Articles | Volume 20, issue 12
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-4775-2016
© Author(s) 2016. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-4775-2016
© Author(s) 2016. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Research article
| 
05 Dec 2016
Research article |
| 05 Dec 2016
The evolution of root-zone moisture capacities after deforestation: a step towards hydrological predictions under change?
Water Resources Section, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences,
Delft University of Technology, Stevinweg 1, 2628 CN Delft, the Netherlands
Christopher Hutton
Department of Civil Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
Ilias Pechlivanidis
Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI),
Norrköping, Sweden
René Capell
Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI),
Norrköping, Sweden
Berit Arheimer
Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI),
Norrköping, Sweden
Jim Freer
Department of Civil Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
Cabot Institute, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
Dawei Han
Department of Civil Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
Thorsten Wagener
Department of Civil Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
Cabot Institute, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
Kevin McGuire
Virginia Water Resources Research Center and Department of Forest
Resources and Environmental Conservation, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA
Hubert Savenije
Water Resources Section, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences,
Delft University of Technology, Stevinweg 1, 2628 CN Delft, the Netherlands
Markus Hrachowitz
Water Resources Section, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences,
Delft University of Technology, Stevinweg 1, 2628 CN Delft, the Netherlands
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Manuscript not accepted for further review
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Most models that simulate water and carbon exchanges with the atmosphere rely on information about vegetation, but optimality models predict vegetation properties based on general principles. Here, we use the Vegetation Optimality Model (VOM) to predict vegetation behaviour at five savanna sites. The VOM overpredicted vegetation cover and carbon uptake during the wet seasons but also performed similarly to conventional models, showing that vegetation optimality is a promising approach.
Hubert T. Samboko, Sten Schurer, Hubert H. G. Savenije, Hodson Makurira, Kawawa Banda, and Hessel Winsemius
Geosci. Instrum. Method. Data Syst., 11, 1–23, https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-11-1-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-11-1-2022, 2022
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The study was conducted along the Luangwa River in Zambia. It combines low-cost instruments such as UAVs and GPS kits to collect data for the purposes of water management. A novel technique which seamlessly merges the dry and wet bathymetry before application in a hydraulic model was applied. Successful implementation resulted in water authorities with small budgets being able to monitor flows safely and efficiently without significant compromise on accuracy.
Ruud T. W. L. Hurkmans, Bart van den Hurk, Maurice J. Schmeits, Fredrik Wetterhall, and Ilias G. Pechlivanidis
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2021-604, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2021-604, 2022
Manuscript not accepted for further review
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Seasonal forecasts can help in safely and efficiently managing a fresh water reservoir in the Netherlands. We compare hydrological forecast systems of the river Rhine, the lakes most important source and analyze forecast skill for over 1993–2016 and for specific extreme years. On average, forecast skill is high in spring due to Alpine snow and smaller in summer. Dry summers appear to be more predictable, skill increases with event extremity. In those cases, seasonal forecasts are valuable tools.
Tom Gleeson, Thorsten Wagener, Petra Döll, Samuel C. Zipper, Charles West, Yoshihide Wada, Richard Taylor, Bridget Scanlon, Rafael Rosolem, Shams Rahman, Nurudeen Oshinlaja, Reed Maxwell, Min-Hui Lo, Hyungjun Kim, Mary Hill, Andreas Hartmann, Graham Fogg, James S. Famiglietti, Agnès Ducharne, Inge de Graaf, Mark Cuthbert, Laura Condon, Etienne Bresciani, and Marc F. P. Bierkens
Geosci. Model Dev., 14, 7545–7571, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-14-7545-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-14-7545-2021, 2021
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Groundwater is increasingly being included in large-scale (continental to global) land surface and hydrologic simulations. However, it is challenging to evaluate these simulations because groundwater is
hiddenunderground and thus hard to measure. We suggest using multiple complementary strategies to assess the performance of a model (
model evaluation).
Xichao Gao, Zhiyong Yang, Dawei Han, Kai Gao, and Qian Zhu
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 6023–6039, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-6023-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-6023-2021, 2021
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We proposed a theoretical framework and conducted a laboratory experiment to understand the relationship between wind and the rainfall–runoff process in urban high-rise building areas. The runoff coefficient (relating the amount of runoff to the amount of precipitation received) found in the theoretical framework was close to that found in the laboratory experiment.
Markus Hrachowitz, Michael Stockinger, Miriam Coenders-Gerrits, Ruud van der Ent, Heye Bogena, Andreas Lücke, and Christine Stumpp
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 4887–4915, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4887-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4887-2021, 2021
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Deforestation affects how catchments store and release water. Here we found that deforestation in the study catchment led to a 20 % increase in mean runoff, while reducing the vegetation-accessible water storage from about 258 to 101 mm. As a consequence, fractions of young water in the stream increased by up to 25 % during wet periods. This implies that water and solutes are more rapidly routed to the stream, which can, after contamination, lead to increased contaminant peak concentrations.
Fransje van Oorschot, Ruud J. van der Ent, Markus Hrachowitz, and Andrea Alessandri
Earth Syst. Dynam., 12, 725–743, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-12-725-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-12-725-2021, 2021
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The roots of vegetation largely control the Earth's water cycle by transporting water from the subsurface to the atmosphere but are not adequately represented in land surface models, causing uncertainties in modeled water fluxes. We replaced the root parameters in an existing model with more realistic ones that account for a climate control on root development and found improved timing of modeled river discharge. Further extension of our approach could improve modeled water fluxes globally.
Sarah Hanus, Markus Hrachowitz, Harry Zekollari, Gerrit Schoups, Miren Vizcaino, and Roland Kaitna
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 3429–3453, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3429-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3429-2021, 2021
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This study investigates the effects of climate change on runoff patterns in six Alpine catchments in Austria at the end of the 21st century. Our results indicate a substantial shift to earlier occurrences in annual maximum and minimum flows in high-elevation catchments. Magnitudes of annual extremes are projected to increase under a moderate emission scenario in all catchments. Changes are generally more pronounced for high-elevation catchments.
Hongkai Gao, Chuntan Han, Rensheng Chen, Zijing Feng, Kang Wang, Fabrizio Fenicia, and Hubert Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2021-264, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2021-264, 2021
Manuscript not accepted for further review
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Permafrost hydrology is one of the 23 major unsolved problems in hydrology. In this study, we used a stepwise modeling and dynamic parameter method to examine the impact of permafrost on streamflow in the Hulu catchment in western China. We found that: topography and landscape are dominant controls on catchment response; baseflow recession is slower than other regions; precipitation-runoff relationship is non-stationary; permafrost impacts on streamflow mostly at the beginning of melting season.
Thorsten Wagener, Dragan Savic, David Butler, Reza Ahmadian, Tom Arnot, Jonathan Dawes, Slobodan Djordjevic, Roger Falconer, Raziyeh Farmani, Debbie Ford, Jan Hofman, Zoran Kapelan, Shunqi Pan, and Ross Woods
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2721–2738, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2721-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2721-2021, 2021
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How can we effectively train PhD candidates both (i) across different knowledge domains in water science and engineering and (ii) in computer science? To address this issue, the Water Informatics in Science and Engineering Centre for Doctoral Training (WISE CDT) offers a postgraduate programme that fosters enhanced levels of innovation and collaboration by training a cohort of engineers and scientists at the boundary of water informatics, science and engineering.
Artemis Roodari, Markus Hrachowitz, Farzad Hassanpour, and Mostafa Yaghoobzadeh
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1943–1967, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1943-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1943-2021, 2021
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In a combined data analysis and modeling study in the transboundary Helmand River basin, we analyzed spatial patterns of drought and changes therein based on the drought indices as well as on absolute water deficits. Overall the results illustrate that flow deficits and the associated droughts clearly reflect the dynamic interplay between temporally varying regional differences in hydro-meteorological variables together with subtle and temporally varying effects linked to human intervention.
Marc Girons Lopez, Louise Crochemore, and Ilias G. Pechlivanidis
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1189–1209, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1189-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1189-2021, 2021
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The Swedish hydrological warning service is extending its use of seasonal forecasts, which requires an analysis of the available methods. We evaluate the simple ESP method and find out how and why forecasts vary in time and space. We find that forecasts are useful up to 3 months into the future, especially during winter and in northern Sweden. They tend to be good in slow-reacting catchments and bad in flashy and highly regulated ones. We finally link them with areas of similar behaviour.
Laurène J. E. Bouaziz, Fabrizio Fenicia, Guillaume Thirel, Tanja de Boer-Euser, Joost Buitink, Claudia C. Brauer, Jan De Niel, Benjamin J. Dewals, Gilles Drogue, Benjamin Grelier, Lieke A. Melsen, Sotirios Moustakas, Jiri Nossent, Fernando Pereira, Eric Sprokkereef, Jasper Stam, Albrecht H. Weerts, Patrick Willems, Hubert H. G. Savenije, and Markus Hrachowitz
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1069–1095, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1069-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1069-2021, 2021
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We quantify the differences in internal states and fluxes of 12 process-based models with similar streamflow performance and assess their plausibility using remotely sensed estimates of evaporation, snow cover, soil moisture and total storage anomalies. The dissimilarities in internal process representation imply that these models cannot all simultaneously be close to reality. Therefore, we invite modelers to evaluate their models using multiple variables and to rely on multi-model studies.
Petra Hulsman, Hubert H. G. Savenije, and Markus Hrachowitz
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 957–982, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-957-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-957-2021, 2021
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Satellite observations have increasingly been used for model calibration, while model structural developments largely rely on discharge data. For large river basins, this often results in poor representations of system internal processes. This study explores the combined use of satellite-based evaporation and total water storage data for model structural improvement and spatial–temporal model calibration for a large, semi-arid and data-scarce river system.
César Dionisio Jiménez-Rodríguez, Miriam Coenders-Gerrits, Bart Schilperoort, Adriana del Pilar González-Angarita, and Hubert Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 619–635, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-619-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-619-2021, 2021
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During rainfall events, evaporation from tropical forests is usually ignored. However, the water retained in the canopy during rainfall increases the evaporation despite the high-humidity conditions. In a tropical wet forest in Costa Rica, it was possible to depict vapor plumes rising from the forest canopy during rainfall. These plumes are evidence of forest evaporation. Also, we identified the conditions that allowed this phenomenon to happen using time-lapse videos and meteorological data.
Keith J. Beven, Mike J. Kirkby, Jim E. Freer, and Rob Lamb
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 527–549, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-527-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-527-2021, 2021
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The theory that forms the basis of TOPMODEL was first outlined by Mike Kirkby some 45 years ago. This paper recalls some of the early developments: the rejection of the first journal paper, the early days of digital terrain analysis, model calibration and validation, the various criticisms of the simplifying assumptions, and the relaxation of those assumptions in the dynamic forms of TOPMODEL, and it considers what we might do now with the benefit of hindsight.
Ralf Loritz, Markus Hrachowitz, Malte Neuper, and Erwin Zehe
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 147–167, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-147-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-147-2021, 2021
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This study investigates the role and value of distributed rainfall in the runoff generation of a mesoscale catchment. We compare the performance of different hydrological models at different periods and show that a distributed model driven by distributed rainfall yields improved performances only during certain periods. We then step beyond this finding and develop a spatially adaptive model that is capable of dynamically adjusting its spatial model structure in time.
