The Mountain Hydrology and Mass Movements research unit develops principles for sustainable water management and investigates flood and torrential processes in predominantly mountainous regions. The Glaciology group of Prof. Farinotti is part of this research unit and is situated jointly at WSL and ETH Zurich. This group sustains a diverse research portfolio spanning global glacier projections, monitoring of Swiss glaciers, glacier related hazards and fundamental processes of glacier dynamics. For the Swiss National Science Foundation-funded project GLADDER we are looking for a qualified candidate starting in Sommer 2025 as a

You will be working on a project aiming at deciphering the mechanisms responsible for the formation and dynamics of subglacial lakes in Antarctica. Many of these lakes have been found to date and the drainage and filling behaviour of a few has been documented. However, the physical processes behind their dynamics are still largely unknown. The project will use theoretical and numerical approaches to study and simulate these lakes.

Your responsibility will be to co-develop and run coupled models of ice flow and subglacial hydrology. You will participate in the development of our Stokes ice flow model, a high-performance model geared to run on graphics processing units (GPU), with a particular focus on the implementation of the basal boundary condition to allow simulating ice flow over subglacial lakes. You will then use this model to simulate ice flow of Antarctic catchments to capture subglacial lake dynamics. This will entail gathering and pre-processing of input datasets, running simulations on high performance computers, post-processing and analysing the data. Furthermore, you will be closely involved in the development of the coupling of the ice flow and subglacial drainage model.

You need to have a Master in a quantitative science, to be interested to work with mathematical/numerical models and excited to work in glaciology. We expect a good understanding of continuum mechanics and multi-physics modelling, expertise in developing scalable, matrix-free solvers for non-linear PDEs and proficiency in GPU computing, ideally in the Julia programming language. Also, you have knowledge of cryospheric process modelling and excellent written and verbal English communication skills.

Please send your complete application to Beatrice Lamprecht, Human Resources WSL, by uploading the requested documents through our webpage. Applications via email will not be considered. Mauro Werder, phone +41 (0)44 632 40 92, will be happy to answer any questions or offer further information. WSL is committed to diversity and inclusion as core values. We actively promote gender equality and foster an open, inclusive work environment.