Research and developer position within weather radar-based precipitation

The Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI) is the Danish national provider of meteorological, oceanographic, flooding and climatological services with a +150 year history. DMI serves Denmark, Greenland and the Faroe Islands with forecasts, warnings, advice and data in support of strengthening the robustness of the society within weather- and climate related phenomena. At DMI, the Weather Research Department performs a combination of tasks within development and applied research to support improvements towards internal and external products and services.

Within the Weather Research Department at DMI, a new permanent, full-time position within weather radar-based applications, research and development is being established.

Tasks The successful applicant will be working broadly within radar applications in support of a diverse set of tasks including product development and data processing towards internal forecasters and for public dissemination, applied research and maintenance and modernization of services. The work will take place in close collaboration with the four existing staff members of the radar research team at DMI but also with dedicated employees of the IT departments at DMI. The IT and data-environment operates across hardware platforms, software languages, large data sources and parallel HPC computing.

A core responsibility of the team is to support proper operation of the entire process-chain from handling incoming data from DMI’s five state-of-the-art dual polarisation weather radars through quality control and processing to generating 24/7 operational radar products (such as precipitation forecasts; currently the most visited sub-site at dmi.dk). Further, the applicant will aid the team in maintaining and developing the Danish radar network, aid the installation and acquisition of new radars, and communicate with external suppliers and partners.

Another key task of the successful applicant will be to ensure the proper distribution of radar data, products and services. This requires thorough and elaborate processing of existing and incoming data to ensure its quality, but also collaboration and communication with other DMI research and IT departments to streamline synergies and data flows. Examples include collaboration with numerical weather prediction researchers to ensure proper seamless radar and model blending and collaboration with the hydrological team to enable model validation and hydrological forecasting. Another example includes research on the blending of radar data with point-based precipitation observations to establish both real-time products and long-term decadal scale time series. Work towards a public and free release of data within the DMI “Free Data” repository is also essential. The work also includes documentation and potentially scientific dissemination in peer-reviewed scientific journals to ensure state-of-the-art approaches as well as consultancy work and research project coordination.

The applicant In light of the above, the applicant field of expertise lies within a geophysical process understanding, radar and remote sensing technologies and IT development and coding – all with an analytical, curious, ambitious, research-oriented and collaborative mindset. The radar products are already employed in various settings within DMI, but can be further exploited. We therefore seek an applicant that is dynamic and creative in exploiting new opportunities for additional applications and research.

As a significant share of the work will involve processing and programming of big data sets, a strong expertise within IT capabilities across environments, including Unix, and coding languages is a clear advantage. Due to the operational and research environment, DMI hosts one of the most powerful and elaborate HPC and IT environments in Denmark. You will be working in a research environment at DMI with expertise areas including numerical weather prediction, oceanographic modeling, hydrological forecasting and applied machine learning. The work also involves on-duty meteorologists, IT experts and policy aspects. Further, the team also has a broader range of external collaboration including international research and development networks.

Qualification We will evaluate applications from both junior and senior-level applicants and seek from a broad range of research backgrounds but aim for a high degree of programming and data processing skills within a geoscience context, preferably precipitation and weather radar remote sensing. We seek a candidate that has a high degree of academic curiosity and being able to work independently in developing and pursuing research and development ideas. Hence, we require candidates to clearly highlight, within the application, their work experiences and skills in modelling, data processing, computational environments, software coding languages, research and publications as well as educational grading sheets and certificates. Specifically, we seek:

• MSc or PhD degree, preferably nested within a combination of earth sciences and computational science. A strong IT skillset and a curiosity towards geosciences can also be relevant
• Programming skills within a UNIX environment is necessary and experiences within e.g. Python, C, Git, bash/shell scripting, docker and ansible etc. are an advantage
• Skills on machine learning, high performance computing, forecasting and model-data integration are an advantage
• Good communication skills in both oral and written English
• Capacity of, and desire to, working in a team together with a good team spirit

Research experience and a strong track record in peer reviewed output is a clear advantage

About DMI DMI is part of the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Utilities. DMI is the government's climate science advisor, creating and communicating knowledge about weather, climate and the sea to the Danish Realm. DMI's warnings, weather forecasts and services safeguard life and infrastructure and provide a basis for planning in a changing climate. As an authority on weather, climate and the sea, DMI provides meteorological services to the Danish defence, emergency preparedness as well as civil aviation and shipping in Denmark and Greenland. DMI is one of the oldest state institutions in Denmark and celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2022.

The Weather Research Department at DMI employs a staff of approx. 70 scientists and developers working closely with other research departments (internally and externally), as well as meteorologists and hydrologists. We have a strong international profile, which is also reflected in the many nationalities and in an English working language.

We have approximately 380 employees, most of whom work at DMI’s new headquarters at Sankt Kjelds Gård in Østerbro. The new place have interior design that allows for an activity-based way of working.

Employment and Salary Will be according to the Danish Law and Agreements. It will be possible to apply for an addition to the basic salary. DMI offers a flexible working week of 37 hours including a paid lunch break, and six weeks of paid vacation annually. If you come from abroad, there is a possibility for a reduced tax scheme the first 7 years.

For further details about the position, contact head of unit for Ocean and Radar Morten Dahl Larsen on email: [email protected] or +45 21 73 03 95

At DMI, diversity is an important value for us, because we believe that an inclusive and versatile work environment strengthens task fulfilment. We work actively with diversity in our employee composition, which is reflected in our inclusive workplace with a balance between work life and family life. We encourage everyone to apply for the position regardless of age, gender, sexuality, religion or ethnicity.

Application The application must contain a motivated cover letter and a curriculum vitae. The application should be received before Sunday the 29th of September.

We expect to hold interviews during the weeks of 40-41. The invitation will be sent via email.

Please use the below link "Apply for Position", and follow the instructions. Starting date is as soon as possible.