Bart Schilperoort, Miriam Coenders-Gerrits, César Jiménez Rodríguez, Christiaan van der Tol, Bas van de Wiel, and Hubert Savenije
Biogeosciences, 17, 6423–6439, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-6423-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-6423-2020, 2020
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With distributed temperature sensing (DTS) we measured a vertical temperature profile in a forest, from the forest floor to above the treetops. Using this temperature profile we can see which parts of the forest canopy are colder (thus more dense) or warmer (and less dense) and study the effect this has on the suppression of turbulent mixing. This can be used to improve our knowledge of the interaction between the atmosphere and forests and improve carbon dioxide flux measurements over forests.
Matteo Giuliani, Louise Crochemore, Ilias Pechlivanidis, and Andrea Castelletti
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 5891–5902, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5891-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5891-2020, 2020
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This paper aims at quantifying the value of hydroclimatic forecasts in terms of potential economic benefit to end users in the Lake Como basin (Italy), which allows the inference of a relation between gains in forecast skill and gains in end user profit. We also explore the sensitivity of this benefit to both the forecast system setup and end user behavioral factors, showing that the estimated forecast value is potentially undermined by different levels of end user risk aversion.
Elisa Bozzolan, Elizabeth Holcombe, Francesca Pianosi, and Thorsten Wagener
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 3161–3177, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-20-3161-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-20-3161-2020, 2020
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We include informal housing in slope stability analysis, considering different slope properties and precipitation events (including climate change). The dominant failure processes are identified, and their relative role in slope failure is quantified. A new rainfall threshold is assessed for urbanised slopes. Instability
rulesare provided to recognise urbanised slopes most at risk. The methodology is suitable for regions with scarce field measurements and landslide inventories.
Qiang Dai, Jingxuan Zhu, Shuliang Zhang, Shaonan Zhu, Dawei Han, and Guonian Lv
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 5407–5422, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5407-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5407-2020, 2020
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Rainfall is a driving force that accounts for a large proportion of soil loss around the world. Most previous studies used a fixed rainfall–energy relationship to estimate rainfall energy, ignoring the spatial and temporal changes of raindrop microphysical processes. This study proposes a novel method for large-scale and long-term rainfall energy and rainfall erosivity investigations based on rainfall microphysical parameterization schemes in the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model.
Justus G. V. van Ramshorst, Miriam Coenders-Gerrits, Bart Schilperoort, Bas J. H. van de Wiel, Jonathan G. Izett, John S. Selker, Chad W. Higgins, Hubert H. G. Savenije, and Nick C. van de Giesen
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 5423–5439, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-5423-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-5423-2020, 2020
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In this work we present experimental results of a novel actively heated fiber-optic (AHFO) observational wind-probing technique. We utilized a controlled wind-tunnel setup to assess both the accuracy and precision of AHFO under a range of operational conditions (wind speed, angles of attack and temperature differences). AHFO has the potential to provide high-resolution distributed observations of wind speeds, allowing for better spatial characterization of fine-scale processes.
Gemma Coxon, Nans Addor, John P. Bloomfield, Jim Freer, Matt Fry, Jamie Hannaford, Nicholas J. K. Howden, Rosanna Lane, Melinda Lewis, Emma L. Robinson, Thorsten Wagener, and Ross Woods
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 12, 2459–2483, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-2459-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-12-2459-2020, 2020
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We present the first large-sample catchment hydrology dataset for Great Britain. The dataset collates river flows, catchment attributes, and catchment boundaries for 671 catchments across Great Britain. We characterise the topography, climate, streamflow, land cover, soils, hydrogeology, human influence, and discharge uncertainty of each catchment. The dataset is publicly available for the community to use in a wide range of environmental and modelling analyses.
Tom Gleeson, Thorsten Wagener, Petra Döll, Samuel C. Zipper, Charles West, Yoshihide Wada, Richard Taylor, Bridget Scanlon, Rafael Rosolem, Shams Rahman, Nurudeen Oshinlaja, Reed Maxwell, Min-Hui Lo, Hyungjun Kim, Mary Hill, Andreas Hartmann, Graham Fogg, James S. Famiglietti, Agnès Ducharne, Inge de Graaf, Mark Cuthbert, Laura Condon, Etienne Bresciani, and Marc F. P. Bierkens
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2020-378, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2020-378, 2020
Revised manuscript not accepted
Xichao Gao, Zhiyong Yang, Dawei Han, Guoru Huang, and Qian Zhu
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2020-367, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2020-367, 2020
Manuscript not accepted for further review
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Input errors and parameter errors are two main sources of uncertainties in hydrological model calibration. We developed a new Bayesian framework for automatic calibration of the Storm Water Management Model (SWMM), simultaneously considering parameter and input uncertainties and verified the framework with a case study. The results shows that calibration considering both parameter and input uncertainties captures peak flow much better that only considering parameter uncertainty.
Petra Hulsman, Hessel C. Winsemius, Claire I. Michailovsky, Hubert H. G. Savenije, and Markus Hrachowitz
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 3331–3359, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-3331-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-3331-2020, 2020
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In the absence of discharge data in ungauged basins, remotely sensed river water level data, i.e. altimetry, may provide valuable information to calibrate hydrological models. This study illustrated that for large rivers in data-scarce regions, river altimetry data from multiple locations combined with GRACE data have the potential to fill this gap when combined with estimates of the river geometry, thereby allowing a step towards more reliable hydrological modelling in data-scarce regions.
Lu Zhuo, Qiang Dai, Binru Zhao, and Dawei Han
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 2577–2591, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-2577-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-2577-2020, 2020
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Soil moisture plays an important role in hydrological modelling. However, most existing in situ observation networks rarely provide sufficient coverage to capture soil moisture variations. Clearly, there is a need to develop a systematic approach, so that with the minimal number of sensors the soil moisture information could be captured accurately. In this study, a simple and low-data requirement method is proposed (WRF, PCA, CA), which can provide very efficient soil moisture estimations.
César Dionisio Jiménez-Rodríguez, Miriam Coenders-Gerrits, Jochen Wenninger, Adriana Gonzalez-Angarita, and Hubert Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 2179–2206, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-2179-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-2179-2020, 2020
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Tropical forest ecosystems are able to export a lot of water to the atmosphere by means of evaporation. However, little is known on how their complex structure affects this water flux. This paper analyzes the contribution of three canopy layers in terms of water fluxes and stable water isotope signatures. During the dry season in 2018 the two lower canopy layers provide 20 % of measured evaporation, highlighting the importance of knowing how forest structure can affect the hydrological cycle.
Cristina Prieto, Dhruvesh Patel, and Dawei Han
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 1045–1048, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-20-1045-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-20-1045-2020, 2020
Nutchanart Sriwongsitanon, Wasana Jandang, Thienchart Suwawong, and Hubert H.~G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2020-82, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2020-82, 2020
Manuscript not accepted for further review
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In this paper we present a method to distribute crucial model parameters over subcatchments so as to enhance overall rainfall-runoff performance. We also analyse how soil moisture indicators can be used to distribute root zone moisture capacity over subcatchments. NDII proves to be very effective for this purpose, resulting in better overall model performance, good temporal correspondence between modelled soil moisture and the SWI, and improved recession behavior and dry season flow.
Berit Arheimer, Rafael Pimentel, Kristina Isberg, Louise Crochemore, Jafet C. M. Andersson, Abdulghani Hasan, and Luis Pineda
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 535–559, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-535-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-535-2020, 2020
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How far can we reach in predicting river flow globally, using integrated catchment modelling and open global data? For the first time, a catchment model was applied world-wide, covering the entire globe with a relatively high resolution. The results show that stepwise calibration provided better performance than traditional modelling of the globe. The study highlights that open data and models are crucial to advance hydrological sciences by sharing knowledge and enabling transparent evaluation.
Zhilin Zhang and Hubert Savenije
Earth Syst. Dynam., 10, 667–684, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-10-667-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-10-667-2019, 2019
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Natural systems evolve towards a state of maximum power, including estuarine circulation. The energy of lighter fresh water drives circulation, while it dissipates by friction. This rotational flow causes the spread of salinity, which is represented by the dispersion coefficient. In this paper, the maximum power concept provides a new equation for this coefficient. Together with the steady-state equation, this results in a new analytical model for density-driven salinity intrusion.
Wouter J. M. Knoben, Jim E. Freer, and Ross A. Woods
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 4323–4331, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-4323-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-4323-2019, 2019
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The accuracy of model simulations can be quantified with so-called efficiency metrics. The Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency (NSE) has been often used in hydrology, but recently the Kling–Gupta efficiency (KGE) is gaining in popularity. We show that lessons learned about which NSE scores are
acceptabledo not necessarily translate well into understanding of the KGE metric.
Lu Zhuo, Qiang Dai, Dawei Han, Ningsheng Chen, and Binru Zhao
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 4199–4218, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-4199-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-4199-2019, 2019
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This study assesses the usability of WRF model-simulated soil moisture for landslide monitoring in northern Italy. In particular, three advanced land surface model schemes (Noah, Noah-MP, and CLM4) are used to provide multi-layer soil moisture data. The results have shown Noah-MP can provide the best landslide monitoring performance. It is also demonstrated that a single soil moisture sensor located in plain area has a high correlation with a significant proportion of the study area.
Rosanna A. Lane, Gemma Coxon, Jim E. Freer, Thorsten Wagener, Penny J. Johnes, John P. Bloomfield, Sheila Greene, Christopher J. A. Macleod, and Sim M. Reaney
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 4011–4032, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-4011-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-4011-2019, 2019
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We evaluated four hydrological model structures and their parameters on over 1100 catchments across Great Britain, considering modelling uncertainties. Models performed well for most catchments but failed in parts of Scotland and south-eastern England. Failures were often linked to inconsistencies in the water balance. This research shows what conceptual lumped models can achieve, gives insights into where and why these models may fail, and provides a benchmark of national modelling capability.
Xuehong Zhu, Qiang Dai, Dawei Han, Lu Zhuo, Shaonan Zhu, and Shuliang Zhang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 3353–3372, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-3353-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-3353-2019, 2019
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Urban flooding exposure is generally investigated with the assumption of stationary disasters and disaster-hit bodies during an event, and thus it cannot satisfy the increasingly elaborate modeling and management of urban floods. In this study, a comprehensive method was proposed to simulate dynamic exposure to urban flooding considering human mobility. Several scenarios, including diverse flooding types and various responses of residents to flooding, were considered.
César Dionisio Jiménez-Rodríguez, Miriam Coenders-Gerrits, Thom Bogaard, Erika Vatiero, and Hubert Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2019-344, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2019-344, 2019
Revised manuscript not accepted
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Knowing the isotopic composition of water vapor in the air is a difficult task. The estimation of δ18O and δ2H has to be done carefully, because it is accompanied by a high risk of methodological errors (if it is sampled) or wrong assumptions that can lead to incorrect values (if it is modeled). The aim of this work was to compare available sampling methods for water vapor in the air and estimate their isotopic composition, comparing the results against direct measurements of the sampled air.
Huayang Cai, Hubert H. G. Savenije, Erwan Garel, Xianyi Zhang, Leicheng Guo, Min Zhang, Feng Liu, and Qingshu Yang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 2779–2794, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-2779-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-2779-2019, 2019
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Tide–river dynamics play an essential role in large-scale river deltas as they exert a tremendous impact on delta morphodynamics, salt intrusion and deltaic ecosystems. For the first time, we illustrate that there is a critical river discharge, beyond which tidal damping is reduced with increasing river discharge, and we explore the underlying mechanism using an analytical model. The results are useful for guiding sustainable water management and sediment transport in tidal rivers.
