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USGS postdoctoral research on Kilauea Volcano
From: Michael P Poland <mpoland@xxxxxxxx>
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Dear Colleagues,
Our apologies for duplicate postings of this announcement.
The USGS is seeking applicants to conduct postdoctoral research on Kilauea Volcano as part of two separate, but complementary, projects: investigating Kilauea’s magma plumbing with ambient noise tomography, and modeling magma migration and storage at Kilauea (the latter opportunity was also advertised in 2008, but we were unable to fill the position at that time). Kilauea is currently experiencing an unprecedented eruptive episode involving vents at both its summit and east rift zone; thus, the time for such investigations is ripe.
The Mendenhall program is an exceptional opportunity to conduct research with the USGS and includes full salary and project funding for two years (with a possible extension for two additional years). If you are interested in more information about these projects, please don’t hesitate to contact any one of the project supervisors, and be sure to visit the Mendenhall Program website (http://geology.usgs.gov/postdoc/).
The application deadline for these opportunities is November 9, 2009. The successful applicants will be expected to have completed their PhD and start work in late 2010 or early 2011.
Dynamics of Magma Migration, Magma Storage, and Stress Triggering at Kilauea Volcano, Hawai‘i: Kilauea is one of the best known volcanoes in the world thanks to its frequent eruptive activity, long history of continuous monitoring, and excellent accessibility. As a result, geophysical data collection is outpacing model development. The goal of this project is the construction and implementation of conceptually and physically realistic models of Kilauea's shallow magmatic system that build on existing knowledge of the volcano and that quantitatively predict the spatial and temporal patterns of recently observed volcanic activity, seismicity, and deformation. We seek a researcher who will develop innovative models that take advantage of the vast archive of geophysical and geological data at Kilauea, and who will employ new cutting-edge data sets, for example, PS InSAR, high-rate GPS, or gravity.
Research Advisors: Michael Poland (mpoland@xxxxxxxx); Asta Miklius (asta@xxxxxxxx); Paul Okubo (pokubo@xxxxxxxx); Jessica Murray-Moraleda (jrmurray@xxxxxxxx); Tim Masterlark (University of Alabama; masterlark@xxxxxxxxxx)
Project Website: http://geology.usgs.gov/postdoc/2011/opps/opp38.html
Duty Station: Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HI)
Investigating the Active Plumbing System for Kilauea with Ambient Seismic Noise: Ambient noise seismology is a new and rapidly emerging field attracting many new seismologists. This project presents an opportunity to apply a new skill and significantly advance the science and practice of volcano monitoring. Beyond the use of ambient seismic noise to investigate Kilauea, details of the research plan are left to the postdoctoral fellow to formulate with the advisers. Although the project will be informed by previous ambient noise studies at Piton de la Fournaise, the research at Kilauea is expected to evolve in different ways uniquely and appropriately suited to the setting and activity there. Owing to long-term monitoring at Kilauea, much is already known about the shallow magma reservoirs and seismic sources beneath the caldera that can guide interpretations of results from ambient noise.
Research Advisors: Paul Okubo (pokubo@xxxxxxxx); Matthew Haney (Boise State University; matt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx); Bernard Chouet (chouet@xxxxxxxx); Shaul Hurwitz (shaulh@xxxxxxxx)
Project Website: http://geology.usgs.gov/postdoc/2011/opps/opp37.html
Duty Station: Hawaiian Volcano Observatory (HI) or Menlo Park (CA)
Many thanks,
Mike Poland and Paul Okubo (for the research advisor teams)
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