Associate Scientist – Large-scale Hydrological Modelling

Joining us as an Associate Scientist you will work at the forefront of climate adaptation, generating and analysing river discharge timeseries, and collaborating with stakeholders to make better use of the data to inform local authorities of devastating flood events. 

This will be done by running climate prediction and projections with a novel km-scale modelling framework/engine, developed jointly by ECMWF and the UK Met Office. The river discharge simulations, generated for present and future climates, will serve to define kilometre-scale compound flood events. Your work will include setting-up necessary configurations of the modelling system, generating, archiving and exchanging data with relevant partners, and conducting basic analysis to demonstrate the advanced capabilities of novel high-resolution models to represent hydrological extremes in the region. You will use and adapt pre-existing scripts and workflows and develop new data analysis software. Close collaboration with partners, science experts and stakeholders in the UK and in the SA&M region is expected . In addition to technical activities, you will also work with actors in disaster risk management and emergency response to co-design flood forecast bulletins, building on existing procedures based on outputs from GloFAS EWS.

You will work in the Environmental Forecast team which is part of our Evaluation Section. This is an outstanding opportunity to benefit from getting hands-on experience with hydro-climate data and forecast production, closely interacting with scientists and experts in a science driven, world-leading, innovative international organisation. You will also take part in project meetings in the SA&M region. In your role you will actively contribute to delivering the next generation of Early Warnings Systems, helping to mitigate some of the most devastating impacts of the climate crisis.

• Set-up and conduct river discharge simulations forced with present and future climate previsions and projections
• Evaluate the realism of the simulations using observations and benchmarking results with existing reference datasets
• Work with, exchange and archive large datasets, and actively collaborate with other partner organisations across the project
• Contribute to review and co-design of emergency flood bulletins for disaster risk management
• Publish scientific results in the peer-reviewed literature
• Contribute to deliverables and reporting activities and engage in project meetings

The European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) is a world-leader in weather and environmental forecasting. As an international organisation we serve our members and the wider community with global weather predictions and data that is critical for understanding and solving the climate crisis. We function as a 24/7 research and operational centre with a focus on medium and long-range predictions, holding one of the largest meteorological data archives in the world. The success of our activities builds on the talent of our scientists and experts, strong partnerships with 35 Member and Co-operating States and the international community, some of the most powerful supercomputers in the world, and the use of innovative technologies and machine learning across our operations. 

ECMWF is a multi-site organisation, with a main office in Reading, UK, a data centre/supercomputer in Bologna, Italy, and a large presence in Bonn, Germany. We appreciate the need for flexibility in the way our staff work. We adopted a hybrid work model that is widely used by staff across ECMWF - allowing everyone to work in the office working as well as remotely up to 10 days/month, including away from the duty station.
 
ECMWF has also developed a strong partnership with the European Union and has been entrusted with the implementation and operation of the Climate Change and Atmosphere Monitoring Services of the EU Copernicus Programme. We also contribute to the Copernicus Emergency Management Service. Other areas of work include High Performance Computing and the development of digital tools that enable ECMWF to extend provision of data and products covering weather, climate, air quality, fire and flood prediction and monitoring.

During COP 27 in November 2022, the UN Secretariat General launched the ‘Early Warning for All’ initiative, with the ambition that anyone in the world is covered by an early warning system or climate service by 2027, so that they are informed on upcoming climate-related disaster and lives can be saved. ECMWF is one of the world-leading centres for global hydro-meteorological forecasting and climate services, operating the Hydrological Forecast Computational Centre of the Copernicus Emergency Management Service since 2011. Every day, we generate hydro-meteorological forecast data for thousands of points and make the information available to registered users through dedicated web applications such as the CEMS European and Global Flood Awareness Systems, or data services such as the Climate Data Store. In a process of continuous evolution and improvement, ECMWF also conducts research on how to improve its Early Warning Systems and Climate Services especially on hydrological-related hazards such as floods and droughts. This large-scale hydrological modeller position is at the forefront of the next-generation of climate services and of using simulations to inform emergency response. 

To learn more about us see www.ecmwf.int. 

ECMWF has long recognised the value of high-quality forecasts in mitigating the effects of natural disasters. Recognising that floods are among the costliest natural disasters in Europe, the European Commission instigated the development of the European Flood Awareness System (EFAS) at its Joint Research Centre (JRC). Development and testing were carried out in close collaboration with national hydrological and meteorological services, European civil protection agencies (through the Emergency Response and Coordination Centre (ERCC)), and other research institutes. 

