Postdoc: Arctic Carbon Cycle and Permafrost Feedback

ORAU; Pasadena (CA); On-site; USD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job description

Organization

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Reference Code

0090-NPP-NOV26-JPL-EarthSci

How To Apply

All applications must be submitted through the Zintellect platform.

Visit the NASA Postdoctoral Program website for application instructions and requirements: How to Apply | NASA Postdoctoral Program. The application requires a research proposal, three letters of recommendation, and official doctoral transcript documents.

Application Deadline

11/1/2026 6:00:59 PM Eastern Time Zone

Description

The NASA Postdoctoral Program (NPP) offers unique research opportunities to highly talented scientists to engage in ongoing NASA research projects at a NASA Center, NASA Headquarters, or at a NASA-affiliated research institute. These one- to three‑year fellowships are competitive and are designed to advance NASA’s missions in space science, Earth science, aeronautics, space operations, exploration systems, and astrobiology.

The Arctic is warming dramatically, yet we lack the sustained observational time series and accurate physical models to know with confidence how the Arctic ecosystems and carbon cycle will respond to direct forcings from climate change and/or to poorly understood climate feedbacks from disturbances, such as fire and permafrost thaw. Fundamental elements of the Arctic hydrologic‑carbon‑climate system are poorly quantified and the sensitivity of the Arctic carbon cycle to climate change during the remainder of the 21st century is highly uncertain.

Permafrost soils are warming even faster than Arctic air temperatures. The efficient penetration of heat from the surface to these depths threatens to mobilize massive reservoirs of organic C that have been sequestered for tens of millennia. There are an estimated 1400–1850 PgC (1 PgC = 1×10^15 gC) stored in permafrost across the Arctic, with ~500 PgC stored in the most vulnerable top 100 cm (for comparison, there have been ~350 PgC released from all fossil fuel combustion since 1850).

The importance of Arctic‑Boreal C dynamics is underscored by the potential for a large permafrost carbon feedback (PCF) where rapidly changing climate conditions accelerate the microbial decomposition of the large quantities of old organic C stored in the region’s frozen soils (permafrost) and the release of the greenhouse gases CO₂ and methane (CH₄). A critical carbon cycle science challenge is to detect and quantify the PCF. Despite intense research, the timing, magnitude, location and form of the PCF remain highly uncertain due to the many poorly understood or unconstrained mechanisms and parameters that control permafrost thaw and subsequent organic matter decomposition.

We apply the full suite of JPL‘s measurement and modeling capabilities to understand and quantify carbon cycling in northern high‑latitude ecosystems. This research uses data acquired by satellites (SCIAMACHY, GOSAT, OCO‑2, OCO‑3, TropOMI), airborne measurements from NASA‘s CARVE and ABoVE investigations, and numerous ground‑based atmospheric CO₂, CH₄ and CO measurements. This research will also enable Observing System Simulation Experiments (OSSEs) in support of future missions, including CO₂M, MERLIN and GOSAT‑GW. NPP researchers will have the opportunity to utilize data from and participate in:

Opportunities and Activities

• ABoVE Airborne Campaigns from 2017‑2024 conducted over Alaska and northwestern Canada
• International activities to synthesize Arctic CH₄ and CO₂ data in conjunction with the Permafrost Carbon Research Network and the NASA‑ESA Arctic Methane and Permafrost Challenge (AMPAC)
• The Global Carbon Project’s ‘REgional Carbon Cycle Assessment and Processes’, Phase 2 (RECCAP‑2) and anticipated Phase 3
• Upcoming activities associated with NASA’s FORTE and Arctic‑COLORS field campaigns
• Advance planning for a Pan‑Arctic Carbon Budget Closure Experiment as a focus of the 5th International Polar Year (2032‑2033)
• Developing methods to detect the permafrost carbon feedback
• Data assimilation and analysis studies designed to characterize scale‑dependence and spatiotemporal variability in the processes that control Arctic CO₂ and CH₄ fluxes

Responsibilities

Successful candidates will have expertise in atmospheric physics and chemistry, carbon cycle science, airborne instruments, atmospheric remote sensing, or the equivalent. They will join JPL’s Carbon Cycle Science group and the ABoVE Science Team, engage in related activities at JPL, and develop a tailored research plan that aligns with their expertise and future goals.

Eligibility

Applications with citizens from Designated Countries will not be accepted at this time, unless they are Legal Permanent Residents of the United States.

Eligible applicants include:

• U.S. Citizens
• U.S. Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR)
• Foreign Nationals eligible for an Exchange Visitor J‑1 visa status
• Applicants for LPR, asylees, or refugees in the U.S. at the time of application with a valid EAD card and 1) a valid I‑485 or I‑589 form in pending status

Point of Contact

Mikeala

Requirements

• Degree: Doctoral Degree

Resources

• Permafrost Carbon Network – http://www.permafrostcarbon.org/
• RECCAP – https://www.globalcarbonproject.org/reccap/
• 5th International Polar Year – https://council.science/our-work/international-polar-year-2032-2033/#:~:text=The%205th%20IPY%20(2032-33,chain%20of%20credible%20scientific%20evidence
• FORTE – https://cce.nasa.gov/forte/index.html
• Arctic‑COLORS – https://cce.nasa.gov/cce/arctic_colors_report.html