Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium Postdoc Position on ocean modeling

[John Zang]

The Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium (LUMCON), a program of the Board of Regents, as a consortium is a statewide academic endeavor to focus and strengthen the effectiveness of foundational marine science needed to address the environmental and socioeconomic challenges facing Louisiana and the nation.

LUMCON has provided unparalleled opportunities in marine science and education to the research community and public alike. Anchored by a first-rate marine laboratory, the DeFelice Marine Center, LUMCON is embedded in Louisiana’s dynamic wetland environment and conveniently located on a gateway to the open waters of the Gulf. From this facility, LUMCON operates a world-class fleet of research vessels unmatched on the US Gulf Coast. LUMCON recently expanded its programs through the opening of a maritime research and outreach facility in Houma (Blue Works).

The Coupled Ocean Modeling lab at LUMCON is seeking to hire a postdoctoral investigator beginning as early as Oct 2025. The successful candidate will participate in several research projects funded by NOAA and other agencies to develop a series of coupled physical-biological-sediment models covering the Gulf and the Northeast U.S. Shelf. The successful applicant will work closely with Dr. Zhengchen (John) Zang at LUMCON and other research groups at LSU and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. This position mainly focuses on ocean model development and data processing. This position is funded for two years, with a likely option to extend depending on external funding and the performance of the candidate.

 

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

·       PhD degree from an accredited institution in Marine Science, Oceanography, or related area of specialization is required.

·       Strong programming and mathematical skills are required; familiar with high performance computing (HPC) environment and significant knowledge of Fortran, Matlab, R, and/or Python.

·       Interest in mentoring student interns and contributing to LUMCON’s outreach/education activities.

·       Comfortable working independently and as a part of a team.

·       Publish at least one paper in a reputable scientific journal before graduation.

·       legally able to work in the United States

IDEAL CANDIDATE/PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

·       Significant knowledge of at least one of the generic ocean models (e.g., ROMS, FVCOM, MITgcm).

·       Significant knowledge of physical oceanography, phytoplankton dynamics, shellfish population dynamics, and/or sediment transport. 

·       Familiarity with machine learning/deep learning tools.

·       Interest in authoring or coauthoring scientific publications.

 

 

ESSENTIAL DUTIES:

Essential and other important responsibilities and duties may include, but are not limited the following:

·       Develop high-resolution physical models covering coastal Louisiana and other regions. 

·       Couple physical models with biological/sediment transport models.

·       Collect and process observational data from various sources for model calibration, including from incumbent’s own field studies.

·       Assist with data management and data server maintenance.

·       Attend weekly lab meetings.

·       Develop manuscripts and publish works in peer reviewed journals.

·       Assist with LUMCON outreach and education activities.

·       Assist with proposal writing.

Please reach out to Dr. Zang if you are interested in this position:

Email: zz...@lumcon.edu Tel: 225-421-4719