Postdoctoral Researcher (m/f/d) | Drivers and statistics of accelerating extreme weather trends Full-time

Postdoctoral Researcher

The Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology (MPI-GEA) is seeking a postdoctoral researcher to join the Carl Zeiss Stiftung Independent Research Group on High-End Climate Risks (CZS-HECR). The research focuses on understanding worst-case climate outcomes, from unprecedented and compounding extremes to their societal impacts.

Candidate Tasks

• Investigate feedback mechanisms and processes behind acceleration in extreme weather trends
• Design targeted climate model experiments and analyse large ensembles to test conditions under which tail-specific feedbacks are triggered
• Apply explainable AI (XAI) and other advanced statistical methods to uncover non-linear interactions between physical drivers of extremes
• Evaluate how well climate models represent these tail processes against observations and reanalysis
• Investigate drivers, statistics and impacts of record-breaking events in current and future climates, in collaboration with the other group members
• Publish in leading journals, present at international conferences
• Help organise group events
• Co-supervise PhD students

Your Qualification

Essential

• PhD in climate science, atmospheric science, physics, geosciences or a related field
• Solid knowledge of atmospheric dynamics and/or land–atmosphere processes and of climate extremes
• Experience with analysing climate model simulations and observational or reanalysis data
• Programming skills (e.g. Python, R) and experience with statistical analysis of large datasets
• Evidence of scientific productivity, e.g., peer-reviewed publications
• Excellent English skills, and the ability to work independently and collaboratively

Advantageous

• Experience running or configuring climate model experiments
• Experience with explainable AI, machine learning or causal inference methods in the Earth sciences
• Knowledge of extreme value theory, tail statistics, or storyline approaches
• Experience with compound event detection and statistics
• Experience with extreme weather attribution methods
• Experience with supervision or teaching

Our Offer

This full-time or part-time position with at least 34 hours/week will begin on the 1st of January, 2027, though some flexibility in the start date is possible. The term is three years, with the option of a 2-year extension. Remuneration will follow the public service pay scale (TVöD Bund) up to pay group 13, according to the candidate's qualifications and experience. You are entitled to an annual bonus, 31 days' holiday and time off on 24th and 31st December. We also offer attractive, family-friendly flexi-time and remote-working arrangements. A company pension scheme (VBL), an employer subsidy for public transport, the opportunity for further training, and language and health courses complete our offer.

Your Application Should Include

• A cover letter
• A CV of no more than 3 pages
• A summary of research interests with max. 2 pages
• A list of at most 10 scientific, peer-reviewed publications related to the position
• Contacts of two referees
• Any relevant certificates

Position remains open until filled.

Contact for more information: Dr. Kai Kornhuber, Email: kornhuber@gea.mpg.de