PhD Scholarship co-sponsored by Swinburne University of Technology andWoodside Energy Ltd Wave Modelling within Extreme Tropical Cyclones PhysicalOceanography
*Victoria, Australia*
*BACKGROUND:
*Swinburne University of Technology (SUT) and Woodside Energy Ltd (WEL) areseeking a suitably qualified student to undertake post-graduate study todevelop a wave forecast model suitable for extreme tropical cycloneconditions.
*About Swinburne University of Technology
*Swinburne University of Technology is a large multi-sectoral andmulti-campus institution with a stated mission to be a pre-eminententrepreneurial university from the Asia-Pacific, thriving on new ideas andknowledge and exploiting its intersectoral heritage to create value for itsstakeholders.The Faculty of Engineering and Industrial Sciences is host to most of theengineering activities at Swinburne as well as key programs in aviation andphotonics. The Coastal Engineering and Physical Oceanography group of theFaculty specialises in research of deep-water and finite-depth wavedynamics, spectral modelling of wind-generated waves, wave breaking anddissipation, air-sea interaction, wave-bottom interaction and turbulence.
*About Woodside Energy Ltd
*Woodside Energy Ltd. (WEL) is Australia's largest offshore oil and gasproducer and operator of the North West Shelf project. Over a period of 20years, WEL has been conducting and sponsoring applied and fundamentaloceanographic research. The issue of enhancing understanding of extremetropical cyclones, and in particular improving the wave forecast under suchconditions, is among the current priorities of the research sponsored by thecompany.
*PROJECT ABSTRACT:
*Accurate wind wave models are essential for all elements of extreme air-seainteraction, including loads on structures, upper-ocean mixing and bottomboundary layer formation. At present, physics of such models is mostly basedon theory and experiments applicable to moderate wind/wave situations, whichphysics is then extrapolated to extreme conditions. Since air-seainteraction at such tropical cyclones is known to be different, the modelsmanifest inconsistent results. This is a major concern for engineeringdesign applications. The project is intended to produce, parameterise,implement and test new energy source/.sink functions for the wave forecastmodels, based on direct measurements in the extreme tropical cyclones and onrecent theoretical advances in this field.
*SELECTION CRITERIA
* 1. Honours degree in Physical or Mathematical Sciences (essential)
2. Strong analytical and mathematical skills (essential)
3. A good working knowledge of programming (desirable)
*Commencement Date:
*March 2008*Scholarship:
*A$24,815 per annum, tax exempt. Duration – three years
*Application Deadline:
*31 January 2008
*Contact
*Alexander Babanin
Faculty of Engineering and Industrial Sciences
Swinburne University of Technology
PO Box 218 Hawthorn VIC 3122
Australia
Telephone: +61-3-9214 8033
Fax: +61-3-9214 8264
Email: ababanin@swin.edu.au