Wouter J. M. Knoben, Jim E. Freer, Keirnan J. A. Fowler, Murray C. Peel, and Ross A. Woods
Geosci. Model Dev., 12, 2463–2480, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-2463-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-2463-2019, 2019
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Computer models are used to predict river flows. A good model should represent the river basin to which it is applied so that flow predictions are as realistic as possible. However, many different computer models exist, and selecting the most appropriate model for a given river basin is not always easy. This study combines computer code for 46 different hydrological models into a single coding framework so that models can be compared in an objective way and we can learn about model differences.
Gemma Coxon, Jim Freer, Rosanna Lane, Toby Dunne, Wouter J. M. Knoben, Nicholas J. K. Howden, Niall Quinn, Thorsten Wagener, and Ross Woods
Geosci. Model Dev., 12, 2285–2306, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-2285-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-12-2285-2019, 2019
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DECIPHeR (Dynamic fluxEs and ConnectIvity for Predictions of Hydrology) is a new modelling framework that can be applied from small catchment to continental scales for complex river basins. This paper describes the modelling framework and its key components and demonstrates the model’s ability to be applied across a large model domain. This work highlights the potential for catchment- to continental-scale predictions of streamflow to support robust environmental management and policy decisions.
Binru Zhao, Qiang Dai, Dawei Han, Huichao Dai, Jingqiao Mao, and Lu Zhuo
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2019-150, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2019-150, 2019
Revised manuscript not accepted
Erwin Zehe, Ralf Loritz, Conrad Jackisch, Martijn Westhoff, Axel Kleidon, Theresa Blume, Sibylle K. Hassler, and Hubert H. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 971–987, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-971-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-971-2019, 2019
Martijn Westhoff, Axel Kleidon, Stan Schymanski, Benjamin Dewals, Femke Nijsse, Maik Renner, Henk Dijkstra, Hisashi Ozawa, Hubert Savenije, Han Dolman, Antoon Meesters, and Erwin Zehe
Earth Syst. Dynam. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-2019-6, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-2019-6, 2019
Publication in ESD not foreseen
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Even models relying on physical laws have parameters that need to be measured or estimated. Thermodynamic optimality principles potentially offer a way to reduce the number of estimated parameters by stating that a system evolves to an optimum state. These principles have been applied successfully within the Earth system, but it is often unclear what to optimize and how. In this review paper we identify commonalities between different successful applications as well as some doubtful applications.
Hongkai Gao, Christian Birkel, Markus Hrachowitz, Doerthe Tetzlaff, Chris Soulsby, and Hubert H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 787–809, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-787-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-787-2019, 2019
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Supported by large-sample ecological observations, a novel, simple and topography-driven runoff generation module (HSC-MCT) was created. The HSC-MCT is calibration-free, and therefore it can be used to predict in ungauged basins, and has great potential to be generalized at the global scale. Also, it allows us to reproduce the variation of saturation areas, which has great potential to be used for broader hydrological, ecological, climatological, and biogeochemical studies.
Theano Iliopoulou, Cristina Aguilar, Berit Arheimer, María Bermúdez, Nejc Bezak, Andrea Ficchì, Demetris Koutsoyiannis, Juraj Parajka, María José Polo, Guillaume Thirel, and Alberto Montanari
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 73–91, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-73-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-73-2019, 2019
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We investigate the seasonal memory properties of a large sample of European rivers in terms of high and low flows. We compute seasonal correlations between peak and low flows and average flows in the previous seasons and explore the links with various physiographic and hydro-climatic catchment descriptors. Our findings suggest that there is a traceable physical basis for river memory which in turn can be employed to reduce uncertainty and improve probabilistic predictions of floods and droughts.
Nevil Quinn, Günter Blöschl, András Bárdossy, Attilio Castellarin, Martyn Clark, Christophe Cudennec, Demetris Koutsoyiannis, Upmanu Lall, Lubomir Lichner, Juraj Parajka, Christa D. Peters-Lidard, Graham Sander, Hubert Savenije, Keith Smettem, Harry Vereecken, Alberto Viglione, Patrick Willems, Andy Wood, Ross Woods, Chong-Yu Xu, and Erwin Zehe
Proc. IAHS, 380, 3–8, https://doi.org/10.5194/piahs-380-3-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/piahs-380-3-2018, 2018
Laurène Bouaziz, Albrecht Weerts, Jaap Schellekens, Eric Sprokkereef, Jasper Stam, Hubert Savenije, and Markus Hrachowitz
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 6415–6434, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-6415-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-6415-2018, 2018
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We quantify net intercatchment groundwater flows in the Meuse basin in a complementary three-step approach through (1) water budget accounting, (2) testing a set of conceptual hydrological models and (3) evaluating against remote sensing actual evaporation data. We show that net intercatchment groundwater flows can make up as much as 25 % of mean annual precipitation in the headwaters and should therefore be accounted for in conceptual models to prevent overestimating actual evaporation rates.
Fanny Sarrazin, Andreas Hartmann, Francesca Pianosi, Rafael Rosolem, and Thorsten Wagener
Geosci. Model Dev., 11, 4933–4964, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-11-4933-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-11-4933-2018, 2018
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We propose the first large-scale vegetation–recharge model for karst regions (V2Karst), which enables the analysis of the impact of changes in climate and land cover on karst groundwater recharge. We demonstrate the plausibility of V2Karst simulations against observations at FLUXNET sites and of controlling modelled processes using sensitivity analysis. We perform virtual experiments to further test the model and gain insight into its sensitivity to precipitation pattern and vegetation cover.
Dirk-Jan D. Kok, Saket Pande, Jules B. van Lier, Angela R. C. Ortigara, Hubert Savenije, and Stefan Uhlenbrook
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 5781–5799, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5781-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5781-2018, 2018
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Phosphorus (P) is important to global food security. Thus it is concerning that natural P reserves are predicted to deplete within the century. Here we explore the potential of P recovery from wastewater (WW) at global scale. We identify high production and demand sites to determine optimal market prices and trade flows. We show that 20 % of the agricultural demand can be met, yet only 4 % can be met economically. Nonetheless, this recovery stimulates circular economic development in WW treatment.
Nevil Quinn, Günter Blöschl, András Bárdossy, Attilio Castellarin, Martyn Clark, Christophe Cudennec, Demetris Koutsoyiannis, Upmanu Lall, Lubomir Lichner, Juraj Parajka, Christa D. Peters-Lidard, Graham Sander, Hubert Savenije, Keith Smettem, Harry Vereecken, Alberto Viglione, Patrick Willems, Andy Wood, Ross Woods, Chong-Yu Xu, and Erwin Zehe
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 5735–5739, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5735-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5735-2018, 2018
Keith J. Beven, Susana Almeida, Willy P. Aspinall, Paul D. Bates, Sarka Blazkova, Edoardo Borgomeo, Jim Freer, Katsuichiro Goda, Jim W. Hall, Jeremy C. Phillips, Michael Simpson, Paul J. Smith, David B. Stephenson, Thorsten Wagener, Matt Watson, and Kate L. Wilkins
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 2741–2768, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-18-2741-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-18-2741-2018, 2018
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This paper discusses how uncertainties resulting from lack of knowledge are considered in a number of different natural hazard areas including floods, landslides and debris flows, dam safety, droughts, earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic ash clouds and pyroclastic flows, and wind storms. As every analysis is necessarily conditional on the assumptions made about the nature of sources of such uncertainties it is also important to follow the guidelines for good practice suggested in Part 2.
Keith J. Beven, Willy P. Aspinall, Paul D. Bates, Edoardo Borgomeo, Katsuichiro Goda, Jim W. Hall, Trevor Page, Jeremy C. Phillips, Michael Simpson, Paul J. Smith, Thorsten Wagener, and Matt Watson
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 2769–2783, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-18-2769-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-18-2769-2018, 2018
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Part 1 of this paper discussed the uncertainties arising from gaps in knowledge or limited understanding of the processes involved in different natural hazard areas. These are the epistemic uncertainties that can be difficult to constrain, especially in terms of event or scenario probabilities. A conceptual framework for good practice in dealing with epistemic uncertainties is outlined and implications of applying the principles to natural hazard science are discussed.
César~Dionisio Jiménez-Rodríguez, Miriam Coenders-Gerrits, Thom Bogaard, Erika Vatiero, and Hubert Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2018-538, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2018-538, 2018
Manuscript not accepted for further review
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The measurement of stable isotopes in water vapor has been improved with the use of laser technologies. Its direct application in the field depends on the availability of infrastructure or the budget of the project. For those cases when it is not possible, we provide an alternative method to sample the air for its later measurement. This method is based on the use of a low-cost polyethylene bag, getting stable measurements with a volume of 450 mL of air reducing the risk of sample deterioration.
Petra Hulsman, Thom A. Bogaard, and Hubert H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 5081–5095, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5081-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5081-2018, 2018
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In many river basins, the development of hydrological models is challenged by poor discharge data availability and quality. In contrast, water level data are more reliable, as these are direct measurements and are unprocessed. In this study, an alternative calibration method is presented using water-level time series and the Strickler–Manning formula instead of discharge. This is applied to a semi-distributed rainfall-runoff model for the semi-arid, poorly gauged Mara River basin in Kenya.
Alessio Pugliese, Simone Persiano, Stefano Bagli, Paolo Mazzoli, Juraj Parajka, Berit Arheimer, René Capell, Alberto Montanari, Günter Blöschl, and Attilio Castellarin
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 4633–4648, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-4633-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-4633-2018, 2018
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This research work focuses on the development of an innovative method for enhancing the predictive capability of macro-scale rainfall–runoff models by means of a geostatistical apporach. In our method, one can get enhanced streamflow simulations without any further model calibration. Indeed, this method is neither computational nor data-intensive and is implemented only using observed streamflow data and a GIS vector layer with catchment boundaries. Assessments are performed in the Tyrol region.
Rafael Pimentel and Berit Arheimer
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2018-387, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2018-387, 2018
Revised manuscript not accepted
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The Västmanland wildfire, Sweden, burned 14 000 hectares and removed the Boreal forest in this area during the summer 2014. This empirical study evaluates the hydrological effects of this wildfire. A paired catchment methodology is used to evaluate 23 catchment characteristics of flow and physiography defined using in situ and remote sensing data. The results show a change in the snow dynamics over the burnt areas with shorter duration of the snow season and a higher stream flow during autumn.
Lan Wang-Erlandsson, Ingo Fetzer, Patrick W. Keys, Ruud J. van der Ent, Hubert H. G. Savenije, and Line J. Gordon
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 4311–4328, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-4311-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-4311-2018, 2018
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Winds carry air moisture from one place to another. Thus, land-use change that alters air moisture content can also modify downwind rainfall and distant river flows. This aspect has rarely been taken into account in studies of river flow changes. We show here that remote land-use change effect on rainfall can exceed that of local, and that foreign nation influence on river flows is much more prevalent than previously thought. This has important implications for both land and water governance.
Huayang Cai, Marco Toffolon, Hubert H. G. Savenije, Qingshu Yang, and Erwan Garel
Ocean Sci., 14, 769–782, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-14-769-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/os-14-769-2018, 2018
Zhao Chen, Andreas Hartmann, Thorsten Wagener, and Nico Goldscheider
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 3807–3823, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-3807-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-3807-2018, 2018
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This paper investigates potential impacts of climate change on mountainous karst systems. Our study highlights the fast groundwater dynamics in mountainous karst catchments, which make them highly vulnerable to future changing-climate conditions. Additionally, this work presents a novel holistic modeling approach, which can be transferred to similar karst systems for studying the impact of climate change on local karst water resources.
