Postdoctoral Scholar Opportunity in Solar Geoengineering Climate Response Evaluation at UChicago

Dr. Pete Irvine at the University of Chicago is seeking a highly motivated postdoctoral scholar to join an interdisciplinary research team in a position supported by the University of Chicago’s Climate Systems Engineering initiative (Director: David Keith). The aim of this position will be to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of how effective Stratospheric Aerosol Injection (SAI) would be at offsetting the climate effects of global warming.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)’s last report concluded that "[SAI] could offset some of the effects of increasing greenhouse gases (GHGs)", however this assessment was not supported by a quantitative evaluation. Is it accurate to say that SAI could offset “some” of the effects of climate change? While the term “some” is open to interpretation, it suggests less than half. However, previous research that Dr. Irvine has conducted suggests that climate hazards closely coupled with temperature, such as extreme heat and extreme rainfall, could be reduced nearly universally. Furthermore, even for hydrological change, where SAI works less well, he found substantially more places could see a reduction than see an increase in hydrological change.

The next IPCC report is likely to be published in 2028 and may include a chapter dedicated to solar geoengineering. In this project you will conduct comprehensive, quantitative analyses of existing climate model simulations of SAI with the goal of producing high-level, quantitative claims that could feature in this next IPCC report.

You will:

• Develop a comprehensive dataset of key metrics of climate change for simulations of SAI and climate change.
• Collaborate with colleagues in the Geoengineering Model Intercomparison Project (GeoMIP) and other solar geoengineering researchers to ensure as broad a set of simulations as possible are included.
• Develop and apply an approach for normalizing the climate response to climate change and SAI to allow comparisons between diverse scenarios.
• Conduct a comprehensive analysis of how effective SAI is at offsetting key metrics of climate change, identifying robust claims about its potential consequences.

This is an in-person, full-time position at the University of Chicago. The starting salary will be $70K with benefits, including healthcare. This position is open to overseas applicants with some visa fees covered by UChicago, and up to $3K for relocation available.

The initial position is for one year, with the possibility of renewal for an additional two years, contingent on satisfactory progress. While the start date can be flexible, the position will become available from February 01, 2025, and will remain open until filled.

Qualifications:

• Ph.D. in Atmospheric Science, Climate Science, Engineering, or related fields.
• Experience working with multi-model climate datasets.
• Proficiency with Python, or other programming and numeric computing languages.
• Excellent organizational and project management skills
• Good communication and scientific writing skills.

Applications:

To apply, please email Dr. Peter Irvine (pirvine@uchicago.edu) with the following:

(1) Curriculum vitae.

(2) Cover letter (maximum 2 pages) describing research interests, plans, and qualifications.

(3) The names and contact information of three references.

Please use the subject line “Postdoc Position in Solar Geoengineering”. Applications will be reviewed starting on January 01, 2025, on a rolling basis.

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