Postdoc: Global Forest Carbon Dynamics via Remote Sensing

ORAU; California; On-site; USD 55,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

ORAU is offering a postdoctoral research opportunity through the NASA Postdoctoral Program located in California, USA. The position focuses on the remote sensing of global forest carbon dynamics, requiring in-depth knowledge in statistical analysis and remote sensing data. Qualified candidates must hold a Doctoral Degree and demonstrate research outlining their capability to lead projects and publish findings. Engagement with complex satellite and ground data for forestry analysis will be key in contributing to NASA’s Earth Science efforts.

Qualifications

• Research proficiency in remote sensing and statistical analysis.
• Experience with data integration from various satellite imagery.
• Ability to formulate and conduct original research projects.

Responsibilities

• Work with remote sensing data to estimate forest structure.
• Collaborate with scientists on original research.
• Participate in technical analysis and lead peer-reviewed publications.

Skills

Statistical analysis

Machine learning

Remote sensing data

Field work

Education

Doctoral Degree

Tools

Landsat

Sentinel-2

ALOS

PlanetScope

GEDI

ICESAT-2

Job description

Organization

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Organization

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)

Reference Code

0111-NPP-NOV26-ARC-EarthSci

How To Apply

All applications must be submitted in Zintellect

Please visit the NASA Postdoctoral Program website for application instructions and requirements: How to Apply | NASA Postdoctoral Program (orau.org)

A complete application to the NASA Postdoctoral Program includes:

• Research proposal
• Three letters of recommendation
• Official doctoral transcript documents
  
  

Application Deadline

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

Description

About the NASA Postdoctoral Program

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.

Description:

This postdoc opportunity is for candidates with special interest in the remote sensing of global forest carbon dynamics. The successful candidate will work with optical and microwave remote sensing data to estimate and map above ground forest structure, biomass, and changes driven by anthropogenic and climate forcing. The candidate will participate with a team of scientists conducting original research using various statistical and machine learning approaches to develop regional and global products and improve our understanding of the drivers of carbon stock changes across a variety of ecosystems. The candidate will collaborate with the team to integrate a series of optical (e.g., Landsat, Sentinel-2, SBG, PlanetScope) and microwave/radar (ALOS, Sentinel-1, and in future, NISAR and BIOMASS) satellite imagery with airborne and satellite lidar (GEDI, ICESAT-2) measurements of forest structure and conventional ground-based forest inventory data to map and monitor changes of forest structure and biomass and attribute the changes to land use activities and environmental effects. The selected candidate may also engage with mapping forest disturbance (land use, logging, and tree mortality), fire fuel loads, and biomass carbon change across various forest ecosystems. Also, the candidate may further analyze data products (e.g., fire fuel loads, disturbance type) to improve ecosystem and fire modeling. The candidate will help improve the quantification of the global carbon cycle as a result of human and climate-induced changes and better understand the short-term and long-term responses of ecosystems to climate change. Candidates will be required to formulate a research project in close collaborations with their advisors, perform technical analysis, document algorithms and codes developed for data processing, analysis, science product generation, present at technical conferences, and lead peer-reviewed publications.

Field of Science: Earth Science

Advisors:

Matthew Johnson

[e-mail]

[phone]

Applications with citizens from Designated Countries will not be accepted at this time, unless they are Legal Permanent Residents of the United States. A complete list of Designated Countries can be found at: https://www.nasa.gov/oiir/export-control.

Eligibility is currently open to:

• U.S. Citizens;
• U.S. Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR);
• Foreign Nationals eligible for an Exchange Visitor J-1 visa status; and,
• Applicants for LPR, asylees, or refugees in the U.S. at the time of application with 1) a valid EAD card and 2) I-485 or I-589 forms in pending status
  
  

Questions about this opportunity? Please email [e-mail]

Point of Contact

Mikeala

Eligibility Requirements

• Degree: Doctoral Degree.