Arctic Early Career News - July 2025
- USAPECS
- Jul 31
- 8 min read
USAPECS + IARPC Early Career Forum
Periodically USAPECS and the IARPC Early Career Forum will share research from, and opportunities for, early career researchers working in the polar regions. This regular round-up aims to highlight and celebrate the work being done by early career researchers in Arctic research. If you have information you would like to submit, please see the link below.
Are you or do you know an early career researcher who has recently published work related to the Arctic? We at USAPECS and the IARPC Early Career Forum want to highlight your work! Please fill out this form with any Arctic publications, webinars, posters, etc. and we will share on the IARPC Early Career Forum and with our USAPECS Twitter followers. Anyone who identifies as early career is eligible to submit! Any questions? Email usapecs@gmail.com for more information. Submit documents here: https://forms.gle/S1Gd3jpE4CtSoY6Y6
Publications
Melissa Ward Jones, Joachim Otto Habeck, Mathias Ulrich, Susan Crate, Glenna Gannon, Tobias Schwoerer, Benjamin Jones, Mikhail Kanevskiy, Prashant Baral, Amina Maharjan, Jakob Steiner, Andrew Spring, Mindy Jewell Price, David Bysouth, Bruce C. Forbes, Mariana Verdonen, Timo Kumpula, Jens Strauss, Torben Windirsch, Christopher Poeplau, Yuri Shur, Benjamin Gaglioti, Nicholas Parlato, Fulu Tao, Merritt Turetsky, Stephanie Grand, Adrian Unc & Nils Borchard
Socioecological dynamics of diverse global permafrost-agroecosystems under environmental change
Date of publication: 17 June 2024
Keywords: permafrost, arctic, subarctic, agroecosystems
Elina Valkonen, J. Cassano, E. Cassano, M. Seefeldt and C. Parker
CMIP6 Representation of Declining Sea Ice and Arctic Cyclones in the Current Climate
Date of publication: 14 July 2025
Keywords: sea ice, atmospheric science, earth system modeling, CMIP6, cyclones
Ashvin Fernando, Daniel Tague, Max Friedman, Matthew Fort, Brianna Fernando, Abigail Carson, Mamie Mulder, Amara Taddeo, Emily Asenath-Smith
Do inhibition studies of ice crystallization indicate cryoprotectant efficacy?
Date of publication: 29 May 2025
Keywords: additives, assays, grain, ice, nucleation
Opportunities
Sign-ups for the 2025-2026 session of the IARPC Collaborations Mentorship Program are now open!
To register, fill out this Google Form
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdIjpYDJBQsw2UUNtza8_yK0Gra7x7FXyemrzhzAahD8pyQ5w/viewform by August 22, 2025.
The program is available to Arctic and Antarctic scientists and members of the research community, and provides career growth and mentoring opportunities to all career levels and paths. It brings together small groups of researchers and other professionals to discuss career
opportunities and issues, learn from and support one another through transition and change, and grow as leaders together. You do not have to be a scientist or to be actively researching/publishing to participate in the program. Join this year’s mentorship program for a space to build relationships, to share and gain expertise, and to bring your questions and provide guidance to others.
The 2025-26 session of the IARPC Collaborations Mentorship Program will run from September 2025 to May 2026. It will kick off at a launch meeting on September 10 at 11am AKT; after that, mentorship groups will meet at least monthly. This year, IARPC is partnering with the Polar Science Early Career Community Office (PSECCO https://psecco.org/) and the United States
Association of Polar Early Career Scientists (USAPECS https://www.usapecs.org/) to offer this program.
More details and sign-up form available at
2025 Arctic Report Card Photo & Video Contest
To celebrate 20 years of the Arctic Report Card, NOAA's Global Ocean Monitoring and Observing (GOMO) Arctic Research Program is hosting a Photo and Video Contest. This contest invites photographers and videographers from around the world, ages 13 and up, to share photos and videos that tell visual stories about the Arctic region. We welcome submissions that highlight the people, cultures, wildlife, landscapes, ocean, weather, economic activities on land and at sea, and science taking place in the Arctic.
