2023 NF-POGO-IEO Shipboard Training Fellowship onboard RADPROF cruise

General Information

2 Jun 2023 to 15 Aug 2023

RADPROF is a ship-based hydrographic monitoring section located in the northwest Iberia basin. The expedition sails from Cape Finisterre to 15.4o W, and, since 2014, includes a systematic sampling for inorganic carbon variables.

The north-western part of the Iberian Peninsula is located at the north-easternmost part of the subtropical gyre entering a shadow area in between main oceanic gyres. Being outside the main North Atlantic oceanic currents, the region is characterized by a weak upper ocean circulation with a mean southward flow of few cm per second, affected by an important mesoscale activity and slope dynamics. The area is also affected by seasonal upwelling specially in summer.

In 2003, the Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO) started an ambitious monitoring program of the full depth ocean hydrography in the Bay of Biscay and western Iberia (mid latitudes Eastern North Atlantic, ml-ENA), including several sections in the Bay of Biscay and ENA repeated on twice a year. The RADPROF cruise focuses on the Finisterre summertime section, and is conducted on regular basis once a year since 2012, thus allowing a comprehension of water masses seasonality and interannual variability in the region and explaining their relationship with regional and large-scale dynamics. RADPROF provides a contribution to the ICES status report on ocean climate, issued yearly.

Regarding biogeochemistry, the database for oxygen and inorganic nutrients gathered in the program is now mature enough to address the role that the ml-ENA plays in oxygen ventilation and nutrient dynamics. With regard to CO2 variables, they were analyzed in 2005, 2009 and 2010, and regularly from 2014 onwards. Although no transient tracers are measured, RADPROF is to be recognized as associated GO-SHIP line.

The Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO) is a public research organization belonging to the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), devoted to marine science research, especially in relation to the scientific knowledge of the oceans, the sustainability of fishing resources and the marine environment. The IEO represents Spain in most of the international scientific and technological forums related to the sea and its resources. The fellow will be trained at IEO A Coruña in Galicia (Spain).

Priority areas

The main research area is inorganic chemical oceanography and the successful candidate will focus on one (or all) of the specific items of work listed below, in which he or she should have particular scientific interest:

Dissolved oxygen sampling, conservation, on board analysis and data processing and reporting
Inorganic carbon variables (alkalinity and pH) sampling, conservation, on board analysis and data processing and reporting
Total Dissolved Inorganic Carbon (DIC) and inorganic nutrients sampling and conservation, laboratory analysis and data processing and reporting

What is offered

The successful candidate will be mentored by Dr Marta Álvarez (@MartaAlvarezRo5, #INOCENlab), chemical oceanographer with vast expertise in inorganic carbon chemistry. The fellow will join her team at the INOCEN lab (Inorganic Chemical Oceanography lab), IEO A Coruña, and receive training in sampling, measuring and data processing and reporting for several ocean essential variables: dissolved oxygen, pH, total alkalinity, total inorganic carbon and inorganic nutrients. Along with the INOCEN lab members, the fellow will interact on board with physical and biological oceanography IEO teams.

During the month before the cruise, the fellow will be instructed in the different sampling and laboratory analysis for the correct work on board, and will be involved in the preparation for the cruise;

On the cruise (expected dates 2nd to 15th July 2023), the fellow will work in chemical oceanography (dissolved oxygen, pH, total alkalinity, total inorganic carbon and inorganic nutrients);

After the cruise, the fellow will receive an additional one-month training at the INOCENlab to work on data processing and interpretation.

Application

Who can apply

Scientists, technicians, postgraduate students (PhD/MSc), post-doctoral fellows (with priority for early-career scientists) who are nationals of and involved in oceanographic work in developing countries and countries with economies in transition.

For a list of currently eligible countries, visit this page on the OECD website.

How to apply

Fellowship applicants should complete and submit the electronic application form (click on the APPLY HERE link at bottom of this section) together with a digital copy of the recommendation letter from the parent supervisor. The recommendation letter must be provided in English, on institutional letterhead, dated and signed by the supervisor.

Please note that the application form includes sections on the applicant's background and training requirements, capacity building intentions and a CV. In case of unstable internet connections, we recommend preparing this text in an offline document, then copy-pasting into the online form.

If short-listed, the candidate may be asked to undergo an informal telephone/video conferencing interview.

Applications and recommendation letters must be written in English and letters submitted/uploaded in pdf format. It is recommended that descriptive sections be limited to about 100 - 150 words and no more than 500 words.

Only applications that are complete in all respects will be considered for the Fellowship.

Deadline: The deadline for applications for this fellowship is Sunday 26 March 2023 23:59 (UTC+1). All applicants will be informed of the decision within one month of the deadline

Review process

Representatives from POGO and IEO will review the applications. In their decision-making, the Selection Committee will consider the following points:

Quality of the application;
Curriculum of the applicant;
Relevance of the training to the applicant's carreer and background;
Evidence that the training will lead to capacity-building with potential lasting impact on regional observations.

Terms

The fellowship DOES cover a round-trip ticket between the home institute of the trainee and the host institution; subsistence allowance for up to 2 month’s stay in the host country depending on the particulars of the proposed training; the flight to and from the departure port (if applicable); accommodation in the host institution country; accommodation in the ship departure port (if applicable); seafaring medical and sea survival course (if required).
The fellowship DOES NOT cover expenses incurred by the fellow in their own nation (domestic travel, visa costs, personal insurance, medical tests, vaccination, etc.), and the host institute will waive ship messing fee and any bench fees that they may normally charge trainees.
POGO assumes no responsibility for compensation in the event of sickness, accident, death or disability of a Fellowship holder, nor does it arrange for insurance of a trainee or reimburse premiums paid therefore. It is the responsibility of the trainee to arrange travel insurance to cover the time taken to travel to the ship and for the subsequent return home, as well as to ensure suitable insurance cover is provided by the parent institute for the duration of the cruise.
The trainees are not considered agents or members of the staff of POGO, and shall not be entitled to any privileges, immunities, compensation or reimbursements, except as otherwise provided herein, nor are the trainees authorised to commit POGO to any expenditure or other obligation.
The trainee and the supervisors at the parent and host institutes are required to provide a short fellowship report at the end of the training period, to evaluate the success of the fellowship programme.
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