Towards the prediction of multi-year to decadal climate variability in the Southern Hemisphere

Multi-year (2-7 years) and decadal climate variability(MDCV) can have a profound influence on lives,livelihoods and economies. Consequently, learning moreabout the causes of this variability, the extent to whichit can be predicted, and the greater the clarity that wecan provide on the climatic conditions that will unfoldover coming years and decades is a high priority for theresearch community. This importance is reflected in newinitiatives by WCRP, CLIVAR, and in the Decadal ClimatePrediction Project (Boer et al., 2016) that target this areaof research. Here we briefly examine some of the thingswe know, and have recently learnt, about the causes andpredictability of Southern Hemisphere MDCV (SH MDCV),and current skill in its prediction.