Department of Earth & Environment · FIU

Climate Variability
& Change

Understanding the mechanisms of predictability in the climate system — from sub-seasonal swings to decadal shifts — and how natural variability shapes North American hydroclimate.

Miami, Florida Air–Sea Interactions Coupled Climate Models

Explore the research Join the group

Robert Burgman, Ph.D. Associate Professor

Active Funding

Grants & projects

Two federally and nationally funded efforts currently anchor the group's work — linking climate dynamics to long-term ecological change and to coastal sea-level adaptation across South Florida and the Gulf.

NSF · LTER Network

Climate Variability & Change Working Group Lead

Florida Coastal Everglades Long Term Ecological Research (FCE LTER)

RoleWorking Group Lead

Based atFIU Institute of Environment

As Climate Variability and Change working group lead, Dr. Burgman connects his climate-dynamics research to decades of ecological observation across South Florida's coastal Everglades — where shifting freshwater inflow, sea-level rise, and disturbance continually reshape the landscape. FCE is one of the National Science Foundation's long-term ecological research sites.

Visit FCE LTER ↗

National Academies · Gulf Research Program

High-Resolution, Scenario-Based Sea-Level Projections

Integrating Vertical Land Motion, Ocean Dynamics, and Atmospheric Forcing

Project DirectorLaurent Cherubin · Florida Atlantic University

Award$900,000

The project develops a graph-based probabilistic machine-learning framework that fuses multivariate predictors — ocean heat content, atmospheric indices, and vertical land motion — to forecast long-term sea-level rise and extreme water-level events. By capturing both local dependencies and large-scale teleconnections, it produces ensemble predictions that complement deterministic models. In partnership with Florida Sea Grant and coastal communities, the team is co-developing an interactive decision-support platform, supported by workshops, training, and outreach to strengthen local adaptation and preparedness.

203020502100

Awarded Projects ↗ News Release ↗

Research Directions

From climate dynamics to coastal futures

In recent years my research has increasingly turned toward the regional expression of a changing climate across South Florida and the Gulf — how sea-level rise, hydroclimate variability, and coastal ecosystems respond to a warming world — while drawing on the climate-dynamics foundations of variability and predictability that have long anchored the group's work.

01 / Sea Level

Sea-Level Rise & Coastal Adaptation

High-resolution scenario projections
Machine-learning forecasting & decision support

02 / Ecosystems

Climate & Coastal Ecosystems

Everglades long-term change (FCE LTER)
Hydroclimate & freshwater inflow

03 / Regional

Regional & Urban Climate

Florida sea-breeze circulation
Urban heating & precipitation

04 / Teleconnections

Teleconnections & Variability

ENSO teleconnections in coupled models
Decadal Pacific variability

Ongoing & foundational interests

Central Pacific El Niño Drought & megadroughts Cloud feedback Atmospheric circulation

Prospective Students

Undergraduates with a strong interest in meteorology, oceanography, and/or climate dynamics are encouraged to apply to the Atmospheric Science / Earth System Science graduate program at FIU. The department offers a limited number of teaching and research assistantships for MS and PhD degrees, and we encourage highly qualified applicants to pursue the FIU Presidential Fellowship.

$30,000 / year · 3 years Presidential Fellowship — includes full tuition waiver

Applications are due February 15th and must include GRE scores (plus TOEFL for international students), a CV, a letter of intent, and three letters of recommendation. Interested applicants are encouraged to contact Dr. Burgman directly.

Apply Online ↗ FIU Graduate School ↗ Earth & Environment ↗ Email Dr. Burgman

The Group

People in the lab

Current Members

Dr. Robert Burgman

Principal Investigator

Climate variability & change across North American hydroclimate

Rigoberto Olivera

PhD Candidate

Changes in Florida's hydroclimate over the past century

Valeria Espina

MS Student

ENSO teleconnections in global coupled climate models

Oscar Mendoza

MS Student

Recent changes in Florida's sea-breeze circulation

Sage Ferris

Undergraduate Intern

Urban heating effects on precipitation in South Florida

Past Members

Dr. Youkyoung JangResearcher

Now Affiliated Faculty, George Mason University ↗

Dr. Peter WashamGraduate Researcher

Now Research Scientist, Cornell University ↗

Heather NepaulGraduate Student · formerly Vazquez

View profile ↗

Szandra PeterHonors College Undergraduate

Now PhD Student & Graduate Teaching Assistant, George Mason University

Teaching

Courses taught

OCP3002Physical Oceanography

MET4420Physical Meteorology

MET4102Physical Climatology

OCE3014Oceanography

MET5990Climate Dynamics

GLY5931Graduate Seminar

GLY6931Advanced Graduate Seminar

SLE104The Blue Planet: Water & LifeDeakin

MSC102Intro to Weather & ClimateMiami

Climate Variability& Change