Stefanie R. Lutz, Andrea Popp, Tim van Emmerik, Tom Gleeson, Liz Kalaugher, Karsten Möbius, Tonie Mudde, Brett Walton, Rolf Hut, Hubert Savenije, Louise J. Slater, Anna Solcerova, Cathelijne R. Stoof, and Matthias Zink
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 3589–3599, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-3589-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-3589-2018, 2018
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Media play a key role in the communication between scientists and the general public. However, the interaction between scientists and journalists is not always straightforward. In this opinion paper, we present insights from hydrologists and journalists into the benefits, aftermath and potential pitfalls of science–media interaction. We aim to encourage scientists to participate in the diverse and evolving media landscape, and we call on the scientific community to support scientists who do so.
Karin Mostbauer, Roland Kaitna, David Prenner, and Markus Hrachowitz
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 3493–3513, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-3493-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-3493-2018, 2018
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Debris flows represent a severe hazard in mountain regions and so far remain difficult to predict. We applied a hydrological model to link not only precipitation, but also snowmelt, antecedent soil moisture, etc. with debris flow initiation in an Alpine watershed in Austria. Our results highlight the value of this more holistic perspective for developing a better understanding of debris flow initiation.
Qi Chu, Zongxue Xu, Yiheng Chen, and Dawei Han
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 3391–3407, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-3391-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-3391-2018, 2018
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The effects of WRF domain configurations and spin-up time on rainfall were evaluated at high temporal and spatial scales for simulating an extreme sub-daily heavy rainfall (SDHR) event. Both objective verification metrics and subjective verification were used to identify the likely best set of the configurations. Results show that re-evaluation of these WRF settings is of great importance in improving the accuracy and reliability of the rainfall simulations in the regional SDHR applications.
Andreas Paul Zischg, Guido Felder, Rolf Weingartner, Niall Quinn, Gemma Coxon, Jeffrey Neal, Jim Freer, and Paul Bates
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 2759–2773, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-2759-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-2759-2018, 2018
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We developed a model experiment and distributed different rainfall patterns over a mountain river basin. For each rainfall scenario, we computed the flood losses with a model chain. The experiment shows that flood losses vary considerably within the river basin and depend on the timing of the flood peaks from the basin's sub-catchments. Basin-specific characteristics such as the location of the main settlements within the floodplains play an additional important role in determining flood losses.
Hubert H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 1911–1916, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-1911-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-1911-2018, 2018
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This paper provides the connection between two simple equations describing groundwater flow at different scales: the Darcy equation describes groundwater flow at pore scale, the linear reservoir equation at catchment scale. The connection between the two appears to be very simple. The two parameters of the equations are proportional, depending on the porosity of the subsoil and the resistance for the groundwater to enter the surface drainage network.
Zhilin Zhang and Hubert H. G. Savenije
Earth Syst. Dynam., 9, 241–247, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-9-241-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-9-241-2018, 2018
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This paper presents a new equation for the dispersion of salinity in alluvial estuaries based on the maximum power concept. The new equation is physically based and replaces previous empirical equations. It is very useful for application in practice because in contrast to previous methods it no longer requires a calibration parameter, turning the method into a predictive method. The paper presents successful applications in more than 23 estuaries in different parts of the world.
Dong-Ik Kim, Hyun-Han Kwon, and Dawei Han
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2018-36, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2018-36, 2018
Manuscript not accepted for further review
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This study introduces a new QM approach based on a composite distribution of a generalized Pareto distribution for the upper tail and a gamma distribution for the interior part of the distribution. The proposed composite distributions provide a significant reduction of the biases compared with that of the conventional method for the extremes. The proposed approach can provide a useful alternative for the bias correction of a regional-scale modeled data with a limited network of rain gauges.
Simon Brenner, Gemma Coxon, Nicholas J. K. Howden, Jim Freer, and Andreas Hartmann
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 445–461, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-18-445-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-18-445-2018, 2018
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In this study we simulate groundwater levels with a semi-distributed karst model. Using a percentile approach we can assess the number of days exceeding or falling below selected groundwater level percentiles. We show that our approach is able to predict groundwater levels across all considered timescales up to the 75th percentile. We then use our approach to assess future changes in groundwater dynamics and show that projected climate changes may lead to generally lower groundwater levels.
Dirk-Jan Daniel Kok, Saket Pande, Angela Renata Cordeiro Ortigara, Hubert Savenije, and Stefan Uhlenbrook
Proc. IAHS, 376, 83–86, https://doi.org/10.5194/piahs-376-83-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/piahs-376-83-2018, 2018
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Phosphorus is necessary for the development of crops and is therefore essential in safeguarding our food security. Several studies predict that our rock phosphate reserves, used to create synthetic, phosphatic fertilizers, may become depleted within this century. This study roughly approximates for which areas in Africa we can instead recover phosphorus from wastewater in order to reduce our dependancy on unsustainable rock phosphate.
Bart Schilperoort, Miriam Coenders-Gerrits, Willem Luxemburg, César Jiménez Rodríguez, César Cisneros Vaca, and Hubert Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 819–830, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-819-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-819-2018, 2018
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Using the
DTStechnology, we measured the evaporation of a forest using fibre optic cables. The cables work like long thermometers, with a measurement every 12.5 cm. We placed the cables vertically along the tower, one cable being dry, the other kept wet. By looking at the dry and wet cable temperatures over the height we are able to study heat storage and the amount of water the forest is evaporating. These results can be used to better understand the storage and heat exchange of forests.
Benoit P. Guillod, Richard G. Jones, Simon J. Dadson, Gemma Coxon, Gianbattista Bussi, James Freer, Alison L. Kay, Neil R. Massey, Sarah N. Sparrow, David C. H. Wallom, Myles R. Allen, and Jim W. Hall
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 611–634, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-611-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-611-2018, 2018
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Assessing the potential impacts of extreme events such as drought and flood requires large datasets of such events, especially when looking at the most severe and rare events. Using a state-of-the-art climate modelling infrastructure that is simulating large numbers of weather time series on volunteers' computers, we generate such a large dataset for the United Kingdom. The dataset covers the recent past (1900–2006) as well as two future time periods (2030s and 2080s).
Fernando Jaramillo, Neil Cory, Berit Arheimer, Hjalmar Laudon, Ype van der Velde, Thomas B. Hasper, Claudia Teutschbein, and Johan Uddling
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 567–580, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-567-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-567-2018, 2018
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Which is the dominant effect on evapotranspiration in northern forests, an increase by recent forests expansion or a decrease by the water use response due to increasing CO2 concentrations? We determined the dominant effect during the period 1961–2012 in 65 Swedish basins. We used the Budyko framework to study the hydroclimatic movements in Budyko space. Our findings suggest that forest expansion is the dominant driver of long-term and large-scale evapotranspiration changes.
Mary C. Ockenden, Wlodek Tych, Keith J. Beven, Adrian L. Collins, Robert Evans, Peter D. Falloon, Kirsty J. Forber, Kevin M. Hiscock, Michael J. Hollaway, Ron Kahana, Christopher J. A. Macleod, Martha L. Villamizar, Catherine Wearing, Paul J. A. Withers, Jian G. Zhou, Clare McW. H. Benskin, Sean Burke, Richard J. Cooper, Jim E. Freer, and Philip M. Haygarth
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 6425–6444, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-6425-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-6425-2017, 2017
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This paper describes simple models of phosphorus load which are identified for three catchments in the UK. The models use new hourly observations of phosphorus load, which capture the dynamics of phosphorus transfer in small catchments that are often missed by models with a longer time step. Unlike more complex, process-based models, very few parameters are required, leading to low parameter uncertainty. Interpretation of the dominant phosphorus transfer modes is made based solely on the data.
Axel Kleidon and Hubert H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2017-674, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2017-674, 2017
Revised manuscript not accepted
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At larger scales, the flow of rivers can often be described by a relatively simple, exponential decay, and it is unclear how such simple behaviour can be explained given that river basins show such vast complexity. Here, we use a highly idealised model to show that such simple behaviour can be explained by viewing it as the emergent consequence of the groundwater system (which feeds river flow) minimising its energy dissipation.
Katrien Van Eerdenbrugh, Stijn Van Hoey, Gemma Coxon, Jim Freer, and Niko E. C. Verhoest
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 5315–5337, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-5315-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-5315-2017, 2017
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Consistency in stage–discharge data is investigated using a methodology called Bidirectional Reach (BReach). Various measurement stations in the UK, New Zealand and Belgium are selected based on their historical ratings information and their characteristics related to data consistency. When applying a BReach analysis on them, the methodology provides results that appear consistent with the available knowledge and thus facilitates a reliable assessment of (in)consistency in stage–discharge data.
Binru Zhao, Huichao Dai, Dawei Han, and Guiwen Rong
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2017-396, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2017-396, 2017
Revised manuscript not accepted
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This study compared the hydrological model performance of different sub-annual calibration schemes, which take into account intra-annual variations of climate. Two methods recognizing climatic patterns were applied to partition sub-periods with hydroclimatic similarities. The effect of time scales on sub-annual calibration schemes was also studied. Results indicate when using sub-annual calibration schemes, the selection of partitioning method and time scale is important to model performances.
Rob Lamb, Willy Aspinall, Henry Odbert, and Thorsten Wagener
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 1393–1409, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-17-1393-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-17-1393-2017, 2017
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Scour (erosion) during floods can cause bridges to collapse. Modern design and maintenance mitigates the risk, so failures are rare. The residual risk is uncertain, but expert knowledge can help constrain it. We asked 19 experts about scour risk using methods designed to treat judgements alongside other scientific data. The findings identified knowledge gaps about scour processes and suggest wider uncertainty about scour risk than might be inferred from observation, models or experiments alone.
Markus Hrachowitz and Martyn P. Clark
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 3953–3973, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3953-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3953-2017, 2017
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Physically based and conceptual models in hydrology are the two endpoints in the spectrum of modelling strategies, mostly differing in their degree of detail in resolving the model domain. Given the limitations both modelling strategies face, we believe that to achieve progress in hydrological modelling, a convergence of these methods is necessary. This would allow us to exploit the respective advantages of the bottom-up and top-down models while limiting their respective uncertainties.
Randal D. Koster, Alan K. Betts, Paul A. Dirmeyer, Marc Bierkens, Katrina E. Bennett, Stephen J. Déry, Jason P. Evans, Rong Fu, Felipe Hernandez, L. Ruby Leung, Xu Liang, Muhammad Masood, Hubert Savenije, Guiling Wang, and Xing Yuan
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 3777–3798, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3777-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3777-2017, 2017
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Large-scale hydrological variability can affect society in profound ways; floods and droughts, for example, often cause major damage and hardship. A recent gathering of hydrologists at a symposium to honor the career of Professor Eric Wood motivates the present survey of recent research on this variability. The surveyed literature and the illustrative examples provided in the paper show that research into hydrological variability continues to be strong, vibrant, and multifaceted.
Christa Kelleher, Brian McGlynn, and Thorsten Wagener
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 3325–3352, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3325-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3325-2017, 2017
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Models are tools for understanding how watersheds function and may respond to land cover and climate change. Before we can use models towards these purposes, we need to ensure that a model adequately represents watershed-wide observations. In this paper, we propose a new way to evaluate whether model simulations match observations, using a variety of information sources. We show how this information can reduce uncertainty in inputs to models, reducing uncertainty in hydrologic predictions.
