CSIRO Postdoctoral Fellowship in Soil Moisture Dynamic Modelling

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The opportunity

• Launch your career at Australia’s National Research Organisation
• Great opportunity for an early career researcher with a PhD in soil physics, hydrology, pedology, land surface modelling, agriculture, or environmental science
• Join the CSIRO’s Agriculture and Food Sustainability Program

CSIRO Early Research Career (CERC) Postdoctoral Fellowships provide opportunities to scientists and engineers who have completed their doctorate and have less than three years of relevant postdoctoral work experience. These fellowships aim to develop the next generation of future leaders of the innovation system. Soil moisture is a vital land surface parameter that influences a broad range of processes with significant economic and environmental impact. It plays a key role in agricultural monitoring, weather prediction, and drought and flood forecasting, underscoring the indispensable value of accurate soil moisture metrics. The successful candidate will lead efforts to advance new processes and parameterizations for modelling soil moisture dynamics. This work will primarily focus on enhancing the National Soil Moisture Inference Prediction System, an initiative supported by the Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN), an Australian Government NCRIS-enabled program.

Your duties will include:

• Advance the integration of actual evaporation (ETa) and soil moisture dynamics in modelling systems.
• Contribute to interdisciplinary applications in areas such as water resource management, drought monitoring, and ecosystem modelling.
• Support the rollout of the national soil moisture sensor monitoring network by participating or leading in soil survey fieldwork and laboratory activities.
• Collaborate on a national strategy for the development, deployment, expansion, and maintenance of soil moisture monitoring networks.
• Undertake innovative and impactful research aligned with CSIRO’s strategic objectives, delivering novel and significant scientific outcomes.
• Leverage creativity and originality to explore opportunities for new theoretical frameworks and to develop or expand innovative research directions.
• Manage and analyse data using advanced domain-specific data science techniques, ensuring accuracy and integrity in all outputs.

Location: Canberra, ACT or Perth, WA (Brisbane, QLD considered) Salary: AU$99,990 - AU$109,527 plus 15.4% superannuation Tenure: Specified term of 3 years Reference: 98592

To be considered you will need:

• A doctorate (or will shortly satisfy the requirements of a PhD) in a relevant discipline area, such as soil physics, hydrology, pedology, land surface modelling, agriculture, or environmental science. Please note: To be eligible for this role you must have no more than 3 years (full-time equivalent) of postdoctoral research experience .
• Proven theoretical understanding of the water balance, the energy balance and/or soil science
• Practical experience with soil water dynamics models, soil moisture measurement, and relevant instrumentation.
• Demonstrated experience processing remote sensing data, especially related to integration of ground-based data with remote sensing data for modelling and analysis.
• Strong skills in modern data science, including statistical and machine learning analysis, with proficiency in programming languages such as R or Python.

For full details about this role please view the Position Description

Eligibility

Applications for this position are open to Australian/New Zealand Citizens, Australian Permanent Residents or you must either hold, or be able to obtain, a valid working visa for the duration of the specified term (visa sponsorship and relocation assistance may be provided to the successful candidate if required). Appointment to this role is subject to provision of a national police check and may be subject to other security/medical/character requirements.

Flexible working arrangements

We work flexibly at CSIRO, offering a range of options for how, when and where you work. 

Diversity and inclusion

We are working hard to recruit people representing the diversity across our society, and ensure that all our people feel supported to do their best work and feel empowered to let their ideas flourish. 

About CSIRO

At CSIRO Australia's national science agency, we solve the greatest challenges through innovative science and technology. We put the safety and wellbeing of our people above all else and earn trust everywhere because we only deal in facts. We collaborate widely and generously and deliver solutions with real impact.  CSIRO is committed to values-based leadership to inspire performance and unlock the potential of our people. Join us and start creating tomorrow today!

How to apply

Please apply on-line and provide a cover letter and CV that best demonstrate your motivation and ability to meet the requirements of this role.

Applications close

28 January 2025, 11:00pm AEDT