Weather-related extreme events may have a strong societal and economic impact on human activities. In the context of the accelerating global warming, the frequency and intensity of extreme events is increasing and projected to further rise in the future. Reliable predictions are then crucial to implement effective actions for impact assessment and mitigation. However, reanalysis products and global climate models still struggle in correctly represent extreme events, because of the intrinsic difficulty in simulating physical processes characterised by low probability . Nonetheless, most of weather-related extreme events are associated with large-scale atmospheric circulation patterns which are generally well represented in climate models, and can be then used to characterise and predict the occurrence of these events.This research programme will focus on the characterisation of weather-related extreme events through the analysis of the associated circulation patterns. The analysis may target: heat waves, dry spells, atmospheric rivers, heavy precipitation, wind storms, storm surges, and natural and anthropogenic aerosol outbreaks. The scientific objectives are: 1) to identify the atmospheric circulation patterns associated with the occurrence of extreme events; 2) to use them as predictors to reconstruct the event occurrence in the past and project it in the future. To this aim, data from surface observational datasets (E-OBS, CRU), atmospheric reanalysis products (ERA5, CAMS) and climate models (CORDEX, CMIP6) will be analysed. The results of this research are expected to provide useful insights for the assessment and mitigation of climate change impacts.

The ideal candidate should be skilled in the fields of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Earth and Environmental Sciences or Civil Engineering, with a strong background in statistics. Specific skills in the field of climate science will be considered a plus. Moreover, the candidate should be strongly motivated to work in a pluralist and multi-disciplinary environment, collaborating with the STEM and social scientists of the CARISMA research centre.

IUSS mission is to provide advanced education to undergraduate and graduate students, as well as fundamental and applied research in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), and Human, Social and Life Sciences. At IUSS, PhD candidates will find an open multidisciplinary environment offering real opportunities for developing academic and professional tools for facing the challenges arising from increasing complexity and fast changes in the society and the environment. IUSS is always and actively committed towards internationalisation, inclusion and diversity. The selected candidate will join the research centre on Climate change impAct studies for RISk MAnagement (CARISMA). The CARISMA team is composed by STEM and Social scientists working in the prism of climate change on: data analysis and modelling of Earth system and economic system processes; impact assessment of extreme natural events and anthropogenic activities on human and natural environments; risk management of natural and anthropogenic hazards; formulation and proposal of new economic, political and legal models of sustainable development.