This section contains my academic curriculum vitae, updated regularly as my career progresses.

Jobs

Jan 2014 - Jul 2019
PhD in Geodynamics.
LMU Munich, Munich, Germany.
Nov 2019 - Nov 2023
Research Fellow (Level A & B).
ANU, RSES, Geophysics, Canberra, Australia.
Dec 2023 - Present
Faculty (Level B).
ANU, RSES, Climate and Ocean Geoscience, Canberra, Australia.

Education

Sep 2006 - Jun 2011
BSc in Physics.
Uni Tehran.
Oct 2011 - July 2013
MSc in Geophysics.
LMU Munich + TUM Munich.
Jan 2014 - Jul 2019
PhD in Geodynanmics.
LMU Munich.
Thesis: Reconstruction of Mantle Flow in Space and Time

Talks and Seminars

  • ETH Zurich – 2025, Zurich
  • International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics – 2024, New Delhi
  • Australian Earth Science Convention – 2023, Perth
  • Geophysics Seminar – May 2023, LMU Munich
  • EGU 2023 – The Earth surface as a window into the asthenosphere and deeper mantle
  • Geocomputing Seminar – March 2022, LMU, Munich
  • AGU 2021, Session – Integrative Perspectives on Present-day Mantle Structure
  • EarthByte Group – September 2021, School of Geosciences of the University of Sydney
  • Basin Genesis Hub Workshop – 2019, Sydney
  • SIAM Conference on Mathematical and Computational Issues in Geosciences – 2019, Houston

Awards, Fellowships, Affiliations

  • Nominated for the J. G. Russell Award by the Australian Academy of Sciences for the top-ranked DECRA applicant of the year in Sciences
  • DECRA (Discovery Early Career Researcher Award) Fellow of the Australian Research Council (2025)
  • Fellow of the Institute for Water Futures, ANU (2024–present)
  • Affiliated Investigator of the Australian Centre for Excellence in Antarctic Science (ACEAS), 2022–Present
  • Computers & Geosciences Research Scholarship Award, International Association of Mathematical Geosciences (2019)

Academic Supervision

  • Dr Hamish Brown: Supervisors: Sia Ghelichkhan, Rhodri Davies; 2025 – Present
  • Dr Liam Morrow: Supervisor: Sia Ghelichkhan; 2024 – Present
  • Dr Will Scott: Supervisors: Rhodri Davies, Sia Ghelichkhan, Mark Hoggard; 2023 – Present
  • Ruby Turner: Primary Supervisor: Sia Ghelichkhan; 2023 – 2025
  • Hojatollah Shirmardgouravan: Supervisors: R. Dietmar Müller, Sia Ghelichkhan; 2023 – Present
  • Tom New: Supervisors: Maria Seton, Sia Ghelichkhan, Rhodri Davies, Ben Mather; 2023 – Present
  • Ishan Tandon: Supervisors: Sia Ghelichkhan, Mark Hoggard, Rhys Hawkins, Rhodri Davies; Jun–Dec 2023

Grants and Funding

Selected grants and funding awards include:

  • DECRA Fellowship: Sea Level in the MPWP: Unveiling Dynamic Topography Effects. ARC, AUD 563,281 (2024)
  • Modelling Australia’s Water Dynamics, SmartSat CRC, AUD 500,000. CI: S. Ghelichkhan, P. Tregoning (2024)
  • CoastRI GIA Modelling, AuScope, AUD 1,418,350. CIs: D. R. Davies, S. Ghelichkhan, A. Gibson, M. Hoggard (2022)
  • Next generation sea-level modelling, Geoscience Australia, AUD 150,000. CIs: M. Hoggard, S. Ghelichkhan (2021)
  • G-ADOPT, ARDC, AUD 1,355,492. CIs: D. R. Davies, S. Ghelichkhan, M. Sambridge, R. D. Müller et al. (2021)