Winning entries will be selected by a panel of experts and featured in the Arctic Report Card and related materials. Whether you are capturing by video or photo a moment of scientific discovery, a traditional practice, a dramatic weather event, or the natural beauty of the Arctic, your work can help tell the story of this extraordinary region.
Submissions are open July 14, 2025 - August 31, 2025, check out the flyer linked in the website for more information! Questions? Contact: mary.beth.armstrong@noaa.gov
Call for Papers: “Glacies” ESC-WCS Special Issue
The Glacies Journal has a joint Eastern and Western Snow Conference (ESC-WSC) special issue (you do not need to have presented at either conference to submit a manuscript). The deadline for submission is October 31, but review is on a rolling basis. The sooner you submit, the sooner it will be reviewed and published (pending any necessary changes per reviewer comments).
From the Glacies page: Snow is a globally important topic. Snowpack can cover a large portion of the Earth’s surface, affecting the climate, water resources, recreation, ecology, mobility and travel, safety, and other aspects of life on the planet. The characteristics of snow vary across both time and space. Snow is mostly seasonal, but it can be ephemeral or permanent. The dynamic nature of snow makes it a difficult medium to monitor and model. We seek papers on any snow-related topics, including the characteristics and variability of snowpack properties, manual and remote sensing measurements of snowpack properties, snowpack modeling, snow as a hazard, snow hydrology, snow ecosystems, snow recreation. We especially welcome papers on new research that advances our understanding of snow and related phenomena.
If the lead author is a graduate student or a post-doc, please contact Professor Steven Fassnacht (steven.fassnacht@colostate.edu) to have the Article Processing Charge waived. For more information, visit: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/glacies/special_issues/59H8018P2P
Polar STEAM: Seeking polar researchers to collaborate with educators
Polar STEAM is seeking NSF-funded polar researchers (including those working in all of Alaska) interested in collaborating, virtually or in the field, with educators during the 2026 Arctic field season. This unique opportunity supports broader impacts by embedding professional educators into your research team-at no cost to you to participate-to co-create educational products that connect your science with wider audiences. Join a national cohort of polar researchers, strengthen your science communication, and share your work in new and meaningful ways. Learn more at polarsteam.info (https://polarsteam.info/application/) or email us at polarsteam at oregonstate.edu.
Events
PSECCO Panel: Polar Careers Outside Academia
Join us online for a ‘Polar Careers Outside Academia” panel discussion on Thursday, August 7, 2025, 8 am AKT | 10 am MT | 12 pm ET! Are you an early career researcher interested in career pathways outside of the classic academic route? The Polar Science Early Career Community Office (PSECCO) is bringing together four panelists to discuss their varied career pathways and answer your questions about working outside of academia. To learn more about the event, register for the panel, and submit questions to be answered at this event visit this webpage.
Panelists for the event will be Daphne Wellman, Brenda Riley, Dr. John Farrell, and Stacey Lucason.
Find out more and register here: https://psecco.org/index.php/outreach/psecco-eventopportunity/polar-careers-outside-academia
Jobs
Post Doc Opportunity: Coastal/Sea Ice Remote Sensing
The U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) has an opportunity for conducting post-doctoral research on remote sensing of coastal ocean and sea ice processes using a combination of active and passive remote sensing and/or modeling.
The research is expected to involve the use of any or a combination of airborne and spaceborne optical, synthetic aperture radar (SAR), and lidar systems. Given that coastal ocean and sea ice dynamics occur at a range of spatial and temporal scales, a synergistic approach that takes advantage of the unique advantages of various remote sensing systems in an integrated manner is encouraged.
With an emphasis on optical remote sensing, the selected applicant is expected to possess or have an eagerness to develop expertise in processing and analyzing (any of) optical, SAR, or lidar data, with knowledge and skill in several of the following areas: radiative transfer, data fusion, feature extraction, spectral analysis, spectral manipulation of data, polarimetry, and advanced image processing techniques, including statistical methods and machine learning approaches, for processing high-resolution multispectral and hyperspectral imagery.
