Earth, Ocean & Climate Science Researcher (Task Author)

$100/hr

rate as listed

Workload: ~15h/week
Engagement: Project-based
Location: Worldwide
Field: Sciences

Turn computational work from your own earth, ocean or climate research into research-grade AI evaluation tasks with reference solutions and tests. The work is flexible and task-based, with each submission reviewed for scientific validity, reproducibility and clear specification.

The work

Authors adapt computational work they have personally implemented and debugged into evaluation tasks for AI models. A submission includes a main scientific problem, connected subproblems, a reproducible reference solution and tests that distinguish scientifically correct results from plausible but incorrect ones. Relevant work may come from geophysics and seismology, geodynamics, hydrology, physical oceanography and coastal dynamics, atmospheric physics and climate dynamics, numerical weather prediction and data assimilation, geochemistry or remote sensing.

What AfterQuery screens for

The screen focuses on evidence that you have written code to model or analyze earth, ocean or atmospheric systems, not merely completed general programming or machine-learning coursework. You should be able to explain the scientific assumptions, numerical choices, validation method and failure modes of a project you actually ran. Python is preferred rather than required. Public code, a thesis or papers are preferred evidence, and experience in data assimilation, ocean or atmosphere modeling, seismic inversion, data annotation, data labeling or AI/ML evaluation is also preferred.

Review and logistics

Tasks go through structured review, and authors revise them until they meet the approval standard. Experts may also review submissions from researchers in their domain against a short rubric. Accepted experts complete identity and background verification and must be able to work as independent contractors without visa sponsorship.

Schedule and location

The work has no fixed weekly schedule, and the listing describes a typical task as taking about two hours. The workflow is task-based and appears suited to asynchronous work, although the listing does not explicitly designate the position as remote or state location restrictions beyond contractor work authorization. Pay band: $100/hr

This is an observed pay band, not a guarantee of earnings or task approval.

What they look for

Hands-on computational research in an earth, ocean or atmospheric science field
Original code used to model or analyze physical systems, with Python preferred
Ability to convert completed research work into a well-specified evaluation task
Reference-solution development and scientifically meaningful test design
Research-track Bachelor's, Master's or PhD study, postdoctoral work or recent relevant graduation
Independent time management in a task-based contractor workflow

Included with this listing

Interview prep — 10 questions

Matched to what this platform's screening actually measures. Answer each out loud in 60–90 seconds: claim → concrete example → implication.

What it tests: This tests whether the claimed experience is tied to verifiable research artifacts and whether the candidate can separate their own implementation from code or analysis contributed by collaborators.
A strong answer: A strong answer identifies the scientific question, data or model inputs, code personally written, numerical or statistical method, debugging process and validation result. It should point to concrete evidence such as a thesis chapter, repository, paper, poster or lab deliverable when available.
Where people lose it: Candidates lose points by describing a lab's overall research agenda without specifying which modules, experiments or validation steps they personally implemented.

Summary, eligibility guidance and screening preparation are prepared by Sidequest from the platform's posting. Check the source listing before applying.