Doctoral Student in Glaciology and Glacial Hazards

VAW Glaciology; Zürich; On-site; CHF 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

VAW Glaciology at ETH Zurich invites applications for a Doctoral Student position within the ICEFAL project in the French and Swiss Alps. The four-year program combines fieldwork at high elevations in Switzerland with state-of-the-art thermo-mechanical modeling (Elmer/Ice) to study hanging glacier stability under climate warming.

The successful candidate will map glaciers, perform ice temperature measurements, and develop hazard indices from model results, working in a multilingual,

Qualifications

• Master's degree in geophysics, physics, environmental or earth science, environmental engineering, or related fields.
• Excellent knowledge of English, both in oral and written form (C1 to C2).

Responsibilities

• Create an inventory of hanging glaciers using manual mapping and possibly machine-learning aided approaches.
• Perform field measurements at high-elevation sites in Switzerland, including ice temperatures and mass balance measurements.
• Drive a thermo-mechanical model (Elmer/Ice) to investigate past and future temperature evolution of glaciers and stability.
• Predict basal temperatures and intersect with stability criteria to derive a hazard index for hanging glaciers.

Skills

Master's degree

English (C1-C2)

Education

Master's degree in geophysics/physics/environmental or earth science

Tools

Elmer/Ice

QGIS

Job description

We are looking for a Doctoral Student to join the team of the Professorship of Glaciology for four years. Our group is affiliated with ETH's Laboratory of Hydraulics, Hydrology and Glaciology (VAW) as well as the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL).

Project background

The Doctoral Student is offered within the project Stability of cold hanging glaciers under climate warming in the French and Swiss Alps (ICEFAL). ICEFAL is composed of a Swiss-French consortium studying the effects of rising ice temperatures on the stability of cold hanging glaciers and their likelihood to be the source of large ice avalanches. The overarching goal of the project is to provide a data-driven method to create an index of hazard potential for all hanging glaciers in the French and Swiss Alps, with applicability beyond the study region. The index combines geometric and thermal considerations. To achieve this goal, the project combines fieldwork, state-of-the-art thermo-mechanical modeling, and regional-scale geospatial analyses.

Job description

To achieve the project goals, the successful candidate will:

• Create an inventory of hanging glaciers using manual mapping and possibly machine-learning aided approaches
• Perform field measurements at high-elevation sites in Switzerland. The goal is to collect measurements of ice temperatures, which will be complemented with mass balance measurements, firn cores, and analyses of long-term ice-avalanche monitoring data
• Leverage the collected field data as well as available meteorological data to drive a state-of-the-art thermo-mechanical model (Elmer/Ice) to investigate the past and future evolution of the temperature field of the investigated glaciers and possible repercussions on stability
• Predict basal temperatures of hanging glaciers from approaches developed at VAW-Glaciology and by project partners, and intersect these with stability criteria to derive a hazard index for hanging glaciers in the study region

The work will be supported by postdoctoral and senior researchers of VAW-Glaciology and is based in Zurich.

Profile

Required:

• A Master's degree in geophysics, physics, environmental or earth science, environmental engineering, or related fields
• Excellent knowledge of English, both in oral and written form (C1 to C2)

Desired:

• A keen interest in high-mountain hazards
• A solid foundation in math and physics
• Glaciologic training or expertise
• A willingness to conduct fieldwork in a high-mountain environment
• Geospatial analysis and processing skills (e.g., QGIS)
• Experience with hazard and risk management concepts
• Prior experience with physics-based numerical modeling
• Familiarity with a scripting language (e.g., Python or Matlab)
• Outdoor or mountaineering experiences
• Interest and experience working in teams
• Knowledge of German and/or French

We stress that successful applicants do not need to come with all desired skills/experiences. Furthermore, candidates with non-traditional academic backgrounds are strongly encouraged to apply.

We offer

We are a dynamic and international research group, fully dedicated to the study of glaciers, ice sheets and the impacts resulting from their changes. We value a welcoming, friendly, and supportive working atmosphere and strive for excellence in all we do. The working languages in our group are English, (Swiss) German, French, and Italian.

We will begin reviewing applications on 15 November 2026, and applications will close once a suitable candidate is found. The optimal starting date is March 1, 2027.

Questions regarding the position should be directed to Dr. Mylène Jacquemart, [e-mail] (NO APPLICATIONS).