Lu Zhuo and Dawei Han
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 3267–3285, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3267-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3267-2017, 2017
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Reliable estimation of hydrological soil moisture state is of critical importance in operational hydrology to improve the flood prediction and hydrological cycle description. This paper attempts for the first time to build a soil moisture product directly applicable to hydrology using multiple data sources retrieved from remote sensing and land surface modelling. The result shows a significant improvement of the soil moisture state accuracy; the method can be easily applied in other catchments.
Zhilin Zhang and Hubert H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 3287–3305, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3287-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-3287-2017, 2017
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An estuary is where fresh water rivers meet the salty open sea. This mixture of salty fresh water leads to a varying water quality. There a model works well showing how far the salty water can travel, with an empirical parameter that needs to be calibrated every time. This paper provides a possible solution for this parameter to make the model predictive. Also, the model was improved by considering 2-D exchange flow. This new model was supported by observations in 18 estuaries around the world.
Anna Kuentz, Berit Arheimer, Yeshewatesfa Hundecha, and Thorsten Wagener
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 2863–2879, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-2863-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-2863-2017, 2017
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Our study aims to explore and understand the physical controls on spatial patterns of pan-European flow signatures by taking advantage of large open datasets. Using tools like correlation analysis, stepwise regressions and different types of catchment classifications, we explore the relationships between catchment descriptors and flow signatures across 35 215 catchments which cover a wide range of pan-European physiographic and anthropogenic characteristics.
Joost Iwema, Rafael Rosolem, Mostaquimur Rahman, Eleanor Blyth, and Thorsten Wagener
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 2843–2861, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-2843-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-2843-2017, 2017
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We investigated whether the simulation of water flux from the land surface to the atmosphere (using the Joint UK Land Environment Simulator model) could be improved by replacing traditional soil moisture sensor data with data from the more novel Cosmic-Ray Neutron soil moisture sensor. Despite observed differences between the two types of soil moisture measurement data, we found no substantial differences in improvement in water flux estimation, based on multiple calibration experiments.
Jun Zhang, Dawei Han, Yang Song, and Qiang Dai
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2017-289, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2017-289, 2017
Preprint retracted
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We explore unit hydrograph (UH) affected by geomorphology that could be used in ungauged catchments. Virtual catchments approach (VCA) is used instead of gauged catchments in runoff modelling. Catchment shape is newly introduced and the agreement of the results with the hydrological principles verifies the reliability of VCA. With the robust VCA, a large amount of catchments can be created with desirable features to explore a more comprehensive equation that can be used in ungauged catchments.
Catchments as meta-organisms – a new blueprint for hydrological modelling
Hubert H. G. Savenije and Markus Hrachowitz
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 1107–1116, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-1107-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-1107-2017, 2017
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The natural environment that we live in is the result of evolution. This does not only apply to ecosystems, but also to the physical environment through which the water flows. This has resulted in the formation of flow patterns that obey sometimes surprisingly simple mathematical laws. Hydrological models should represent the physics of these patterns and should account for the fact that the ecosystem adjusts itself continuously to changing circumstances. Physics-based models are alive!
Susana Almeida, Elizabeth Ann Holcombe, Francesca Pianosi, and Thorsten Wagener
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 225–241, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-17-225-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-17-225-2017, 2017
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Landslides threaten communities globally, yet predicting their occurrence is challenged by uncertainty about slope properties and climate change. We present an approach to identify the dominant drivers of slope instability and the critical thresholds at which slope failure may occur. This information helps decision makers to target data acquisition to improve landslide predictability, and supports policy development to reduce landslide occurrence and impacts in highly uncertain environments.
Tanja de Boer-Euser, Laurène Bouaziz, Jan De Niel, Claudia Brauer, Benjamin Dewals, Gilles Drogue, Fabrizio Fenicia, Benjamin Grelier, Jiri Nossent, Fernando Pereira, Hubert Savenije, Guillaume Thirel, and Patrick Willems
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 423–440, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-423-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-423-2017, 2017
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In this study, the rainfall–runoff models of eight international research groups were compared for a set of subcatchments of the Meuse basin to investigate the influence of certain model components on the modelled discharge. Although the models showed similar performances based on general metrics, clear differences could be observed for specific events. The differences during drier conditions could indeed be linked to differences in model structures.
Melissa Wood, Renaud Hostache, Jeffrey Neal, Thorsten Wagener, Laura Giustarini, Marco Chini, Giovani Corato, Patrick Matgen, and Paul Bates
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 4983–4997, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-4983-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-4983-2016, 2016
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We propose a methodology to calibrate the bankfull channel depth and roughness parameters in a 2-D hydraulic model using an archive of medium-resolution SAR satellite-derived flood extent maps. We used an identifiability methodology to locate the parameters and suggest the SAR images which could be optimally used for model calibration. We found that SAR images acquired around the flood peak provide best calibration potential for the depth parameter, improving when SAR images are combined.
Ali D. Abdullah, Jacqueline I. A. Gisen, Pieter van der Zaag, Hubert H. G. Savenije, Usama F. A. Karim, Ilyas Masih, and Ioana Popescu
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 4031–4042, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-4031-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-4031-2016, 2016
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A comprehensive and detailed data set of the salinity distribution over an entire year in a complex and dynamic (because heavily utilized and modified) deltaic river system was thoroughly analysed, and formed the basis for a validated analytical model that can predict the extent of seawater among other salinity sources in an estuary. The procedure can be applied to other estuaries.
Anne F. Van Loon, Kerstin Stahl, Giuliano Di Baldassarre, Julian Clark, Sally Rangecroft, Niko Wanders, Tom Gleeson, Albert I. J. M. Van Dijk, Lena M. Tallaksen, Jamie Hannaford, Remko Uijlenhoet, Adriaan J. Teuling, David M. Hannah, Justin Sheffield, Mark Svoboda, Boud Verbeiren, Thorsten Wagener, and Henny A. J. Van Lanen
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 3631–3650, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-3631-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-3631-2016, 2016
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In the Anthropocene, drought cannot be viewed as a natural hazard independent of people. Drought can be alleviated or made worse by human activities and drought impacts are dependent on a myriad of factors. In this paper, we identify research gaps and suggest a framework that will allow us to adequately analyse and manage drought in the Anthropocene. We need to focus on attribution of drought to different drivers, linking drought to its impacts, and feedbacks between drought and society.
Nutchanart Sriwongsitanon, Hongkai Gao, Hubert H. G. Savenije, Ekkarin Maekan, Sirikanya Saengsawang, and Sansarith Thianpopirug
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 3361–3377, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-3361-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-3361-2016, 2016
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We demonstrated that the readily available NDII remote sensing product is a very useful proxy for moisture storage in the root zone of vegetation. We compared the temporal variation of the NDII with the root zone storage in a hydrological model of eight catchments in the Upper Ping River in Thailand, yielding very good results. Having a reliable NDII product that can help us to estimate the actual moisture storage in catchments is a major contribution to prediction in ungauged basins.
András Bárdossy, Yingchun Huang, and Thorsten Wagener
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 2913–2928, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-2913-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-2913-2016, 2016
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This paper explores the simultaneous calibration method to transfer model parameters from gauged to ungauged catchments. It is hypothesized that the model parameters can be separated into two categories: one reflecting the dynamic behavior and the other representing the long-term water balance. The results of three numerical experiments indicate that a good parameter transfer to ungauged catchments can be achieved through simultaneous calibration of models for a number of catchments.
Kue Bum Kim, Hyun-Han Kwon, and Dawei Han
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 2019–2034, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-2019-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-2019-2016, 2016
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A primary advantage of using model ensembles for climate change impact studies is to represent the uncertainties associated with models through the ensemble spread. Currently, most of the conventional bias correction methods adjust all the ensemble members to one reference observation. As a result, the ensemble spread is degraded during bias correction. However the proposed method is able to correct the bias and conform to the ensemble spread so that the ensemble information can be better used.
Nadja I. den Besten, Saket Pande, and Hubert H. G. Savenije
Proc. IAHS, 373, 115–118, https://doi.org/10.5194/piahs-373-115-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/piahs-373-115-2016, 2016
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Maharashtra is one of the states in India that has witnessed highest rates of farmer suicides as proportion of total number of suicides. We interpret the crisis using a socio-hydrological model in two adjoining regions in Maharashtra, Marathwada and Desh, with higher farmer suicide rates in the former. The analysis confirms existing narratives: low (soil) water storage capacities, no irrigation and access to alternative sources of incomes are to blame for the crisis.
Lan Wang-Erlandsson, Wim G. M. Bastiaanssen, Hongkai Gao, Jonas Jägermeyr, Gabriel B. Senay, Albert I. J. M. van Dijk, Juan P. Guerschman, Patrick W. Keys, Line J. Gordon, and Hubert H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 1459–1481, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-1459-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-1459-2016, 2016
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We present an "Earth observation-based" method for estimating root zone storage capacity – a critical parameter in land surface modelling that represents the maximum amount of soil moisture available for vegetation. Variability within a land cover type is captured, and a global model evaporation simulation is overall improved, particularly in sub-humid to humid regions with seasonality. This new method can eliminate the need for unreliable soil and root depth data in land surface modelling.
Huayang Cai, Hubert H. G. Savenije, Chenjuan Jiang, Lili Zhao, and Qingshu Yang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 1177–1195, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-1177-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-1177-2016, 2016
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In this paper, an analytical model for tide-river dynamics has been used to understand the influence of tide and fresh water discharge on the rise of mean water level along the estuary, which remains poorly understood. It is shown that the mean water level is influenced primarily by the tide-river interaction in the tide-dominated region, while it is mainly controlled by the river flow in the upstream part of the estuary.
Remko C. Nijzink, Luis Samaniego, Juliane Mai, Rohini Kumar, Stephan Thober, Matthias Zink, David Schäfer, Hubert H. G. Savenije, and Markus Hrachowitz
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 1151–1176, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-1151-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-1151-2016, 2016
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The heterogeneity of landscapes in river basins strongly affects the hydrological response. In this study, the distributed mesoscale Hydrologic Model (mHM) was equipped with additional processes identified by landscapes within one modelling cell. Seven study catchments across Europe were selected to test the value of this additional sub-grid heterogeneity. In addition, the models were constrained based on expert knowledge. Generally, the modifications improved the representation of low flows.
Demetris Koutsoyiannis, Günter Blöschl, András Bárdossy, Christophe Cudennec, Denis Hughes, Alberto Montanari, Insa Neuweiler, and Hubert Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 1081–1084, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-1081-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-1081-2016, 2016
Susana Almeida, Nataliya Le Vine, Neil McIntyre, Thorsten Wagener, and Wouter Buytaert
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 887–901, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-887-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-887-2016, 2016
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The absence of flow data to calibrate hydrologic models may reduce the ability of such models to reliably inform water resources management. To address this limitation, it is common to condition hydrological model parameters on regionalized signatures. In this study, we justify the inclusion of larger sets of signatures in the regionalization procedure if their error correlations are formally accounted for and thus enable a more complete use of all available information.
Yakov A. Pachepsky, Gonzalo Martinez, Feng Pan, Thorsten Wagener, and Thomas Nicholson
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2016-46, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2016-46, 2016
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Hydrological models are frequently evaluated in terms of their accuracy to predict observations. However, we noticed that such approaches could not fully reflect the differences in their ability to represent the patterns of the observations nor the differences between the abstractions assumed in the models. We showed that information theory-based metrics are very useful for that purpose and provide additional criterion to choose the most appropriate models for specific watershed characterisitcs.
