios of high greenhouse gases, ozone depletion, and ice sheet melt.
- Interpret the implications of the model results for the future of Antarctic sea ice, a major unresolved question in climate science.
- Collaborate with a UK-wide multidisciplinary team, including the Met Office and university partners.
- Present model developments and scientific results in the peer-reviewed literature and at conferences.
Salary – £31,931 to £39,915 per annum
Location – Cambridge
Closing Date – 31 July 2022
