The Helmholtz Centre Potsdam – GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences is the national centre for geosphere research. As a member of the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres we are part of the largest scientific organization in Germany. With approximately 1,500 employees our key mission is to secure a profound understanding of the systems and processes of solid Earth, to develop strategies and options for action in addressing global change and its impacts on a regional level, to understand natural hazards and to minimize associated risks, to ensure the sustainable provision of energy and raw materials for a high-tech society and to evaluate the influence of human activity on system Earth.

The Earth-Atmosphere Interactions Group of Section 1.4 "Remote Sensing and Geoinformatics" (department “Geodesy”) offers a position as

Senior Research Scientist (f_m_x)

Reference Number 8904

within a recently funded project on the peat-preserving utilization of fens in den state of Brandenburg. BLuMo is a collaborative project funded by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection (BMUV) for the duration of ten years, involving partners at the Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy (ATB) and the Brandenburg State Agency for the Environment (LfU). The main goal is to demonstrate how rewetting fens and continued biomass production and utilization can go hand in hand. Our task is to monitor and understand the consequences of rewetting and continued use on CO₂ and CH₄ fluxes.

You will initiate and lead the establishment and operation of three eddy covariance flux towers and integrate them into a growing peatland flux tower network in NE Germany, collaborating closely with a second similar project in our group.

We seek an experienced and independent scientist willing and able to take full responsibility for the project. The successful applicant should be well-connected in the Fluxnet community and have a strong track-record in eddy-covariance based GHG flux measurements, data post-processing and analysis, and high-profile publications. Additional experience in integrating flux data and remote sensing is an advantage.

Your responsibilities:

Overall management of the project and communication with project collaborators
Establishment and operation of three peatland flux tower sites incl. all ancillary measurements
Post-processing, qa/qc, quantitative analysis and publication of flux tower data
Generation and testing of hypotheses

Your qualifications:

Master`s degree (or equivalent) and doctoral degree in atmospheric/environmental science, meteorology, physics, geoecology, or related field
In-depth knowledge of land-atmosphere interactions, EC flux and other micro-met measurements
Excellent coding and quantitative analytical skills, preferably in R, Matlab, or Python
Creative & critical thinking and ability to publish shown by a track record of original and innovative research
Intention to actively develop your research career
Strong motivation and excellent oral and written communication skills
Ability to work both independently and in an integrated team environment
Fluency in English (written and spoken), German is beneficial as project reports will have to be written in German.

What we offer:

Long-term project funding with the opportunity to turn into a permanent position
Excellent research environment and a young and motivated international team
Outstanding technical, organizational, and data management support by a full time scientific engineer
Generous resources for equipment, consumables, travel, and open access publishing
Extensive training opportunities and an in-house career development center
Institute day-care centre on site
Flexible working hours and conditions
Support with finding a good work-life balance offered by benefit@work
A beautiful and historic science campus in a park setting with a history going back to Michelson and Einstein

Start date: As soon as possible
Fixed-term: 2 years with the option to extend until 31^st December 2031
Salary: The position is classed as salary group 13 according to “TVöD Bund (Tarifgebiet West)”. The salary group is determined on the basis of the Collective Wage Agreement and the respective personal qualifications.
Working hours: Full-time (currently 39 h/week); The position is generally suitable for part-time work.
Place of work: Potsdam

Information: Prof. Dr. Torsten Sachs (torsten.sachs@gfz-potsdam.de)

Have we piqued your interest?

If so, we look forward to receiving your application by 14^th January 2024. Please use our online application form only.

Apply

Diversity and equal opportunities are integral components of our human resources policy. The GFZ actively promotes diversity and explicitly welcomes applications from all qualified individuals, regardless of ethnic and social origin, nationality, gender, sexual orientation and identity, religion/belief, age and physical characteristics. Anyone who has been recognized as severely disabled, will be given preferential consideration in the event of equal suitability and qualification in accordance with the provisions of the German Social Code IX. If you have any questions, please contact our representative for the severely disabled at sbv[at]gfz-potsdam.de, who will be happy to assist you in the further application process. In case of further queries regarding gender equality, please do not hesitate to contact our Equal Opportunities Officer at gba[at]gfz-potsdam.de.

Your personal data will be processed for the purpose of conducting the selection procedure on the basis of Art. 6 para. 1 b, Art. 88 GDPR in conjunction with Art. 26 of the Data Protection Act for the State of Brandenburg. After completion of the procedure, application documents will be deleted in compliance with data protection regulations.

In case of any further queries relating to the field of activity, please contact Prof. Dr. Torsten Sachs via email at torsten.sachs@gfz-potsdam.de. If you have any general questions about the application process, please contact our recruiting team at our phone number +49 (0) 331-6264-28787.

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