C. E. M. Lloyd, J. E. Freer, P. J. Johnes, and A. L. Collins
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 625–632, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-625-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-625-2016, 2016
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This paper examines the current methodologies for quantifying storm behaviour through hysteresis analysis, and explores a new method. Each method is systematically tested and the impact on the results is examined. Recommendations are made regarding the most effective method of calculating a hysteresis index. This new method allows storm hysteresis behaviour to be directly compared between storms, parameters, and catchments, meaning it has wide application potential in water quality research.
K. J. Beven, S. Almeida, W. P. Aspinall, P. D. Bates, S. Blazkova, E. Borgomeo, K. Goda, J. C. Phillips, M. Simpson, P. J. Smith, D. B. Stephenson, T. Wagener, M. Watson, and K. L. Wilkins
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-2015-295, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-2015-295, 2016
Preprint withdrawn
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Uncertainties in natural hazard risk assessment are generally dominated by the sources arising from lack of knowledge or understanding of the processes involved. This is Part 2 of 2 papers reviewing these epistemic uncertainties and covers different areas of natural hazards including landslides and debris flows, dam safety, droughts, earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic ash clouds and pyroclastic flows, and wind storms. It is based on the work of the UK CREDIBLE research consortium.
K. J. Beven, W. P. Aspinall, P. D. Bates, E. Borgomeo, K. Goda, J. W. Hall, T. Page, J. C. Phillips, J. T. Rougier, M. Simpson, D. B. Stephenson, P. J. Smith, T. Wagener, and M. Watson
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/nhessd-3-7333-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhessd-3-7333-2015, 2015
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Uncertainties in natural hazard risk assessment are generally dominated by the sources arising from lack of knowledge or understanding of the processes involved. This is Part 1 of 2 papers reviewing these epistemic uncertainties that can be difficult to constrain, especially in terms of event or scenario probabilities. It is based on the work of the CREDIBLE research consortium on Risk and Uncertainty in Natural Hazards.
I. G. Pechlivanidis and B. Arheimer
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 4559–4579, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-4559-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-4559-2015, 2015
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We modify the recommendations for flow predictions in ungauged catchments to address the challenges at the large scale. We use examples from the HYPE hydrological model set-up across 6000 subbasins for the Indian subcontinent. Multi-basin modelling reveals the spatial patterns of catchment functioning and dominant flow processes across the hydroclimatic gradient. The model set-up procedure according to the PUB recommendations brought insights into where the single model structure is inadequate.
J. Iwema, R. Rosolem, R. Baatz, T. Wagener, and H. R. Bogena
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 3203–3216, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-3203-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-3203-2015, 2015
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The cosmic-ray neutron sensor can provide soil moisture content averages over areas of roughly half a kilometre by half a kilometre. Although this sensor is usually calibrated using soil samples taken on a single day, we found that multiple sampling days are needed. The calibration results were also affected by the soil wetness conditions of the sampling days. The outcome of this study will help researchers to calibrate/validate new cosmic-ray neutron sensor sites more accurately.
J. I. A. Gisen, H. H. G. Savenije, and R. C. Nijzink
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 2791–2803, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-2791-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-2791-2015, 2015
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We revised the predictive equations for two calibrated parameters in salt intrusion model (the Van der Burgh coefficient K and dispersion coefficient D) using an extended database of 89 salinity profiles including 8 newly conducted salinity measurements. The revised predictive equations consist of easily measured parameters such as the geometry of estuary, tide, friction and the Richardson number. These equations are useful in obtaining the first estimate of salinity distribution in an estuary.
A. Hartmann, T. Gleeson, R. Rosolem, F. Pianosi, Y. Wada, and T. Wagener
Geosci. Model Dev., 8, 1729–1746, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-8-1729-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-8-1729-2015, 2015
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We present a new approach to assess karstic groundwater recharge over Europe and the Mediterranean. Cluster analysis is used to subdivide all karst regions into four typical karst landscapes and to simulate karst recharge with a process-based karst model. We estimate its parameters by a combination of a priori information and observations of soil moisture and evapotranspiration. Independent observations of recharge that present large-scale models significantly under-estimate karstic recharge.
J. Hall, B. Arheimer, G. T. Aronica, A. Bilibashi, M. Boháč, O. Bonacci, M. Borga, P. Burlando, A. Castellarin, G. B. Chirico, P. Claps, K. Fiala, L. Gaál, L. Gorbachova, A. Gül, J. Hannaford, A. Kiss, T. Kjeldsen, S. Kohnová, J. J. Koskela, N. Macdonald, M. Mavrova-Guirguinova, O. Ledvinka, L. Mediero, B. Merz, R. Merz, P. Molnar, A. Montanari, M. Osuch, J. Parajka, R. A. P. Perdigão, I. Radevski, B. Renard, M. Rogger, J. L. Salinas, E. Sauquet, M. Šraj, J. Szolgay, A. Viglione, E. Volpi, D. Wilson, K. Zaimi, and G. Blöschl
Proc. IAHS, 370, 89–95, https://doi.org/10.5194/piahs-370-89-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/piahs-370-89-2015, 2015
D. Diederen, H. H. G. Savenije, and M. Toffolon
Ocean Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/osd-12-925-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/osd-12-925-2015, 2015
Revised manuscript not accepted
S. Ceola, B. Arheimer, E. Baratti, G. Blöschl, R. Capell, A. Castellarin, J. Freer, D. Han, M. Hrachowitz, Y. Hundecha, C. Hutton, G. Lindström, A. Montanari, R. Nijzink, J. Parajka, E. Toth, A. Viglione, and T. Wagener
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 2101–2117, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-2101-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-2101-2015, 2015
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We present the outcomes of a collaborative hydrological experiment undertaken by five different international research groups in a virtual laboratory. Moving from the definition of accurate protocols, a rainfall-runoff model was independently applied by the research groups, which then engaged in a comparative discussion. The results revealed that sharing protocols and running the experiment within a controlled environment is fundamental for ensuring experiment repeatability and reproducibility.
S. Pande, L. Arkesteijn, H. Savenije, and L. A. Bastidas
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-12-3945-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-12-3945-2015, 2015
Revised manuscript not accepted
B. Arheimer and G. Lindström
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 771–784, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-771-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-771-2015, 2015
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Is the occurrence of floods changing in frequency or magnitude? We have analyzed 100 years of observed time series from 69 gauging sites and high-resolution modeling of climate change impact across Sweden for 140 years. The results indicate no significant trend in high flows in the past but some shifts in flood-generating processes at present and in the future. Rain-generated floods may have a more marked effect, and some specific rivers may be more affected by climate change than others.
O. Fovet, L. Ruiz, M. Hrachowitz, M. Faucheux, and C. Gascuel-Odoux
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 105–123, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-105-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-105-2015, 2015
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We studied the annual hysteretic patterns observed between stream flow and water storage in the saturated and unsaturated zones of a hillslope and a riparian zone. We described these signatures using a hysteresis index and then used this to assess conceptual hydrological models. This led us to identify four hydrological periods and a clearly distinct behaviour between riparian and hillslope groundwaters and to provide new information about the model performances.
J. D. Edixhoven, J. Gupta, and H. H. G. Savenije
Earth Syst. Dynam., 5, 491–507, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-5-491-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-5-491-2014, 2014
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Phosphate rock is a finite resource required for fertilizer production. Following a debate over the PR depletion timeline, global PR reserves were recently increased 4-fold based mainly on a restatement of Moroccan reserves. We review whether this restatement is methodologically compatible with resource terminology used in major resource classifications, whether resource classification nomenclature is sufficiently understood in the literature, and whether the recent restatements are reliable.
S. Gharari, M. Hrachowitz, F. Fenicia, H. Gao, and H. H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 4839–4859, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-4839-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-4839-2014, 2014
S. Gharari, M. Shafiei, M. Hrachowitz, R. Kumar, F. Fenicia, H. V. Gupta, and H. H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 4861–4870, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-4861-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-4861-2014, 2014
L. Wang-Erlandsson, R. J. van der Ent, L. J. Gordon, and H. H. G. Savenije
Earth Syst. Dynam., 5, 441–469, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-5-441-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-5-441-2014, 2014
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We investigate the temporal characteristics of partitioned evaporation on land, and we present STEAM (Simple Terrestrial Evaporation to Atmosphere Model) -- a hydrological land-surface model developed to provide inputs to moisture tracking. The terrestrial residence timescale of transpiration (days to months) has larger inter-seasonal variation and is substantially longer than that of interception (hours). This can cause differences in moisture recycling, which is investigated more in Part 2.
R. J. van der Ent, L. Wang-Erlandsson, P. W. Keys, and H. H. G. Savenije
Earth Syst. Dynam., 5, 471–489, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-5-471-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/esd-5-471-2014, 2014
T. H. M. van Emmerik, Z. Li, M. Sivapalan, S. Pande, J. Kandasamy, H. H. G. Savenije, A. Chanan, and S. Vigneswaran
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 4239–4259, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-4239-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-4239-2014, 2014
H. Cai, H. H. G. Savenije, and C. Jiang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 4153–4168, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-4153-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-4153-2014, 2014
F. N. Outram, C. E. M. Lloyd, J. Jonczyk, C. McW. H. Benskin, F. Grant, M. T. Perks, C. Deasy, S. P. Burke, A. L. Collins, J. Freer, P. M. Haygarth, K. M. Hiscock, P. J. Johnes, and A. L. Lovett
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 3429–3448, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-3429-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-3429-2014, 2014
J. Hall, B. Arheimer, M. Borga, R. Brázdil, P. Claps, A. Kiss, T. R. Kjeldsen, J. Kriaučiūnienė, Z. W. Kundzewicz, M. Lang, M. C. Llasat, N. Macdonald, N. McIntyre, L. Mediero, B. Merz, R. Merz, P. Molnar, A. Montanari, C. Neuhold, J. Parajka, R. A. P. Perdigão, L. Plavcová, M. Rogger, J. L. Salinas, E. Sauquet, C. Schär, J. Szolgay, A. Viglione, and G. Blöschl
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 2735–2772, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-2735-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-2735-2014, 2014
M. Valk, H. H. G. Savenije, C. C. J. M. Tiberius, and W. M. J. Luxemburg
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 2599–2613, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-2599-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-2599-2014, 2014
C. Volta, S. Arndt, H. H. G. Savenije, G. G. Laruelle, and P. Regnier
Geosci. Model Dev., 7, 1271–1295, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-7-1271-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-7-1271-2014, 2014
G. Blöschl, A. Bárdossy, D. Koutsoyiannis, Z. W. Kundzewicz, I. Littlewood, A. Montanari, and H. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 2433–2435, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-2433-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-2433-2014, 2014
C. C. Sampson, T. J. Fewtrell, F. O'Loughlin, F. Pappenberger, P. B. Bates, J. E. Freer, and H. L. Cloke
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 2305–2324, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-2305-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-2305-2014, 2014
H. Gao, M. Hrachowitz, F. Fenicia, S. Gharari, and H. H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 1895–1915, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-1895-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-1895-2014, 2014
S. Pande, L. Arkesteijn, H. H. G. Savenije, and L. A. Bastidas
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-11-2555-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-11-2555-2014, 2014
Manuscript not accepted for further review
U. Ehret, H. V. Gupta, M. Sivapalan, S. V. Weijs, S. J. Schymanski, G. Blöschl, A. N. Gelfan, C. Harman, A. Kleidon, T. A. Bogaard, D. Wang, T. Wagener, U. Scherer, E. Zehe, M. F. P. Bierkens, G. Di Baldassarre, J. Parajka, L. P. H. van Beek, A. van Griensven, M. C. Westhoff, and H. C. Winsemius
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 649–671, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-649-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-649-2014, 2014
H. H. G. Savenije, A. Y. Hoekstra, and P. van der Zaag
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 319–332, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-319-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-319-2014, 2014
H. Cai, H. H. G. Savenije, and M. Toffolon
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 287–304, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-287-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-287-2014, 2014
J. D. Herman, J. B. Kollat, P. M. Reed, and T. Wagener
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 5109–5125, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-5109-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-5109-2013, 2013
R. J. van der Ent, O. A. Tuinenburg, H.-R. Knoche, H. Kunstmann, and H. H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 4869–4884, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-4869-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-4869-2013, 2013
J. Liu and D. Han
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 3639–3659, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-3639-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-3639-2013, 2013
A. Hartmann, M. Weiler, T. Wagener, J. Lange, M. Kralik, F. Humer, N. Mizyed, A. Rimmer, J. A. Barberá, B. Andreo, C. Butscher, and P. Huggenberger
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 3305–3321, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-3305-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-3305-2013, 2013
J. Liu, M. Bray, and D. Han
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 3095–3110, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-3095-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-3095-2013, 2013
B. M. C. Fischer, M. L. Mul, and H. H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 2161–2170, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-2161-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-2161-2013, 2013
T. Euser, H. C. Winsemius, M. Hrachowitz, F. Fenicia, S. Uhlenbrook, and H. H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 1893–1912, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-1893-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-1893-2013, 2013
A. M. J. Coenders-Gerrits, L. Hopp, H. H. G. Savenije, and L. Pfister
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 1749–1763, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-1749-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-1749-2013, 2013
M. Hrachowitz, H. Savenije, T. A. Bogaard, D. Tetzlaff, and C. Soulsby
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 533–564, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-533-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-533-2013, 2013
Related subject area
Subject: Catchment hydrology | Techniques and Approaches: Theory development
Increased nonstationarity of stormflow threshold behaviors in a forested watershed due to abrupt earthquake disturbance
HESS Opinions: Are soils overrated in hydrology?