Publications

  • H. Bunge, L. Colli, S. Ghelichkhan and J. Oeser (2019) Deep time reconstructions of internal earth structure with the adjoint method Acta Geologica Sinica-English Edition, 93(S3), 3-4
  • S. Ghelichkhan, M. Hoggard, F. Richards, N. Chan, J. Creveling, K. Moore and J. Mitrovica (2025) Closing the budget of 20th century true polar wander Geophysical Journal International, ggaf197 DOI: 10.1093/gji/ggaf197
  • M. Andersen, P. Béguelin, A. Biggin, C. Davies, T. Elliot, Y. Engbers, V. Fernandes, M. Ferreira, S. Fowler, S. Ghelichkhan and others (2025) How to assess similarities and differences between mantle circulation models and earth using disparate independent observations Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences DOI: 10.1098/rspa.2024.0827
  • C. O’Malley, G. Roberts, J. Panton, F. Richards, J. Davies, V. Fernandes and S. Ghelichkhan (2024) Reconciling surface deflections from simulations of global mantle convection DOI: 10.5194/gmd-17-9023-2024
  • P. Sternai, S. Pilia, S. Ghelichkhan, B. lPierre, M. Armel, R. Davies, L. Ostorero, B. Vaes, R. Esposito, G. Eduardo, S. Cloetingh and T. Gerya (2024) Raising the roof of the world: A key role for intra-crustal mantle in supporting tibet Science
  • S. Ghelichkhan, A. Gibson, D. Davies, S. Kramer and D. Ham (2024) Automatic adjoint-based inversion schemes for geodynamics: Reconstructing the evolution of earth’s mantle in space and time Geoscientific Model Development, 17(13), 5057-5086 DOI: 10.5194/gmd-17-5057-2024
  • C. Eakin, D. Davies, S. Ghelichkhan, J. O’Donnell and S. Agrawal (2023) The influence of lithospheric thickness variations beneath australia on seismic anisotropy and mantle flow Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 24(9), e2023GC011066 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1029/2023GC011066
  • D. Davies, S. Kramer, S. Ghelichkhan and A. Gibson (2022) Towards automatic finite-element methods for geodynamics via firedrake Geoscientific Model Development, 15(13), 5127-5166 DOI: 10.5194/gmd-15-5127-2022
  • A. Friedrich, H. Bunge, R. Stefanie, L. Colli, S. Ghelichkhan and R. Nerlich (2018) Stratigraphic framework for the plume mode of mantle convection and the analysis of interregional unconformities on geological maps Gondwana Research, 53, 159-188 DOI: 10.1016/j.gr.2017.06.003
  • R. Nerlich, L. Colli, S. Ghelichkhan, B. Schuberth and H. Bunge (2016) Constraining central Neo-Tethys Ocean reconstructions with mantle convection models Geophysical Research Letters, 43(18), 9595-9603 DOI: 10.1002/2016gl070524
  • S. Bauer, M. Huber, S. Ghelichkhan, M. Mohr, U. Rüde and B. Wohlmuth (2018) Large-scale Simulation of Mantle Convection Based on a New Matrix-Free Approach special issue of Journal of Computational Science DOI: 10.1016/j.jocs.2018.12.006
  • S. Ghelichkhan and H. Bunge (2016) The compressible adjoint equations in geodynamics: derivation and numerical assessment GEM - International Journal on Geomathematics, 7(1) DOI: 10.1007/s13137-016-0080-5
  • L. Colli, S. Ghelichkhan, H. Bunge and J. Oeser (2018) Retrodictions of Mid Paleogene mantle flow and dynamic topography in the Atlantic region from compressible high resolution adjoint mantle convection models: Sensitivity to deep mantle viscosity and tomographic input model Gondwana Research, 53, 252-272 DOI: 10.1016/j.gr.2017.04.027
  • S. Ghelichkhan (2013) Adjoint method in mantle convection: Impact of model parameters
