Variability and evolution of stratospheric aerosol loading in the warming climate (M/W)

2 Sep 2023
Job Information

Organisation/Company

CNRS

Department

Laboratoire “Atmosphères et Observations Spatiales”

Research Field

Environmental science
Environmental science » Earth science
Environmental science » Global change

Researcher Profile

First Stage Researcher (R1)

Country

France

Application Deadline

22 Sep 2023 – 23:59 (UTC)

Type of Contract

Temporary

Job Status

Full-time

Hours Per Week

35

Offer Starting Date

2 Oct 2023

Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme?

Not funded by an EU programme

Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure?

No

Offer Description

The work is to be carried out in LATMOS (Guyancourt) under supervision of Sergey Khaykin within the STRATO team in tight collaboration with the participants of ANR PyroStrat project. https://pyrostrat.projet.latmos.ipsl.fr/
LATMOS is a mixed research unit specialized in the study of the physico-chemical processes governing the terrestrial and planetary atmospheres and their interfaces with the surface, the ocean, and the interplanetary environment.The Laboratory has developed strong instrumental skills, built innovative instruments deployed from the ground and sometimes put into orbit or set off to meet other bodies in the solar system. Numerical atmospheric models are also developed and used to interpret the various observations

Aerosol particles in the stratosphere play a major role in the Earth radiation budget and ozone layer. The variability of the stratospheric aerosol loading is modulated primarily by the explosive volcanic eruptions. An emerging source of stratospheric aerosol is the wildfires, that have become more frequent and violent in the warming climate. Intense wildfires release tremendous amounts of heat into the atmosphere, which gives rise to extreme thunderstorms termed Pyrocumulonimbus (PyroCb). These storms can generate vigorous convective updrafts injecting smoke aerosols directly into the stratosphere where the aerosol particles can persist for years and affect the climate through radiative feedbacks and deplete the ozone layer.
The LiDAR technique for atmospheric remote sensing is a crucial source of information on stratospheric aerosol loading and composition. The long-term monitoring by ground-based lidars at Observatoire de Haute Provence (OHP) provides one of the longest continuous observation records of stratospheric aerosol. At the same time, the satellite-based LiDAR instruments such as CALIPSO and Aeolus missions provide global Earth coverage observations of aerosols and clouds. The new European Space Agency’s EarthCare satellite mission carrying ATLID lidar instrument, which is due for launch in 2024, will deliver high-resolution vertical profiling of stratospheric aerosol with the capacity to differentiate the types of aerosols and identify their sources.
The general objective of the doctoral project is to characterize and quantify the emissions of aerosols by extreme wildfires and volcanic eruptions into the stratosphere using a synergy of ground-based and satellite lidar observations. The work will consist in the retrieval of the aerosol optical properties (backscatter, extinction and their spectral dependence) from the OHP LiDAR measurements and their geophysical analysis in conjunction with global satellite observations of stratospheric aerosols and other relevant geophysical data. Such analysis will allow to identify the sources of stratospheric aerosols such as volcanism and biomass burning, to quantify their relative contribution to the stratospheric aerosol budget at various temporal and spatial scales, to contrast the physical properties of various aerosol types, and to assess their atmospheric residence time.

References:
Khaykin, S. M., Godin-Beekmann, S., Keckhut, P., Hauchecorne, A., Jumelet, J., Vernier, J.-P., Bourassa, A., Degenstein, D. A., Rieger, L. A., Bingen, C., Vanhellemont, F., Robert, C., DeLand, M., and Bhartia, P. K.: Variability and evolution of the midlatitude stratospheric aerosol budget from 22 years of ground-based lidar and satellite observations, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 17, 1829–1845, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-17-1829-2017 , 2017
Khaykin, S., Legras, B., Bucci, S. et al. The 2019/20 Australian wildfires generated a persistent smoke-charged vortex rising up to 35 km altitude. Commun Earth Environ 1, 22 (2020). https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-020-00022-5
Khaykin, S., Podglajen, A., Ploeger, F. et al. Global perturbation of stratospheric water and aerosol burden by Hunga eruption. Commun Earth Environ 3, 316 (2022). https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-022-00652-x

Requirements

Research Field

Environmental science

Education Level

PhD or equivalent

Research Field

Environmental science

Education Level

PhD or equivalent

Research Field

Environmental science

Education Level

PhD or equivalent

Languages

FRENCH

Level

Basic

Research Field

Environmental science

Years of Research Experience

None

Research Field

Environmental science » Earth science

Years of Research Experience

None

Research Field

Environmental science » Global change

Years of Research Experience

None

Additional Information
Additional comments

The successful candidate shall be enrolled on the PhD programme of the ED129 doctoral school.
Skills required:
– Knowledge of the atmospheric composition and transport
– Computer skills (Python, Matlab, Igor, etc.)
– Autonomy and interest in issues associated with atmospheric physics
– Fluent English (C1 or better)

Website for additional job details

https://emploi.cnrs.fr/Offres/Doctorant/UMR8190-SERKHA-002/Default.aspx

Work Location(s)

Number of offers available

1

Company/Institute

Laboratoire “Atmosphères et Observations Spatiales”

Country

France

City

GUYANCOURT

Where to apply

Website

https://emploi.cnrs.fr/Candidat/Offre/UMR8190-SERKHA-002/Candidater.aspx

Contact

City

GUYANCOURT

Website

http://www.latmos.ipsl.fr

STATUS: EXPIRED