Hydrologic implications of projected changes in rain-on-snow melt for Great Lakes Basin watersheds
A hydrological framework for persistent pools along non-perennial rivers
Evidence-based requirements for perceptualising intercatchment groundwater flow in hydrological models
Droughts can reduce the nitrogen retention capacity of catchments
Explaining changes in rainfall–runoff relationships during and after Australia's Millennium Drought: a community perspective
Three hypotheses on changing river flood hazards
A multivariate-driven approach for disentangling the reduction in near-natural Iberian water resources post-1980
Hydrology and riparian forests drive carbon and nitrogen supply and DOC : NO3− stoichiometry along a headwater Mediterranean stream
Event controls on intermittent streamflow in a temperate climate
Inclusion of flood diversion canal operation in the H08 hydrological model with a case study from the Chao Phraya River basin: model development and validation
Flood generation: process patterns from the raindrop to the ocean
Use of streamflow indices to identify the catchment drivers of hydrographs
Theoretical and empirical evidence against the Budyko catchment trajectory conjecture
Spatial distribution of groundwater recharge, based on regionalised soil moisture models in Wadi Natuf karst aquifers, Palestine
Barriers to mainstream adoption of catchment-wide natural flood management: a transdisciplinary problem-framing study of delivery practice
Low hydrological connectivity after summer drought inhibits DOC export in a forested headwater catchment
Rainbow color map distorts and misleads research in hydrology – guidance for better visualizations and science communication
Attribution of growing season evapotranspiration variability considering snowmelt and vegetation changes in the arid alpine basins
Event and seasonal hydrologic connectivity patterns in an agricultural headwater catchment
Exploring the role of hydrological pathways in modulating multi-annual climate teleconnection periodicities from UK rainfall to streamflow
Technical note: “Bit by bit”: a practical and general approach for evaluating model computational complexity vs. model performance
Hillslope and groundwater contributions to streamflow in a Rocky Mountain watershed underlain by glacial till and fractured sedimentary bedrock
A framework for seasonal variations of hydrological model parameters: impact on model results and response to dynamic catchment characteristics
Hydrology and beyond: the scientific work of August Colding revisited
The influence of a prolonged meteorological drought on catchment water storage capacity: a hydrological-model perspective
Hydrological and runoff formation processes based on isotope tracing during ablation period in the source regions of Yangtze River
Importance of snowmelt contribution to seasonal runoff and summer low flows in Czechia
Concentration–discharge relationships vary among hydrological events, reflecting differences in event characteristics
Recession analysis revisited: impacts of climate on parameter estimation
Understanding the effects of climate warming on streamflow and active groundwater storage in an alpine catchment: the upper Lhasa River
Technical note: An improved discharge sensitivity metric for young water fractions
Hydrological signatures describing the translation of climate seasonality into streamflow seasonality
Spatial and temporal variation in river corridor exchange across a 5th-order mountain stream network
Historic hydrological droughts 1891–2015: systematic characterisation for a diverse set of catchments across the UK
A topographic index explaining hydrological similarity by accounting for the joint controls of runoff formation
Trajectories of nitrate input and output in three nested catchments along a land use gradient
Contrasting rainfall-runoff characteristics of floods in desert and Mediterranean basins
Anthropogenic and catchment characteristic signatures in the water quality of Swiss rivers: a quantitative assessment
Using paired catchments to quantify the human influence on hydrological droughts
HESS Opinions: Socio-economic and ecological trade-offs of flood management – benefits of a transdisciplinary approach
A parsimonious transport model of emerging contaminants at the river network scale
Emergent stationarity in Yellow River sediment transport and the underlying shift of dominance: from streamflow to vegetation
A new probability density function for spatial distribution of soil water storage capacity leads to the SCS curve number method
How does initial soil moisture influence the hydrological response? A case study from southern France
Studying catchment storm response using event- and pre-event-water volumes as fractions of precipitation rather than discharge
Anatomy of simultaneous flood peaks at a lowland confluence
Including effects of watershed heterogeneity in the curve number method using variable initial abstraction
Seasonal shifts in export of DOC and nutrients from burned and unburned peatland-rich catchments, Northwest Territories, Canada
Guotao Zhang, Peng Cui, Carlo Gualtieri, Nazir Ahmed Bazai, Xueqin Zhang, and Zhengtao Zhang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 3005–3020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-3005-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-3005-2023, 2023
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This study used identified stormflow thresholds as a diagnostic tool to characterize abrupt variations in catchment emergent patterns pre- and post-earthquake. Earthquake-induced landslides with spatial heterogeneity and temporally undulating recovery increase the hydrologic nonstationary; thus, large post-earthquake floods are more likely to occur. This study contributes to mitigation and adaptive strategies for unpredictable hydrologic regimes triggered by abrupt natural disturbances.
Hongkai Gao, Fabrizio Fenicia, and Hubert H. G. Savenije
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 2607–2620, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-2607-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-2607-2023, 2023
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It is a deeply rooted perception that soil is key in hydrology. In this paper, we argue that it is the ecosystem, not the soil, that is in control of hydrology. Firstly, in nature, the dominant flow mechanism is preferential, which is not particularly related to soil properties. Secondly, the ecosystem, not the soil, determines the land–surface water balance and hydrological processes. Moving from a soil- to ecosystem-centred perspective allows more realistic and simpler hydrological models.
Daniel T. Myers, Darren L. Ficklin, and Scott M. Robeson
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 1755–1770, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-1755-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-1755-2023, 2023
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We projected climate change impacts to rain-on-snow (ROS) melt events in the Great Lakes Basin. Decreases in snowpack limit future ROS melt. Areas with mean winter/spring air temperatures near freezing are most sensitive to ROS changes. The projected proportion of total monthly snowmelt from ROS decreases. The timing for ROS melt is projected to be 2 weeks earlier by the mid-21st century and affects spring streamflow. This could affect freshwater resources management.
Sarah A. Bourke, Margaret Shanafield, Paul Hedley, Sarah Chapman, and Shawan Dogramaci
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 809–836, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-809-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-809-2023, 2023
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Here we present a hydrological framework for understanding the mechanisms supporting the persistence of water in pools along non-perennial rivers. Pools may collect water after rainfall events, be supported by water stored within the river channel sediments, or receive inflows from regional groundwater. These hydraulic mechanisms can be identified using a range of diagnostic tools (critiqued herein). We then apply this framework in north-west Australia to demonstrate its value.
Louisa D. Oldham, Jim Freer, Gemma Coxon, Nicholas Howden, John P. Bloomfield, and Christopher Jackson
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 761–781, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-761-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-761-2023, 2023
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Water can move between river catchments via the subsurface, termed intercatchment groundwater flow (IGF). We show how a perceptual model of IGF can be developed with relatively simple geological interpretation and data requirements. We find that IGF dynamics vary in space, correlated to the dominant underlying geology. We recommend that IGF
loss functionsmay be used in conceptual rainfall–runoff models but should be supported by perceptualisation of IGF processes and connectivities.
Carolin Winter, Tam V. Nguyen, Andreas Musolff, Stefanie R. Lutz, Michael Rode, Rohini Kumar, and Jan H. Fleckenstein
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 303–318, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-303-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-303-2023, 2023
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The increasing frequency of severe and prolonged droughts threatens our freshwater resources. While we understand drought impacts on water quantity, its effects on water quality remain largely unknown. Here, we studied the impact of the unprecedented 2018–2019 drought in Central Europe on nitrate export in a heterogeneous mesoscale catchment in Germany. We show that severe drought can reduce a catchment's capacity to retain nitrogen, intensifying the internal pollution and export of nitrate.
Keirnan Fowler, Murray Peel, Margarita Saft, Tim J. Peterson, Andrew Western, Lawrence Band, Cuan Petheram, Sandra Dharmadi, Kim Seong Tan, Lu Zhang, Patrick Lane, Anthony Kiem, Lucy Marshall, Anne Griebel, Belinda E. Medlyn, Dongryeol Ryu, Giancarlo Bonotto, Conrad Wasko, Anna Ukkola, Clare Stephens, Andrew Frost, Hansini Gardiya Weligamage, Patricia Saco, Hongxing Zheng, Francis Chiew, Edoardo Daly, Glen Walker, R. Willem Vervoort, Justin Hughes, Luca Trotter, Brad Neal, Ian Cartwright, and Rory Nathan
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 6073–6120, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-6073-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-6073-2022, 2022
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Recently, we have seen multi-year droughts tending to cause shifts in the relationship between rainfall and streamflow. In shifted catchments that have not recovered, an average rainfall year produces less streamflow today than it did pre-drought. We take a multi-disciplinary approach to understand why these shifts occur, focusing on Australia's over-10-year Millennium Drought. We evaluate multiple hypotheses against evidence, with particular focus on the key role of groundwater processes.
Günter Blöschl
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 5015–5033, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-5015-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-5015-2022, 2022
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There is serious concern that river floods are increasing. Starting from explanations discussed in public, the article addresses three hypotheses: land-use change, hydraulic structures, and climate change increase floods. This review finds that all three changes have the potential to not only increase floods, but also to reduce them. It is crucial to consider all three factors of change in flood risk management and communicate them to the general public in a nuanced way.
