Postdoc Research Group Pellicciotti

• Klosterneuburg (Vienna), Austria
• € 73,500* gross/year
• Application Deadline: (30/09/2026). The position is for 4 years, with an initial contract of 2 years renewable for two more years. Position start date: December 2026/January 2027

Postdoctoral Researcher / Data Scientist – Mountain water and cryosphere

The cryosphere and mountain hydrosphere research group (cryohydro.ista.ac.at; ista.ac.at/en/research/pellicciotti-group/) is looking for a data scientist or postdoc to join a large interdisciplinary project (MountAInWater, funded by the VIEW program from Schmidt Sciences) reshaping how we understand mountain water resources and the mountain cryosphere.

You’ll work at the intersection of AI, remote sensing, and high-resolution land surface modelling — combining advanced cryosphere and hydrosphere observations with climate adaptation strategies. Your core mission: help build a next-generation, large-scale dataset of mountain water resources that will set a new standard in the field.

Your Responsibilities

The successful candidate will play a key role in shaping the data infrastructure of the project. This includes:

• Designing and implementing efficient data pipelines for large geospatial datasets
• Managing, harmonising, and documenting multi-source environmental data across all work packages
• Facilitating efficient data exchange across institutions and work packages
• Supporting reproducible workflows and best practices in scientific computing
• Construct an API / user-interface to download the data resulting from AI emulator in an efficient and lightweight manner
• Involvement in the design and the functionality of the digital twin / web platform that aims to make project output accessible
• Contributing to the development of a project-wide dataset as a major output
• Supporting data flow and collaboration between work packages
• Opportunities to contribute to scientific analyses, scientific publications and fieldwork.

Your Profile

We are looking for candidates with strong skills in data science and/or geospatial data handling and an interest in Earth sciences applications.

Applicants must have:

• A PhD in data science, geosciences, hydrology, climate science, computer science, or a related field
• Strong programming skills (including API / user interface)
• Experience handling large and complex datasets, especially geospatial data formats (e.g. NetCDF, GeoTIFF, Zarr, GeoJSON)
• Experience with version control and reproducible research practices

In addition, the following is desirable:

• Experience with environmental or climate data
• Experience with scientific computing or knowledge of high-performance computing (HPC) environments
• Experience with cloud platforms and/or large-scale data processing
• Background in machine learning or AI applications
• Experience with API / user interfaces
• Experience with web development and interactive geospatial visualization is a plus
• Ability to build science communication platforms that translate complex model outputs into intuitive, accessible interfaces for policymakers, stakeholders, and the general public — combining storytelling, maps, and interactive graphics to drive real-world impact

Application documents: Motivation letter, CV, minimum 2 references.

To submit your application please email the documents to: [email protected] and [email protected]

ISTA is growing. Grow with us!

Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) is a constantly growing international institute for conducting world-class research in mathematics, computer science, life sciences & physical sciences. We strive to recruit passionate professionals from across the world over all fields who strive to support our goal of excellent research. Located within a beautiful campus on the outskirts of Vienna, we offer multiple opportunities for personal growth in a stable working environment.

ISTA promotes a diverse and inclusive working environment and is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all applicants, free of discrimination. All employment decisions at ISTA are based on job requirements, qualifications, merit and organizational needs. We strongly encourage individuals from underrepresented groups to apply.

Your benefits

Education & training

Cafeteria

Childcare

Free shuttle bus

Multiple health offers

Pension insurance

• This position comes with possible overpayment depending on education, qualification and work experience. For more information on how ISTA processes your personal data, please refer to www.ista.ac.at/data-protection.

Your Contacts

Boris Cesnik

Postdoctoral Office

+43 2243 9000 1068

[email protected]

Glen Dalton

Postdoctoral Office

+43 2243 9000 1120

[email protected]