My research seeks to understand the mechanisms of predictability on interannual to decadal timescales. Within this framework, I am exploring two general issues: (1) Mechanisms of low frequency variability in the climate system specifically related to air-sea interactions and (2) how this low frequency variability leads to variations in North American hydroclimate. In exploring these issues I use a variety of research tools including coupled climate system models and observational datasets (modern surface and satellite-based records and paleo-climate records).

1. Burgman, Robert J., Ben Kirtman, Tim Palmer, 2011: Determination of climate feedbacks in coupled models. Geophysical Research Letters: In preparation.
2. Burgman, Robert J., Ben Kirtman, 2011: A novel approach for simulating the coupled response to Pacific Decadal Variability. Climate Dynamics: In preparation.
3. Burgman, Robert J., Ben Kirtman, 2011: The relative influence of Atlantic and Pacific SSTs on persistent drought in North America . Geophysical Research Letters: In preparation.
4. Seager, Richard, and Robert J. Burgman, 2011: Can the global pattern of Medieval hydroclimate be explained by a persistent La Nina-like state and a persistent positive NAO and, if so, why did this happen? PAGES Newsletter, In Press.
5. Kirtman, B. P., E. K. Schneider, D. M. Straus, D. Min, R. Burgman, 2011: How weather impacts the forced climate response. Climate Dynamics, In Press.
6. Burgman, Robert J., Richard Seager, Amy Clement, Celine Herweijer, 2010: Role of tropical Pacific SSTs in global medieval hydroclimate: A modeling study. Geophysical Research Letters, 37, L06705, doi:10.1029/2009GL042239
7. Clement, A. C., R. Burgman, J. Norris, 2010: Reply to Broccoli and Klein comment on ‘Observational and model evidence for positive low-level cloud feedback. Science, 16 July 2010: 277. [DOI:10.1126/science.1187667]
8. Clement, A., R. Burgman, and J. Norris, 2009: Observational and model evidence for positive low-level cloud feedback. Science. Vol. 325. no. 5939, pp. 460 – 464, DOI: 10.1126/science.1171255
9. Seager, R., R.Burgman, Y. Kushnir, A. Clement, E. Cook, N. Naik, J. Miller, 2008: Tropical Pacific forcing of North American Medieval megadroughts: Testing the concept with an atmosphere model forced by coral-reconstructed SSTs. Journal of Climate, Volume 21, Issue 23 (December 2008) pp. 6175–6190. DOI: 10.1175/2008JCLI2170.1
10. Burgman, R., A. C. Clement, C. M. Mitas, J. Chen, and K. Esslinger, 2007: Evidence for Atmospheric variability over the Pacific on decadal timescales. Geophys. Res. Letts., 34, doi:10.1029/2007GL031830. 
11. Burgman, Robert J., Paul S. Schopf, and Ben P. Kirtman. 2008: Decadal Modulation of ENSO in a Hybrid Coupled Model. Journal of Climate : Vol. 21, pp. 5482–5500.
12. Schopf, Paul S., and Robert J. Burgman. 2006: A Simple Mechanism for ENSO Residuals and Asymmetry. Journal of Climate: Vol. 19, no. 13, pp. 3167–3179