Internal Research Fellow (PostDoc) in CalVal, Data Quality & Algorithm Evolution (BIOMASS mission)

Our team and mission

As a research fellow you will be part of the Earth Observation (EO) Mission Management and Product Quality Division within the Directorate of Earth Observation Programmes at ESAs Earth observation centre: ESRIN. The Division is responsible for the management of ESAs Earth observation missions the development of the ground processors sensor performance and data and product quality.

You will join the section in charge of sensor performance data quality algorithm development and calibration and validation (Cal/Val) for the ESA EO missions.

The Sensor Performance Products and Algorithms (EOP-GMQ) Section has a wide range of functions to serve the end users of Earth observation missions with the best possible product quality. Among the tasks managed by the Section are the in-orbit sensor calibration product validation and verification and the routine quality monitoring of data generated by the missions scientific addition the Section is in charge of the improvement of processing algorithms during the exploitation phase of a mission.

You are encouraged to visit the ESA website: of activity/research for the traineeship

This fellowship relates to the exploitation of the ESA Biomass mission.

Biomass is ESAs seventh Earth Explorer mission and launched on 29 April 2025. The main objective of the mission is to measure forest biomass to assess terrestrial carbon stocks and fluxes to support understanding of the Earths carbon cycle. The Biomass mission is imaging the Earths surface with a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) at the P-band wavelength the first time this technique is being used from space. The mission aims to provide accurate maps of tropical temperate and boreal forest biomass that are not obtainable from ground measurement techniques. To this end the mission is exploiting novel observation techniques such as SAR tomography and polarimetric SAR interferometry. The main products of the mission are maps of above-ground forest biomass and forest height at a resolution of 200m and forest disturbances such as clear-cutting at a resolution of 50m.

You will be involved in the following activities:

• exploring novel calibration algorithms products and tools to maximise the impact of the Biomass mission in particular during the commissioning phase and the early exploitation phase;
• studying novel approaches and developments relating to the calibration and validation of the mission products;
• dedicated research on the potential evolution of the missions processing algorithms and tools and their impact on the scientific return;
• supporting the concept of open science by making the link between the open source processors open validation tools open reference data and the open platform: the Mission Algorithm and Analysis Platform (MAAP);
• exploring potential synergies between above-ground biomass density (AGBD) products from the Biomass NISAR and GEDI missions.

Technical competencies

Behavioural competencies

Result Orientation
Operational Efficiency
Fostering Cooperation
Relationship Management
Continuous Improvement
Forward Thinking

For more information please refer to ESA Core Behavioural Competencies guidebook

Education

You should have recently completed or be close to completion of a PhD in a related technical or scientific discipline. Preference will be given to applications submitted by candidates within five years of receiving their particular for this position the following is required:

PhD in physics engineering or Earth science with research experience and peer-reviewed publications on topics of relevance to the proposed fields of research. Your PhD subject should relate to the use of SAR data for forest applications.

Additional requirements

In addition to your CV and your motivation letter please prepare a research proposal of no more than 5 pages. This proposal should be uploaded to the additional documents field of the application information section.

You should have:

• Demonstrated familiarity with the ESA Biomass mission and its objectives with sound experience with airborne SAR data and/or processing of SAR data;
• Experience with EO remote sensing algorithm development and EO product validation;
• Experience with open source and computing programming using Python and C/C.

Experience in the following areas will be considered an asset:

• Full-pol SAR and/or P-band SAR;
• Advanced SAR processing techniques such as tomographic SAR and PolInSAR;
• Low-frequency SAR data (e.g. L-band) and LIDAR data applied to forestry;
• The Biomass processing chain and quality tools;
• Image processing tools such as QGIS or SNAP.

You should also have good interpersonal and communication skills and should be able to work in a multi-cultural environment both independently and as part of a team. Your motivation overall professional perspective and career goals will also be explored during the later stages of the selection process.

The working languages of the Agency are English and French. A good knowledge of one of these is required. Knowledge of another Member State language would be an asset.