Researcher for the analysis of High-Mountain Natural Hazards in South Tyrol (north-eastern Italian...

Eurac Research is an interdisciplinary research centre located in Bolzano, Italy. At the institute for Earth Observation, we integrate remote sensing techniques with interdisciplinary approaches to monitor and to understand key environmental dynamics in mountain regions and related climate and disaster risks. Within the framework of the PNRR iNEST (Interconnected Nord-Est Innovation Ecosystem) project, we are looking for a post-doc researcher to improve the monitoring and understanding of key Natural Hazards (e.g., mass movements, glacier hazards), their interrelations and associated trends in the context of Climate Change (CC) in the high-altitude areas of South Tyrol. For instance, permafrost and glacier retreats are associated with changes in sediment availability and slope hydrology, while increasing temperatures and emerging precipitation regimes may favour the generation of glacial lakes with hazardous outburst potential. This post-doc position is fully compliant with the Research Topic 1 (RT1 -Safety and quality of life in mountain environments) of Spoke 1 (Ecosystems for Mountain Innovation) of the PNRR-iNEST Consortium.

For South Tyrol, regional-scale quantitative assessments of how the natural hazards and associated risks may change due to CC are sparse and often very localized and specific. Based on a review of available data (including, e.g., multi-temporal optical and SAR observations as well as hydrometeorological observations) and through a transdisciplinary collaboration with  other Eurac researchers, the candidate will design, implement, and complete a 3-year activity plan to identify and characterize the most relevant Natural Hazards in the high-mountain terrain of South Tyrol, their evolution in space and time (e.g., movement rates, occurrence rates, trend analyses), their linkage to meteorological drivers (e.g., preparatory and triggering factors) and their future evolution under CC (e.g., via climate storyline approach). Collaboration with members of the Earth Observation institute will further allow to link the results on hazards to potentially exposed assets.