CIRES / NOAA Chemical Sciences Laboratory, Research Scientist in Greenhouse Gas and Ammonia Air Pollutant Measurements

Job Summary

The Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES) at CU Boulder encourages applications for a research scientist position within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Chemical Sciences Laboratory (CSL) in Boulder, Colorado. This role will contribute to the Tropospheric Chemistry Program, working alongside federal and university employees engaged in research investigating trace gases and aerosol particles and their impacts on atmospheric composition and weather. Our group develops and deploys world-class instrumentation to measure these species in the field on stationary and mobile research platforms, including research aircraft.

The successful candidate will become a key member of the FarmFlux Science Team, CIRES, and NOAA CSL's Tropospheric Chemistry Program. This position involves investigating the emissions and atmospheric chemistry of greenhouse gases and other reactive nitrogen species, including ammonia and nitrous oxide, during the NASA FarmFlux Earth Venture Suborbital program (EVS-4) in 2027. This role offers a unique opportunity to conduct airborne atmospheric composition and chemistry research using state-of-the-art instrumentation to study the nitrogen cycle between agricultural systems and the atmosphere. The candidate will participate in field research, collecting in-situ atmospheric observations aboard a NASA heavy-lift research aircraft during the FarmFlux mission. These data will then be used in airborne eddy covariance flux calculations, emissions source identification and source apportionment analyses, and thermodynamic models. Results will be used for comparisons to emissions inventories and assessments of the air quality and climate impacts of the related emissions and atmospheric processes. Airborne sampling will concentrate on agricultural regions in the Midwestern U.S. and California. This position requires domestic travel for field work and scientific meetings totaling up to 3 months per year.

CSL has a collaborative lab culture, and we are looking for a candidate who actively subscribes to this philosophy. Successful candidates will demonstrate competence and sensitivity in working in a collaborative community.