  • S. Ghelichkhan and H. Bunge (2018) The adjoint equations for thermochemical compressible mantle convection: derivation and verification by twin experiments Proceedings of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences DOI: 10.1098/rspa.2018.0329,
  • L. Colli, S. Ghelichkhan and H. Bunge (2016) On the ratio of dynamic topography and gravity anomalies in a dynamic Earth Geophysical Research Letters, 43(6), 2510-2516 DOI: 10.1002/2016GL067929
  • S. Ghelichkhan, M. Murböck, L. Colli, R. Pail and H. Bunge (2018) On the observability of epeirogenic movement in current and future gravity missions Gondwana Research, 53, 273-284 DOI: 10.1016/j.gr.2017.04.016
  • J. Weismüller, B. Gmeiner, S. Ghelichkhan, M. Huber, L. John, B. Wohlmuth, U. Rüde and H. Bunge (2015) Fast asthenosphere motion in high-resolution global mantle flow models Geophysical Research Letters, 42(18), 7429-7435 DOI: 10.1002/2015GL063727
  • M. Hoggard, K. Czarnota, F. Richards, D. Huston, A. Jaques and S. Ghelichkhan (2020) Global distribution of sediment-hosted metals controlled by craton edge stability Nature Geoscience, 13(7), 504-510 DOI: 10.1038/s41561-020-0593-2
  • S. Bauer, H. Bunge, D. Drzisga, S. Ghelichkhan, M. Huber, N. Kohl, M. Mohr, U. Rüde, D. Thönnes and B. Wohlmuth (2020) TerraNeo – mantle convection beyond a trillion degrees of freedom Software for exascale computing SPPEXA 2016-2019, 569-610 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-47956-5\_19
  • S. Ghelichkhan, J. Fuentes, M. Hoggard, F. Richards and J. Mitrovica (2020) The precession constant and its long-term variation Icarus, 114172 DOI: 10.1016/j.icarus.2020.114172
  • D. Davies, S. Ghelichkhan, M. Hoggard, A. Valentine and F. Richards (2023) Chapter 11 - observations and models of dynamic topography: Current status and future directions Dynamics of plate tectonics and mantle convection, 223-269 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-323-85733-8.00017-2
  • H. Bunge, A. Horbach, L. Colli, S. Ghelichkhan, B. Vilacís and J. Hayek (2023) Geodynamic data assimilation: Techniques and observables to construct and constrain time-dependent earth models Applications of data assimilation and inverse problems in the earth sciences, 311-325 DOI: 10.1017/9781009180412.021
  • K. Czarnota, M. Hoggard, F. Richards, M. Teh, D. Huston, L. Jacques and S. Ghelichkhan (2020) Minerals on the edge: Sediment-hosted base metal endowment above steps in lithospheric thickness DOI: 10.11636/134991
  • S. Pilia, D. Davies, R. Hall, C. Bacon, A. Gilligan, T. Greenfield, F. Tongkul, S. Kramer, C. Wilson, S. Ghelichkhan, D. Cornwell, L. Colli and N. Rawlinson (2023) Post-subduction tectonics induced by extension from a lithospheric drip Nature Geoscience, 1-7 DOI: 10.1038/s41561-023-01201-7
  • F. Richards, M. Hoggard, A. Crosby, S. Ghelichkhan and N. White (2020) Structure and dynamics of the oceanic lithosphere-asthenosphere system Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors, 309, 106559 DOI: 10.1016/j.pepi.2020.106559
  • F. Richards, M. Hoggard, S. Ghelichkhan, P. Koelemeijer and H. Lau (2023) Geodynamic, geodetic, and seismic constraints favour deflated and dense-cored LLVPs Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 602, 117964 DOI: 10.1016/j.epsl.2022.117964
  • Z. Wang, I. Stotz, H. Bunge, B. Vilacı́s, J. Hayek, S. Ghelichkhan and S. Lebedev (2023) Cenozoic upper mantle flow history of the atlantic realm based on couette/poiseuille models: Towards paleo-mantle-flowgraphy Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors, 340, 107045 DOI: 10.1016/j.pepi.2023.107045