Special Information

• This position is an on-site position which requires the incumbent to complete their work primarily at an NAU site, campus, or facility with or without accommodation. Opportunities for remote work are rare.

About the Department/College

NAU’s Radiant Center for Remote Sensing serves to coalesce existing expertise in remote sensing and applications across the university to answer pressing scientific questions in multiple disciplines including planetary surfaces, atmospheres, ecology, forestry, wildfire science, environmental science, urban planning/geography, geoscience/volcanology, and anthropology/archeology. The Radiant Center is housed under the Office of the Vice President for Research (OVPR) which promotes research, scholarship, and creative activity across Northern Arizona University.

About the Position

The Radiant Center for Remote Sensing, in collaboration with the Remote Sensing and Geoinformatics Lab in the School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems (SICCS) at Northern Arizona University’s Flagstaff campus, seeks a Postdoctoral Scholar to support a project funded by Grand Canyon National Park. The postdoctoral scholar will conduct research to quantify how groundwater flow dynamics behave and change over time. The postdoctoral scholar will work with extensive remote sensing data including airborne lidar and satellite images along with terrestrial lidar data from caves to map, monitor, and model springs in the canyon. The postdoctoral scholar will collaborate with an interdisciplinary team of hydrologists, ecologists, and remote sensing scientists. The position will be based in beautiful Flagstaff, AZ.

The scholar will serve as scientific lead on this project with primary responsibility for guiding the intellectual development of the methodology for scaling local, point-based observations to landscape/regional scales. Key activities will include: (a) working with PI Sankey to analyze time-series images, lidar data, hydrology database, and developing statistical models for upscaling local-level observations to landscape-scale estimates, (b) developing remote sensing-based models of topography, geology, vegetation and snow, (c) developing peer-reviewed manuscripts and presentations.

Responsibilities Include

80% - Research and Publication

• Work collaboratively in research activities including data collection, evaluation, and designing analyses to address primary research questions.
• Lead data analysis, modeling, coding, and synthesis efforts.
• Design and implement research protocols and adapt new procedures, methods, coding, or instrumentation as appropriate to the project goals.
• Read scientific literature, participate in scientific discussions with other members of the research team.
• Author and co-author research papers and manuscripts for publication and present them at conferences and workshops.

15% - Data Metrics

• Collect, curate, synthesize, and analyze research data.
• Develop code, perform data analysis, and develop efficient data analysis pipelines and/or tools as appropriate to project goals.
• Display data for presentation in research conferences and for manuscript preparation; use graphics and statistical software to analyze and present data.
• Document and archive code using GEE or other version control software.
• Perform assigned lab duties to assist in the maintenance of equipment and supplies and various other duties or projects as assigned, as appropriate to project goals.
• Generate data layers that are the results of the models developed above.
• Promote an inclusive and welcoming work environment for all.

5% - Other

• Other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

• PhD or equivalent doctorate in Remote Sensing, Environmental Science, or a relevant field is required.

Preferred Qualifications

• Record of successful peer-reviewed publications in scientific journals
• Expertise with quantitative statistical analyses in R or other programming languages

Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities

Knowledge

• Familiarity with the principles of ecosystem processes and dynamics.
• Expertise in Arizona’s forest treatment impacts and ecohydrological responses.
• Knowledge of lidar and UAV image processing.

Skills

• GEE, R, and Python programming skills.
• Data collection, processing and analysis.

Abilities

• Demonstrated ability to conduct large-scale remote sensing image analysis and machine learning techniques.
• Demonstrated ability to work in cloud-based computing platforms including Google Earth Engine.
• Highly motivated to work collaboratively as part of a research team with individuals from a variety of diverse backgrounds.
• Establishes and maintains effective working relationships.
• Communicates effectively.
• Possesses strong problem solving, organizational, and analytical capabilities.

Compensation

Salary range is $66,000 to $70,000. Annual salary commensurate with candidate's qualifications and related experience.

Pre-Employment Check

Northern Arizona University requires satisfactory results for the following: a criminal background investigation, an employment history verification and a degree verification (in some cases) prior to employment. You may also be required to complete a fingerprint background check. Also, as an employer in the state of Arizona, NAU is required to participate in the federal E-Verify program that assists employers with verifying new employees' right to work in the United States.

This position has been identified as a safety/security sensitive position. Therefore, per AZ Revised Statute, Northern Arizona University requires satisfactory results for the following: a criminal background investigation, employment history investigation, degree verification (in some cases) and fingerprinting. If you are applying for a job that requires a CDL, you will be required to register with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse and adhere to the clearinghouse requirements.

Notice of Availability of the Annual Fire and Security Report

Each year Northern Arizona University releases an Annual Security Report. The report is a result of a federal law known as the Clery Act. The report includes Clery reportable crime statistics for the three most recent completed calendar years and discloses procedures, practices and programs NAU uses to keep students and employees safe including how to report crimes or other emergencies occurring on campus. In addition, the Fire Safety Report is combined with the Annual Security Report for the NAU Flagstaff Mountain Campus as this campus has on-campus student housing. This report discloses fire safety policies and procedures related to on-campus student housing and statistics for fires that occurred in those facilities. If you would like a free paper copy of the report, please contact the NAUPD Records Department at (928) 523-8884 or by visiting the department at 525 E. Pine Knoll Drive in Flagstaff.

Immigration Support/Sponsorship

Northern Arizona University will not provide any U.S. immigration support or sponsorship for this position.

Submit your Application

To apply for this position, please click on the "Apply" button on this page. You must submit your application by midnight of the application deadline.

If you are an individual with a disability and need reasonable accommodation to participate in the hiring process, please contact the Disability Resources Office at 928-523-8773, DR@nau.edu, or PO Box 5633, Flagstaff AZ 86011.