Future Flood Conditions Assessment of the Mississippi River & Tributaries

The U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center's Coastal & Hydraulics Laboratory (CHL) performs research on ocean, estuarine, riverine, and watershed systems in support of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Department of Defense (DOD) Task Force in support of the Ocean Commission. A multi-disciplinary team of scientists, engineers, and support personnel work in CHL's internationally known, unique facilities. This team has developed state-of-the-art experimental and computational models for solving water resource problems worldwide. Physical facilities of approximately 1.7 million square feet and high-performance computing facilities at the DOD Supercomputing Research Center (http://www.erdc.hpc.mil) are the basic infrastructure for producing cutting-edge products for successful coastal, inland water resources, and navigation management. CHL work, although primarily in support of the DOD and the Corp's districts, also interfaces with other federal, state and local agencies, academia, conservation groups, and the general public, as appropriate. The Research Participation Program for USACE-ERDC-CHL provides opportunities to participate in new and on-going applied research and development projects. Research projects range from design guidance to three-dimensional computational models. Focus is placed on inland and coastal navigation, military logistics over the shore, dredging, flood control, storm and erosion protection, waterway restoration, fish passage, hydro-environmental modeling, water/land management, and other water and sediment-related issues facing the nation. For more information about USACE-ERDC-CHL, please visit https://www.erdc.usace.army.mil/Locations/CHL/.

The purpose of this research project is to conduct a comprehensive study of future flood conditions for the entire Mississippi River Basin. Mississippi River Basin includes all tributaries with more than 1.2 million river reaches. Research will compare and evaluate the Mississippi River and Tributaries (MR&T) Project Design Flood (PDF). This study investigates the flood recurrence values and peak flows across the entire Mississippi River Basin in response to long term climate projections and future flood conditions.

Through engaging in this research project at the ERDC-CHL, the participant will gain advanced knowledge in innovative modeling techniques with GIS, Excel, and Python. This project will allow the academic researchers (e.g. recent graduate or student) to continue their research while advancing the capabilities of the USACE, ERDC and the Coastal and Hydraulics Laboratory.

This ORISE appointment is for a 4 month period.  Appointments may be extended depending on funding availability, project assignment, program rules, and availability of the participant.

Participants will receive a stipend to be determined by ERDC-CHL. Stipends are typically based on the participant’s academic standing, discipline, experience, and research facility location. Other benefits may include the following:

The participant will not enter into an employee/employer relationship with ORISE, ORAU, DOD, or any other office or agency. Instead, the participant will be affiliated with ORISE for the administration of the appointment through the ORISE appointment letter and Terms of Appointment.

Candidates with experience working with GIS, Excel, and Python preferred. Surface hydrology and water quality background is preferred. Further, applicants with hydrologic or related fields are encouraged to apply for this position.

Minimum GPA requirement is 3.0.

Currently pursuing or received Bachelor, Master, or Doctoral Degree required.