PhD position (M/F) at LSCE (France) / University of Michigan (USA) – Extracting the climate change signal from a network of Antarctic ice cores

Job Description

Thesis Subject

The goal of the PhD project is to quantify the change of climate variability for different mean states, using water isotopes in ice core records. Specifically, we will study how the climate variability recorded by ice core changes under the influence of the recent anthropogenic climate change as well as over the last deglaciation.

This requires combining a network of more than 25 ice cores in East Antarctica in order to extract the common climatic signal. Indeed, high resolution (interannual) reconstructions from ice core records in Antarctica require a large number of ice cores per site (>5) to yield significant Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR), due to the large archival noise affecting the ice core. It is also necessary to convert the isotopic signal into temperature units, which can be done combining climate model outputs and in situ observations.
The project allows for flexibility to explore a wide range of tasks, including isotopic analysis using state-of-the-art spectrometers, numerical modelling, and the use of a conceptual framework to study water isotopes in the global hydrological cycle.
The position is fully funded as a CNRS PhD position (gross ~26k€ per year), will be mainly based at LSCE, with active collaboration at the University of Michigan. As a PhD student, you will have to follow a base amount of classes of roughly 60 hours per year at one of the universities of Paris.
We welcome international applications from candidates with a master diploma or equivalent accepted within the European Union (ISCED level 7 – EQF level 7) in Maths, Physics, Earth Sciences, or equivalent topics.

Your Work Environment

The LSCE is a joint research unit (UMR 8212) involving the Atomic Energy and Alternative Energies Commission (CEA), the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), and the University of Versailles Saint-Quentin (UVSQ), located at l'Orme des Merisiers. It is part of the Pierre Simon Laplace Institute (IPSL), a federation of nine research institutes in climate and environment in the Île-de-France region. LSCE comprises approximately 320 researchers, engineers, and administrative staff, including 150 permanent personnel and several dozen doctoral students.
The selected individual will work in the GLACIO team (Glaciers, Climates, and Stable Isotopes). The GLACIO team focuses on studying climate and the hydrological cycle through the analysis of stable isotopes of water and air molecules (nitrogen, oxygen, argon). The goal is to understand past (Quaternary) and current climate variability from tropical to polar regions to better characterize the coupling between climate and the atmospheric water cycle. The team consists of around twenty people.
The position is part of the European project (ERC SAMIR) in close collaboration with Mathieu Casado (CNRS Researcher), Justin Chaillot (CEA Engineer), and the technical division of the Institute of Earth Sciences of CNRS (INSU)

Constraints and risks

No specific risks

Compensation and benefits

Compensation

2300 € gross monthly

Annual leave and RTT

44 jours

Remote Working practice and compensation

Pratique et indemnisation du TT

Transport

Prise en charge à 75% du coût et forfait mobilité durable jusqu’à 300€

About the offer

About the CNRS

The CNRS is a major player in fundamental research on a global scale. The CNRS is the only French organization active in all scientific fields. Its unique position as a multi-specialist allows it to bring together different disciplines to address the most important challenges of the contemporary world, in connection with the actors of change.

CNRS

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