In the wider context, Southern Africa and Madagascar (SA&M) are highly vulnerable to the impacts of landfalling tropical cyclones (TCs). In March 2019, more than 1000 people died following landfall of TC Idai - the worst flood disaster in the region’s history. Successive TCs in 2022 brought loss of life and destruction to Madagascar, Malawi and Mozambique, resulting in the displacement and economic hardship of hundreds of thousands of people, many of whom are already vulnerable due to socio-economic constraints, conflicts, and living in precarious settlements.

Since 2011, ECMWF has been part of the Copernicus Emergency Management Service - Early warning for floods (CEMS-Floods), becoming the Hydrological Computational Centre (COMP) responsible for the operational production and dissemination of EFAS forecasts data and services first, and from 2018, those of the Global Flood Awareness System (GloFAS). COMP also provides data for the CEMS-Drought EWS. More than 140 hydrological services and civil protection services in Europe are part of the EFAS network, whilst there are over 10000 registered GloFAS users. 

Existing Early Warning Systems (EWSs) and their uptake in the SA&M region are currently inadequate to prevent loss of life and serious economic hardship. Impacts are multi-hazard in nature, whereas current EWSs are primarily focused on rainfall and winds. Through novel km-scale climate and hydrodynamic modelling, the REPRESA project will provide a step change in understanding compound tropical cyclone risks and the likelihood of unprecedented TC impacts. ECMWF will provide one of the building blocks to understand compound flooding, being responsible for generating river discharge datasets for present and future. We will also help co-designing flood forecast bulletins to overcome the communication barriers of existing EWSs, in strong partnership with scientists from organisations from the UK and SA&M region. 

• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills with a proactive and constructive approach
• Initiative and ability to work collaboratively with other ECMWF staff and REPRESA partners, as part of multidisciplinary and geographically distributed teams, but also to work independently and with limited supervision
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills
• Dedication, passion and enthusiastic to succeed both individually and across teams, and for engaging and collaborating with others
• Organised with the capacity to work on a diverse range of tasks to tight deadlines and in a matrix-management environment.
• Genuine interest in ECMWF, especially in hydro-meteorological climate services and Early Warning Services

• University degree (EQF level 6) or recent advanced university degree (EQF Level 7 or above) or equivalent professional experience or professional qualification in Earth System Science, Statistics, Applied Mathematics, Computer Science, or a related discipline
• Experience in meteorology, hydrology, geoscience, or a related subject 
• Proven track record in numerical modelling in hydrology would be desirable
• Experience in handling large observational and/or modelling datasets and their statistical analysis would be an advantage
• Some experience in working on HPC would be an advantage

• Experience developing with Python is required
• Experience in shell-scripting in a UNIX environment would be desirable
• Experience in environmental geospatial data analysis with Python would be an advantage.
• Knowledge of good software management and assurance practices would be an advantage
• Some experience in developing and maintaining large scientific codes would be an advantage

Candidates must be able to work effectively in English. A good knowledge of one of the Centre’s other working languages (French or German) is an advantage.

Grade remuneration:  The successful candidate will be recruited at the A1 grade, according to the scales of the Co-ordinated Organisations. The annual basic salary will be GBP 53,512 NET of tax (ECMWF salaries are exempt of national income tax). ECMWF also offers a generous benefits package, including a flexible teleworking policy. The position is assigned to the employment category STF-PL as defined in the ECMWF Staff Regulations. Full details of salary scales and allowances available on the ECMWF website at www.ecmwf.int/en/about/jobs, including the ECMWF Staff Regulations and the terms and conditions of employment. 

Starting date:              As soon as possible

Length of contract:   25 months

Location:                      Reading, UK

As a multi-site organisation, ECMWF has adopted a hybrid organisation model which allows flexibility to staff to mix office and tele-working. Successful applicants and members of their family forming part of their households will be exempt from immigration restrictions. Interviews by videoconference (MS Teams) are expected to take place during the second half of June, likely during the week of 26 June.

Applicants are invited to complete the online application form. 

At ECMWF, we consider an inclusive environment as key for our success. We are dedicated to ensuring a workplace that embraces diversity and provides equal opportunities for all, without distinction as to race, gender, age, marital status, social status, disability, sexual orientation, religion, personality, ethnicity and culture. We value the benefits derived from a diverse workforce and are committed to having staff that reflect the diversity of the countries that are part of our community, in an environment that nurtures equality and inclusion. 

Applications are invited from nationals from ECMWF Member States and Co-operating States, as well as from all EU Member States. 

ECMWF Member and Co-operating States are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Montenegro, Morocco, the Netherlands, Norway, North Macedonia, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye and the United Kingdom. 

In these exceptional times, we also welcome applications from Ukrainian nationals for this vacancy.  

Applications from nationals from other countries may be considered in exceptional cases.