NRL has several ongoing research projects in the Arctic, focused on developing techniques and tools to understand and monitor environmental changes in the Arctic - including the nearshore environment, land-ocean interface, and sea ice. The selected candidate will have opportunities to participate in these projects, including field campaigns, as part of their post-doctoral research.
NRL provides access to a number of commercial and custom-built sensing and imaging systems (hyperspectral, multispectral, thermal and polarimetric systems), calibration facilities, and computer resources to perform the work.
The selected candidate will work as a post-doctoral associate in the Coastal & Ocean Remote Sensing Branch in the Remote Sensing Division at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C.
Eligibility: Applicants should be U.S. citizens or permanent residents (Green Card holders) and must have obtained their Ph.D. within the last five years at the time of application. Students expected to graduate in 2025 are also eligible.
Stipend & Benefits: A base stipend of $99,200 plus a professional travel allowance of $3,000 per year; Health insurance (individual & family coverage) and relocation benefits are available.
How to Apply: Please contact Dr. Wes Moses (wesley.j.moses.civ@us.navy.mil) to express interest and receive instructions on applying.
Post Doc Opportunity: Soil Microbiology in Cold Regions
The Soil Microbiology Group at CRREL in Hanover, NH, USA is seeking a highly-motivated MS or PhD-level researcher to join an interdisciplinary research team investigating the distribution and function of microorganisms in cold regions. Start date is September 2025.
As a group, we are interested in 1) isolating and testing cold regions microorganisms for biotechnology applications, 2) describing cycles and perturbations in surface soils, the subsequent effects on the biology of the soils, and possible feedback mechanisms that amplify or attenuate the change, 3) identifying signature patterns from standoff sensing and relating these patterns to biological or biochemical changes in surface soil, and 4) describing and representing trends and uncertainty is soil systems. The candidate will participate in developing experiments, working with microbial isolates as well as microbial communities, optimizing molecular protocols, and generating and analyzing complex datasets. The candidate will be responsible for proper documentation of methods and data as well as contributing to reports and local research presentations. Candidates should exhibit a strong ability to collaborate with an interdisciplinary team. Prior experience with soils, microbiology, and/or molecular techniques is required. Candidates with experience studying microbial community composition and activity in soils are preferred.
The researcher will be responsible for proper documentation of methods and data as well as contributing to reports and research presentations. The candidate should exhibit a strong ability to collaborate with an interdisciplinary team. Candidates with experience in the analysis of high- throughput biological data are preferred.
Qualifications: The postdoctoral researcher must have completed a MS or PhD within the past 5 years in Microbiology, Environmental Microbiology, Environmental Science, Biology, Molecular Biology, or Soil Science. Qualified candidates should have prior experience with microbiology or microbial ecology using next-generation sequencing (genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, etc), bioinformatics, and statistical analysis to interpret research findings. The candidate should also be driven to synthesize and document research findings through peer-reviewed publications and contribute to the team projects.
Appointment: This is a funded fellowship that is expected to last 1 year with the opportunity for follow on years provided funding is available. Anticipated salary ranges from $69,107 to $82,830. Anticipated start date is September 2025.
To apply, submit a cover letter describing research experience and goals and a CV with references as a single pdf by 15 August 2025 to Dr. Robyn Barbato (robyn.a.barbato@erdc.dren.mil). Reviews will begin at that time and continue until the position is filled.
About ERDC/CRREL: The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) provides quality, responsive engineering andenvironmental research and development support to the Army and Nation. As part of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers team, ERDC develops innovative science and technology solutions to support warfighting, infrastructure, environmental, water resources and disaster operations. It consists of seven laboratories at four geographical sites in Vicksburg, MS; Champaign, IL; Hanover, NH; and Alexandria, VA. ERDC employs more than 2,000 engineers, scientists and support personnel. For more information on our organization, please visit our website at https://www.erdc.usace.army.mil/
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