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IERS Message No. 273                                       June 18, 2015
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Positions in Earth Rotation for postdocs and PhD students


The Royal Observatory of Belgium is looking for scientists for its
activities in the frame of the ERC Advanced Grant "RotaNut" (Rotation
and Nutation of a wobbly Earth).

Thanks to major funding from the European Commission for the period
2015-2021, five scientific positions at the PhD and Postdoctoral levels
are available, starting from September 2015, to work on the modelling of
the Earth nutations (wiggles of the rotation axis in space, in orange in
the figure) and on its determination from Very Long Baseline
Interferometry (VLBI) data. The positions are offered in the frame of
the ERC Advanced Grant "RotaNut" (Rotation and Nutation of a wobbly
Earth). The goal is to develop a new model for nutation, by means of
analytical and numerical approaches, and to advance our understanding of
the deep interior of the Earth, in particular the coupling mechanisms at
the core-mantle boundary. The Earth rotation observations from VLBI will
first be corrected for atmospheric and oceanic effects.

The PhD contracts will be for two years renewable up to a total of 4
years, the postdoctoral positions will be for one or two years and can
be extended up to 5 years. Starting dates are flexible. A first round is
expected to begin in September 2015, at the initiation of the project.
Applications will remain open during the five year course of RotaNut or
until all positions are filled. Enthusiastic and motivated scientists
are encouraged to apply even if they are not available on September 1st,
2015.

The competitive salary, according to the salary scales for federal civil
servant scientists, makes it possible to live comfortably in Brussels
and includes benefits.


WE ARE LOOKING FOR

The ideal candidate has an Academic master degree in Science or
Engineering and a PhD (for the postdoctoral positions), and combines
many of the following characteristics:

- Scientific curiosity
- Strong interest in the field of space research
- Creative and pragmatic problem-solving approach
- Experience in numerical modelling
- Knowledge of fluid mechanics
- Capability to work in English.


HOW TO APPLY

Send your CV (including grades) with a cover letter and if possible two
or three references (all in PDF format) by July 5th, 2015 to
v.dehant@oma.be, Head of Operational Direction 'Reference Systems and
Planetology' at ROB, with copy to t.vanhoolst@oma.be, Project Leader in
Planetary Science.

The beginning of employment will be on September 1st, 2015 or later.


Veronique Dehant
Royal Observatory of Belgium


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