Vacancy: Post-doc at Univ of Arizona (USA)

Investigator - CLIMAS - Climate Assessment for the Southwest

Adjunct Assistant Professor - Department of Geography and Regional Development


REPLY TO:

Don Falk, School of Natural Resources, University of Arizona dafalk@u.arizona.edu

Tom Swetnam, Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research, University of Arizona tswetnam@ltrr.arizona.edu



POSITION AVAILABLE:

Postdoctoral Research in Fire-Climatology at the University of Arizona


Applications are invited for a full-time, two-year appointment as Research Associate position at the University of Arizona, on a joint project in the School of Natural Resources and Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research. The position will provide scientific leadership and research capability for a new initiative supported by the US Forest Service Climate Change Research Initiative and the Joint Fire Science Program.
The objective of this research program is to quantify spatial and temporal relationships between climate variability and fire occurrence in the western United States in past 500 yr, using the tree-ring record in combination with climate information and contemporary fire occurrence data.


Project Background: Climate variability at time scales of years to decades is a fundamental driver of fire occurrence and fire regimes. Superimposed on this background of natural variability are novel trends of contemporary climate change, which is further altering fire behavior and regimes, resulting in extreme and variable fire seasons, escalating costs, and unknown ecosystem trajectories. A recent surge of scientific publications has been based on expanded fire and climate history datasets, enhanced understanding of broad-scale ocean-atmosphere oscillations and their teleconnections to regional and continental temperature, precipitation and fire regimes. This project will undertake a master fire-climate synthesis for the western United States, focusing on spatiotemporal patterns of climate teleconnections, regional analysis of fire-climate relationships, and temporal lagging patterns in fire climatology. Via web and other media, the project will provide ecosystem managers and decision makers with urgently-needed access to information about changing fire regimes to help field units contend with current climate-driven effects, especially on fire in project planning and forest plan revision.



The successful candidate will provide project leadership in the area of advanced climate science, with particular focus on quantitative analysis of spatial and temporal patterns in climate and fire occurrence. The Research Associate will interact with collaborators in dendrochronology, ecology, climatology, remote sensing, and GIS. The Associate will also work closely with one or more graduate students assigned to the project or with related interests. Statistical analysis, management of databases and collaboration in preparation of manuscripts will also be important responsibilities. The Associate can also contribute to preparation of funding proposals for of project continuation and expansion.


Supervisors: Donald Falk, School of Natural Resources, and Thomas Swetnam, Laboratory of tree-Ring Research.



Strong preference for a candidate willing to locate in Tucson, although other locations will be considered.


DETAILS:

Salary range: Competitive and commensurate with experience. Full University benefits included.

Minimum Qualifications: PhD completed in climatology, atmospheric sciences, or related field of environmental science.

Starting Date: 1 July 2009 (or as soon thereafter as possible)

University of Arizona Job Number 43059


Application Procedure: Applications for this position will be made on-line via the University of Arizona Human Resources web page: https://www.uacareertrack.com/applicants/jsp/shared/frameset/Frameset.jsp?time=1245280402004



Questions? Contact dafalk@u.arizona.edu or tswetnam@ltrr.arizona.edu