[ES_JOBS_NET] Graduate Student Opportunities in Oceanography at University of Victoria

[Roberta Hamme]

Graduate Student Opportunities in Oceanography at University of Victoria
 
I am seeking motivated MSc and PhD students to join my chemical oceanography group at the School of Earth and Ocean Sciences, University of Victoria (Victoria, BC, Canada).  We use high precision measurements of dissolved gases to study the ocean carbon cycle.  How ocean carbon is changing is a defining issue in our field today, because of its implications for future climate change and ocean ecosystems.  We study this question by making measurements of oxygen and its isotopes to quantify ocean productivity and of inert gases like neon and argon to understand the physical processes that affect carbon.
 
Possible scientific research directions include:
-       collecting / interpreting / modelling a continuous record of the oxygen cycle in the Labrador Sea, one of the few places where the surface ocean and atmosphere communicate directly with the deep ocean
-       quantifying the biological pump of carbon from the surface ocean and intercomparison of productivity methods in the North Pacific and Arctic Oceans
-       using noble gas measurements to understand the impact of water mass formation on deep ocean carbon and other gases
-       quantifying the removal of ocean nutrients by denitrification through N2 measurements
Any of the projects in my lab would require a student to periodically go to sea to collect dissolved gas samples and then analyze the samples in my laboratory using cryogenic gas processing techniques and a mass spectrometer.  See my research projects page for more information: http://web.uvic.ca/~rhamme/research.html
 
While I would expect to train any student in the necessary procedures, it is important that the student possess a strong attention to detail and good analytical chemistry skills.  Prospective students should be bright and self-motivated with good communication skills, a natural curiosity about science, and some patience for lab work.
 
If interested, please contact Dr. Roberta Hamme at rhamme at uvic.ca  Applications are due at University of Victoria by 15 February for full consideration.