Stillingstittel:
Postdoctoral Fellow at Tromsø Geophysical Observatory

Stillingsbeskrivelse:
Jobbnorge ID: 127890

Application deadline: 4. September 2016

Ref.nr. 2016/6898

 

Tromsø Geophysical Observatory has a Postdoctoral Fellow position vacant. The position is attached to the project "The mesospheric sodium layer as a remotely, optically pumped magnetometer for investigation of Birkeland currents".

 

The position of Postdoctoral Fellow is a fixed term position for a period of two years. The main objective of the appointment as a post-doctoral research fellow is to qualify for work in senior academic position. No one may be appointed to more than one fixed term period as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the same institution.

 

Further information about the position is available by contacting Dr. Magnar Gullikstad Johnsen, +47 776 46956, e-mail: Magnar.G.Johnsen (at) uit.no.

 

The position's affiliation

Tromsø Geophysical Observatory (TGO) is a unit directly under the Faculty of Science and Technology at UiT - the Arctic University of Norway. TGO's main responsibility is to maintain long geophysical observation time series within the domain of geomagnetism and upper atmosphere/ionosphere. The unit is responsible for the Ramfjordmoen Research Station where a wide range of space physics instrumentation such as radars and optical instruments are hosted. Additionally, TGO has responsibilities within space weather monitoring both nationally and on a European level through the Norwegian Center for Space Weather. Ongoing research at TGO includes geomagnetism, neutral, upper atmosphere and ionospheric physics and climatology and space weather. http://www.tgo.uit.no/

 

The position's field of research/field of work

By means of optical pumping, it is possible to use the naturally occurring sodium layer in the mesosphere to measure Earth's scalar magnetic field at ~90 km above ground. This is an altitude not accessible by other means than rockets which will provide point measurements of very short time scales. We are proposing to modify the ALOMAR sodium lidar to be able, for the first time, to measure and monitor the magnetic field in the high latitude mesosphere over longer time scales. In addition to proving a new method for monitoring Earth's magnetic field, which will attract great interest from the geomagnetic community, we will combine the efforts from different communities (astronomy, mesosphere/atmosphere, optics and geomagnetism) into a common science goal. Furthermore, new science applications will be added to lidar measurements. The technique, which has been proposed earlier for measurements at low or mid latitudes for studies of Earth's internal magnetic field, will in our project be applied to high latitudes in the auroral zone. This opens for a completely new domain of measurements of externally generated geomagnetic variations related to currents in the magnetosphere-ionosphere system. In particular, we aim to measure the magnetic field variations in close vicinity to Birkeland currents associated with particle precipitation events penetrating to altitudes below 90 km and small-scale, discrete auroral arcs. It is, furthermore, anticipated that small, horizontal current structures, whose signature is not apparent from ground based measurements, will be easier discernible when measurements are performed closer. During the project we plan to run four campaigns, and we will take advantage of the rich scientific infrastructure located in northern Norway, including EISCAT and the Tromsø Geophysical Observatory magnetometer network. Furthermore, during the campaigns, if possible we aim to make measurements in conjunction with overpasses of one or more SWARM satellites.

 

Minstelønn: 0

Maksimal lønn: 0

Arbeidsgiver Navn: UiT Norges arktiske universitet

Arbeidsgiver adresse: Hansine Hansens veg 18 9019 TROMSØ

Job kort beskrivelse: University and higher education teachers

Land: Norge

Region: Troms

Kilde til jobbtilbud: NAV, Offentlige arbeidsformidlinger, Norge

Hvordan søke: Annet - se fritekst

Lønn valuta: NOK

Lønn periode: Pr. år