Postdoctoral Researcher (M/F) Precise Mass Transport Restoration Between Land and Ocean for Imp[...]

CNRS; France; Sur place; EUR 40 000 - 60 000; Plein temps

Résumé du poste

A leading research organization in France is seeking a postdoctoral researcher to study the feasibility of innovative Mascon solutions in environmental science. The role involves developing advanced processing strategies, evaluating mass conservation, and analyzing contributions to sea-level rise and ocean heat absorption. Candidates should possess a PhD (or be about to obtain it) in a relevant field, and have excellent skills in Python and Linux, as well as strong communication abilities in both English and French. This position is based in Toulouse and offers a collaborative research environment.

Qualifications

• PhD or must obtain it before starting the position.
• Excellent programming skills in Python.
• Strong communication abilities in both English and French.

Responsabilités

• Develop and test advanced processing strategies for Mascon solutions.
• Evaluate the impact of a priori information on observation equations.
• Analyze mass components of sea-level rise and ocean heat absorption.

Connaissances

Scientific programming (Python)

Linux environment

Written and oral communication skills in English

Written and oral communication skills in French

Team collaboration

Interest in scientific analysis

Autonomy

Formation

PhD in a relevant field such as spatial geodesy

Description du poste

Organisation/Company CNRS Department Laboratoire d'Etudes en Géophysique et Océanographie Spatiales Research Field Environmental science Environmental science » Earth science Environmental science » Global change Researcher Profile Recognised Researcher (R2) Country France Application Deadline 7 Jan 2026 - 23:59 (UTC) Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Hours Per Week 35 Offer Starting Date 1 Mar 2026 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

This postdoctoral project aims to study the feasibility and lay the groundwork for an innovative Mascon solution integrating advanced processing strategies as constraints at the observation level, ensuring mass conservation. By stabilizing observation equations and introducing additional a priori information (e.g., continental hydrology), this project will allow a reassessment of the current regularization strategies used in Mascon solutions. The goal is to achieve an optimized representation of mass variations over continents and oceans while respecting the principle of mass conservation. This solution will provide a complementary evaluation of existing gravity field (SH) solutions, particularly over the oceans. Furthermore, ocean-optimized Mascons, compatible with altimetry standards, will provide the necessary tool to resolve the mass component of sea-level rise and ocean heat absorption, thus contributing to a better constraint of the Earth's energy budget. Although the project focuses on oceanic areas and mass conservation, the solution will also address the issue of the spatiotemporal evolution of continental hydrological reservoirs, as better resolution of the oceans can only be achieved by improving the overall global observations.

The postdoctoral researcher will be tasked with developing and testing advanced processing strategies for Mascon solutions, integrating mass conservation constraints at the observation level. They will need to evaluate the impact of introducing a priori information, such as continental hydrology data, on the stability of observation equations. They will review and optimize current regularization strategies to achieve a more accurate representation of mass variations, both on continents and oceans. The postdoctoral researcher will also contribute to the evaluation of ocean-optimized Mascon solutions by comparing them with existing gravity field solutions and altimetry data. They will participate in the analysis of the mass components of sea-level rise and ocean heat absorption to improve the understanding of the Earth's energy budget. They will also participate in the analysis of the mass components of continental water to improve the understanding of the causes of the spatiotemporal evolution of continental hydrological reservoirs.

Finally, they may be required to participate in international conferences and publish the results of their research in specialized scientific journals.

This work will be carried out at LEGOS (Laboratoire d'Études en Géophysique et Océanographie Spatiales), comprising 130 people, on the campus of the Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées in Toulouse. The candidate will particularly join the EMC2 team, which aims to understand the variations in the global water and energy cycle in response to current climate change. The candidate will benefit from a rich national and international environment and will interact with engineers, researchers, and PhD students from the team, as well as the geodesy team of the GET.

• PhD (or obtain it before taking up the position) in a relevant field such as spatial geodesy.
• Excellent knowledge in scientific programming (Python), Linux environment.
• Strong written and oral communication skills in English and French.
• Motivation to work effectively within a team.
• Interest in scientific analysis.
• Autonomy.