Postdoctoral Researcher or Research Specialist Opportunity

The StratusGeo JupyterHub (formerly CryoCloud; https://book.cryointhecloud.com) team invites applications for a remote Postdoctoral Researcher (preferred) or Research Specialist position jointly affiliated with the University of Maryland Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center (ESSIC) and NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Cryospheric Laboratory.

This is a unique opportunity that bridges geoscience research, spatial statistics, open-source software, and community leadership. The successful candidate will divide their time between scientific work supporting the NASA/CNES Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission, their own research pursuits, and serving as a community leader for the StratusGeo JupyterHub, with the balance depending on the candidate’s strengths and interests.

About the role¶

Responsibilities will include:

• Developing data workflows and/or tools for your own geoscience research

• Leading or helping organize community meetings, training workshops, and open-source initiatives

• Constructing a Bayesian (or similar) data-fusion framework that combines ICESat-2 and SWOT surface-elevation observations around Antarctica

• Assessing SWOT mission performance over polar ice and ocean targets

• Supporting StratusGeo users and helping grow an active scientific community

• Participating in and contributing to grant proposal development

• Building experience in scientific leadership, collaboration, and community stewardship

Day-to-day work will regularly involve GitHub, Slack, and JupyterHub.

Required qualifications¶

• Ph.D. in geoscience, statistics, computer science, or a related field (M.S. degree holders will also be considered)

• Strong statistical background, particularly Bayesian inference or similar approaches

• Experience working in Python and JupyterLab and/or JupyterHub environments

• Interest in scientific leadership and community building

• Strong alignment with open science principles and practices

Preferred qualifications¶

• Strong organizational and logistics skills

• Background using remote sensing data, especially rasters

• Open-source software development experience (e.g., GitHub, Docker, PyPI)

• Experience with cloud computing and/or cloud-optimized data formats

Position details¶

What you’ll gain¶

Active mission involvement¶

Work directly with data from the SWOT and ICESat-2 satellite missions while collaborating with scientists, engineers, and mission teams. This role provides hands-on experience with cutting-edge Earth observation missions and the people who build and operate them.

Practical leadership experience¶

Help lead a JupyterHub community used by researchers across institutions and disciplines. Mentorship and leadership training will be included.

Open science portfolio¶

Develop a public record of open-source software, community contributions, and scientific workflows that are increasingly valued across academia, government, and industry. Improvements made through StratusGeo are designed to benefit the broader scientific ecosystem, including NASA, Jupyter, and other open-science communities.

Proposal development experience¶

Gain hands-on experience contributing to and leading grant proposals.

About StratusGeo¶

StratusGeo is a community-driven cloud computing platform that helps researchers work with large Earth science datasets using modern, open-source tools and workflows. Originally launched as CryoCloud, the platform now supports a growing cross-disciplinary community working across many agencies, geospatial data systems, and open science initiatives.

Learn more at book.cryointhecloud.com.

How to apply¶

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.

For full consideration, please submit the following materials to tsnow03@umd.edu by June 30, 2026. The position will remain open until filled.

We warmly welcome applicants from all backgrounds and identities across ability, age, race and ethnicity, gender and gender identity, sexual orientation, veteran status, and religion.

Required materials¶

1. Curriculum Vitae (CV) — no page limit

2. Letter of Interest (1–2 pages) describing:

   • Your research background, relevant technical expertise, and interests

   • Your interest in the community leadership aspects of this role

3. One or two examples of relevant work, such as:

   • GitHub repositories

   • Jupyter notebooks

   • Publications

   • Software projects

   • Workshops or community activities you have organized

Questions?¶

Questions about the position are welcome at tsnow03@umd.edu.