Memory in the Climate System: Theory and Applications

Convener: Carmen Hau Man WongECSECS | Co-conveners: Lily ZhangECSECS, Andrea VangECSECS, Bernardo MaraldiECSECS, David Battisti

Slow-varying components of the climate system such as land, ocean, and ice are known to integrate short-lived forcings into longer-term memory that persists on timescales ranging from weeks to millennia. This session focuses on advancing our understanding of memory in the climate system through identifying new sources of memory, developing novel approaches to define and quantify memory, and exploring its role in driving variability across seasonal to centennial scales. We welcome contributions from observational, numerical modeling, or hybrid methods that explain how memory emerges, evolves, and influences the dynamics of the climate system, including (but not limited to) studies that:

- Develop theoretical models of memory for dynamical systems
- Demonstrate how coupling affects the persistence and predictability of climate states
- Apply concepts of memory to explain past climate variations
- Discuss the implications of memory and integrated forcings for future warming