Postdoctoral Research Associate I

University of Arizona

life insurance, sick time

United States, Arizona, Tucson

Mar 01, 2025

Postdoctoral Research Associate I
Posting Number	req22068
Department	Sch of Nat Resource&Enviro-Res
Department Website Link	https://snre.arizona.edu/
Location	Main Campus
Address	Tucson, AZ USA
Position Highlights	The School of Natural Resources & the Environment seeks applications for a Postdoctoral Research Associate to join an on-going NASA Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation (EMIT) project to help us address this critical knowledge gap by integrating hyperspectral observations from the EMIT platform and other complementary satellite observation records towards the mapping biocrust community composition and functional diversity across global drylands. Biological soil crusts (hereafter, biocrusts) are photosynthetic soil communities of cyanobacteria, mosses, and/or lichens that cover vast expanses of the terrestrial surface and play critical roles in soil stabilization, fertility, water cycling, and carbon exchange with the atmosphere. Biocrusts are found on all continents and rough global estimates of biocrust distribution based on suitability modeling and evidence of biocrust presence from the published literature suggest that these photosynthetic soil communities make up 12% of Earth's land surface. Despite their global extent and critical importance, biocrusts have yet to be mapped globally using satellite observations, and thus our quantitative understanding of biocrust community composition, coverage, function, and response to global change remains in its infancy compared to our understanding of vascular plants. Outstanding UA benefits include health, dental, vision, and life insurance; paid vacation, sick leave, and holidays; UA/ASU/NAU tuition reduction for the employee and qualified family members; access to UA recreation and cultural activities; and more! The University of Arizona has been recognized for our innovative work-life programs. For more information about working at the University of Arizona and relocations services, please click here.
Duties & Responsibilities	Developing and participating in field campaigns. Leading analysis of multispectral and hyperspectral data at the field, drone, and satellite scale. Big data analysis including processing and analyzing EMIT hyperspectral datacubes over large spatial domains such as the Colorado Plateau and even global. Presenting results at national conferences. Leading the development of manuscripts with the aim of publishing at least one paper a year in a high impact journal. Mentoring graduate and undergraduate students working on the project. Knowledge, Skills & Abilities: Interest and/or a research background in dryland ecosystem ecology. Previous research focus on biocrust community composition and their functional role within dryland ecosystems.
Minimum Qualifications	PhD in ecosystem ecology or a related field.
Preferred Qualifications	Experience with spatiotemporal analysis using R, Python, and/or comparable computer programming languages. Experience in high performance computing. Experiencing working with satellite data over large spatial extents, specifically satellite-based hyperspectral observations. Experience as a field ecologist and involvement in field campaigns. Experience in proximal remote sensing and/or with drones.
FLSA	Exempt
Full Time/Part Time	Full Time
Number of Hours Worked per Week	40
Job FTE	1.0
Work Calendar	Fiscal
Job Category	Research
Benefits Eligible	Yes - Full Benefits
Rate of Pay	NIH Salary Guidelines, Depends on Experience
Compensation Type	salary at 1.0 full-time equivalency (FTE)
Type of criminal background check required:	Name-based criminal background check (non-security sensitive)
Number of Vacancies	1
Target Hire Date	3/17/2025
Expected End Date	2/28/2027
Contact Information for Candidates	William Smith wksmith@arizona.edu
Open Date	2/27/2025
Open Until Filled	Yes
Documents Needed to Apply	Curriculum Vitae (CV) and Cover Letter
Special Instructions to Applicant
Notice of Availability of the Annual Security and Fire Safety Report	In compliance with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act), each year the University of Arizona releases an Annual Security Report (ASR) for each of the University's campuses.Thesereports disclose information including Clery crime statistics for the previous three calendar years and policies, procedures, and programs the University uses to keep students and employees safe, including how to report crimes or other emergencies and resources for crime victims. As a campus with residential housing facilities, the Main Campus ASR also includes a combined Annual Fire Safety report with information on fire statistics and fire safety systems, policies, and procedures. Paper copies of the Reports can be obtained by contacting the University Compliance Office at cleryact@arizona.edu.