PhD research opportunity in GPS Geodesy: The extraction of small
deformations from continually operating GPS networks

This opportunity is to study for a PhD within the NERC-funded COMET centre
of excellence. COMET is the Centre for the Observation and Modelling of
Earthquakes and Tectonics, which is a formal collaboration between the
Departments of Earth Sciences at Oxford and Cambridge, and the Department
of Geomatic Engineering at University College London.

Data collected from Continuous GPS (CGPS) networks established for tectonic
deformation studies are usually analysed with a view to estimating the
secular velocities of stations, relative to each other, and relative to a
global reference frame. By averaging over long time periods, using well
established and well understood algorithms, very high levels of accuracy
can be obtained. In recent years, however, there has been considerable
interest in analysing CGPS data to uncover very small sudden motions, such
as those that occur in so-called silent earthquakes - movements that may
have been interpreted as little more than GPS noise in the past.

Such motions occur without warning and there may be no other indicators of
their occurrence (i.e. there may be no seismic signal). Also they may have
both spatial and temporal characteristics (i.e. they may spread through a
region over a relatively short time scale). As part of COMET, and of
related NERC-funded research at the University of Oxford, CGPS networks
have been specifically established to search for them as a means of
understanding better the failure of the earthquake record in the Aegean
region to account for the expected rate of movement. In anticipation of
being able to extract these sudden movements some CGPS sites now also
record data at a much higher rate than is standard (typically once per
second rather than once per thirty seconds). These networks are now sending
data on a daily basis to the COMET computing centre and a significant data
base is being established for analysis.

The programme of study will take place within the geodesy research group in
the department of Geomatic Engineering, University College London, under
the supervision of Prof Paul Cross and Dr Marek Ziebart.

The opportunity is a fully funded PhD programme, including all fees and a
maintenance grant of £14,000 per annum. The programme is scheduled to start
in October 2004. Any interested students must contact either Prof Cross or
Dr Ziebart within the next two weeks to give an expression of interest.
Eligibility for full funding is largely restricted to UK students studying
in England, Wales or Scotland.

See: http://comet.nerc.ac.uk/news_cgps.html for more details or contact
Prof.Paul Cross ([log in to unmask]) or Dr Marek Ziebart
([log in to unmask])

Apologies for cross-posting