Amar Halifa-Marín, Miguel A. Torres-Vázquez, Enrique Pravia-Sarabia, Marc Lemus-Canovas, Pedro Jiménez-Guerrero, and Juan Pedro Montávez
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 4251–4263, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-4251-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-4251-2022, 2022
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Near-natural Iberian water resources have suddenly decreased since the 1980s. These declines have been promoted by the weakening (enhancement) of wintertime precipitation (the NAOi) in the most humid areas, whereas afforestation and drought intensification have played a crucial role in semi-arid areas. Future water management would benefit from greater knowledge of North Atlantic climate variability and reforestation/afforestation processes in semi-arid catchments.
José L. J. Ledesma, Anna Lupon, Eugènia Martí, and Susana Bernal
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 4209–4232, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-4209-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-4209-2022, 2022
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We studied a small stream located in a Mediterranean forest. Our goal was to understand how stream flow and the presence of riparian forests, which grow in flat banks near the stream, influence the availability of food for aquatic microorganisms. High flows were associated with higher amounts of food because rainfall episodes transfer it from the surrounding sources, particularly riparian forests, to the stream. Understanding how ecosystems work is essential to better manage natural resources.
Nils Hinrich Kaplan, Theresa Blume, and Markus Weiler
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 2671–2696, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-2671-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-2671-2022, 2022
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This study is analyses how characteristics of precipitation events and soil moisture and temperature dynamics during these events can be used to model the associated streamflow responses in intermittent streams. The models are used to identify differences between the dominant controls of streamflow intermittency in three distinct geologies of the Attert catchment, Luxembourg. Overall, soil moisture was found to be the most important control of intermittent streamflow in all geologies.
Saritha Padiyedath Gopalan, Adisorn Champathong, Thada Sukhapunnaphan, Shinichiro Nakamura, and Naota Hanasaki
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 2541–2560, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-2541-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-2541-2022, 2022
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The modelling of diversion canals using hydrological models is important because they play crucial roles in water management. Therefore, we developed a simplified canal diversion scheme and implemented it into the H08 global hydrological model. The developed diversion scheme was validated in the Chao Phraya River basin, Thailand. Region-specific validation results revealed that the H08 model with the diversion scheme could effectively simulate the observed flood diversion pattern in the basin.
Günter Blöschl
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 2469–2480, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-2469-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-2469-2022, 2022
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Sound understanding of how floods come about allows for the development of more reliable flood management tools that assist in mitigating their negative impacts. This article reviews river flood generation processes and flow paths across space scales, starting from water movement in the soil pores and moving up to hillslopes, catchments, regions and entire continents. To assist model development, there is a need to learn from observed patterns of flood generation processes at all spatial scales.
Jeenu Mathai and Pradeep P. Mujumdar
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 2019–2033, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-2019-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-2019-2022, 2022
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With availability of large samples of data in catchments, it is necessary to develop indices that describe the streamflow processes. This paper describes new indices applicable for the rising and falling limbs of streamflow hydrographs. The indices provide insights into the drivers of the hydrographs. The novelty of the work is on differentiating hydrographs by their time irreversibility property and offering an alternative way to recognize primary drivers of streamflow hydrographs.
Nathan G. F. Reaver, David A. Kaplan, Harald Klammler, and James W. Jawitz
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 1507–1525, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-1507-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-1507-2022, 2022
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The Budyko curve emerges globally from the behavior of multiple catchments. Single-parameter Budyko equations extrapolate the curve concept to individual catchments, interpreting curves and parameters as representing climatic and biophysical impacts on water availability, respectively. We tested these two key components theoretically and empirically, finding that catchments are not required to follow Budyko curves and usually do not, implying the parametric framework lacks predictive ability.
Clemens Messerschmid and Amjad Aliewi
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 1043–1061, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-1043-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-1043-2022, 2022
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Temporal distribution of groundwater recharge has been widely studied; yet, much less attention has been paid to its spatial distribution. Based on a previous study of field-measured and modelled formation-specific recharge in the Mediterranean, this paper differentiates annual recharge coefficients in a novel approach and basin classification framework for physical features such as lithology, soil and LU/LC characteristics, applicable also in other previously ungauged basins around the world.
Thea Wingfield, Neil Macdonald, Kimberley Peters, and Jack Spees
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 6239–6259, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-6239-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-6239-2021, 2021
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Human activities are causing greater and more frequent floods. Natural flood management (NFM) uses processes of the water cycle to slow the flow of rainwater, bringing together land and water management. Despite NFM's environmental and social benefits, it is yet to be widely adopted. Two environmental practitioner groups collaborated to produce a picture of the barriers to delivery, showing that there is a perceived lack of support from government and the public for NFM.
Katharina Blaurock, Burkhard Beudert, Benjamin S. Gilfedder, Jan H. Fleckenstein, Stefan Peiffer, and Luisa Hopp
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 5133–5151, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-5133-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-5133-2021, 2021
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Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) is an important part of the global carbon cycle with regards to carbon storage, greenhouse gas emissions and drinking water treatment. In this study, we compared DOC export of a small, forested catchment during precipitation events after dry and wet preconditions. We found that the DOC export from areas that are usually important for DOC export was inhibited after long drought periods.
Michael Stoelzle and Lina Stein
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 4549–4565, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4549-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4549-2021, 2021
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We found with a scientific paper survey (~ 1000 papers) that 45 % of the papers used rainbow color maps or red–green visualizations. Those rainbow visualizations, although attracting the media's attention, will not be accessible for up to 10 % of people due to color vision deficiency. The rainbow color map distorts and misleads scientific communication. The study gives guidance on how to avoid, improve and trust color and how the flaws of the rainbow color map should be communicated in science.
Tingting Ning, Zhi Li, Qi Feng, Zongxing Li, and Yanyan Qin
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 3455–3469, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3455-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3455-2021, 2021
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Previous studies decomposed ET variance in precipitation, potential ET, and total water storage changes based on Budyko equations. However, the effects of snowmelt and vegetation changes have not been incorporated in snow-dependent basins. We thus extended this method in arid alpine basins of northwest China and found that ET variance is primarily controlled by rainfall, followed by coupled rainfall and vegetation. The out-of-phase seasonality between rainfall and snowmelt weaken ET variance.
Lovrenc Pavlin, Borbála Széles, Peter Strauss, Alfred Paul Blaschke, and Günter Blöschl
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2327–2352, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2327-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2327-2021, 2021
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We compared the dynamics of streamflow, groundwater and soil moisture to investigate how different parts of an agricultural catchment in Lower Austria are connected. Groundwater is best connected around the stream and worse uphill, where groundwater is deeper. Soil moisture connectivity increases with increasing catchment wetness but is not influenced by spatial position in the catchment. Groundwater is more connected to the stream on the seasonal scale compared to the event scale.
William Rust, Mark Cuthbert, John Bloomfield, Ron Corstanje, Nicholas Howden, and Ian Holman
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2223–2237, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2223-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2223-2021, 2021
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In this paper, we find evidence for the cyclical behaviour (on a 7-year basis) in UK streamflow records that match the main cycle of the North Atlantic Oscillation. Furthermore, we find that the strength of these 7-year cycles in streamflow is dependent on proportional contributions from groundwater and the response times of the underlying groundwater systems. This may allow for improvements to water management practices through better understanding of long-term streamflow behaviour.
Elnaz Azmi, Uwe Ehret, Steven V. Weijs, Benjamin L. Ruddell, and Rui A. P. Perdigão
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1103–1115, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1103-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1103-2021, 2021
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Computer models should be as simple as possible but not simpler. Simplicity refers to the length of the model and the effort it takes the model to generate its output. Here we present a practical technique for measuring the latter by the number of memory visits during model execution by
Strace, a troubleshooting and monitoring program. The advantage of this approach is that it can be applied to any computer-based model, which facilitates model intercomparison.
Sheena A. Spencer, Axel E. Anderson, Uldis Silins, and Adrian L. Collins
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 237–255, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-237-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-237-2021, 2021
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We used unique chemical signatures of precipitation, hillslope soil water, and groundwater sources of streamflow to explore seasonal variation in runoff generation in a snow-dominated mountain watershed underlain by glacial till and permeable bedrock. Reacted hillslope water reached the stream first at the onset of snowmelt, followed by a dilution effect by snowmelt from May to June. Groundwater and riparian water were important sources later in the summer. Till created complex subsurface flow.
Tian Lan, Kairong Lin, Chong-Yu Xu, Zhiyong Liu, and Huayang Cai
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 5859–5874, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5859-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5859-2020, 2020
Dan Rosbjerg
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 4575–4585, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4575-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4575-2020, 2020
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August Colding contributed the first law of thermodynamics, evaporation from water and grass, steady free surfaces in conduits, the cross-sectional velocity distribution in conduits, a complete theory for the Gulf Stream, air speed in cyclones, the piezometric surface in confined aquifers, the unconfined elliptic water table in soil between drain pipes, and the wind-induced set-up in the sea during storms.
Zhengke Pan, Pan Liu, Chong-Yu Xu, Lei Cheng, Jing Tian, Shujie Cheng, and Kang Xie
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 4369–4387, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4369-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4369-2020, 2020
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This study aims to identify the response of catchment water storage capacity (CWSC) to meteorological drought by examining the changes of hydrological-model parameters after drought events. This study improves our understanding of possible changes in the CWSC induced by a prolonged meteorological drought, which will help improve our ability to simulate the hydrological system under climate change.
Zong-Jie Li, Zong-Xing Li, Ling-Ling Song, Juan Gui, Jian Xue, Bai Juan Zhang, and Wen De Gao
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 4169–4187, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4169-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4169-2020, 2020
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This study mainly explores the hydraulic relations, recharge–drainage relations and their transformation paths, and the processes of each water body. It determines the composition of runoff, quantifies the contribution of each runoff component to different types of tributaries, and analyzes the hydrological effects of the temporal and spatial variation in runoff components. More importantly, we discuss the hydrological significance of permafrost and hydrological processes.
Michal Jenicek and Ondrej Ledvinka
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 3475–3491, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-3475-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-3475-2020, 2020
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Changes in snow affect the runoff seasonality, including summer low flows. Here we analyse this effect in 59 mountain catchments in Czechia. We show that snow is more effective in generating runoff compared to rain. Snow-poor years generated lower groundwater recharge than snow-rich years, which resulted in higher deficit volumes in summer. The lower recharge and runoff in the case of a snowfall-to-rain transition due to air temperature increase might be critical for water supply in the future.
Julia L. A. Knapp, Jana von Freyberg, Bjørn Studer, Leonie Kiewiet, and James W. Kirchner
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 2561–2576, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-2561-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-2561-2020, 2020
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Changes of stream water chemistry in response to discharge changes provide important insights into the storage and release of water from the catchment. Here we investigate the variability in concentration–discharge relationships among different solutes and hydrologic events and relate it to catchment conditions and dominant water sources.
Elizabeth R. Jachens, David E. Rupp, Clément Roques, and John S. Selker
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 1159–1170, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-1159-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-1159-2020, 2020
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Recession analysis uses the receding streamflow following precipitation events to estimate watershed-average properties. Two methods for recession analysis use recession events individually or all events collectively. Using synthetic case studies, this paper shows that analyzing recessions collectively produces flawed interpretations. Moving forward, recession analysis using individual recessions should be used to describe the average and variability of watershed behavior.
Lu Lin, Man Gao, Jintao Liu, Jiarong Wang, Shuhong Wang, Xi Chen, and Hu Liu
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 1145–1157, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-1145-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-1145-2020, 2020
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In this paper, recession flow analysis – assuming nonlinearized outflow from aquifers into streams – was used to quantify active groundwater storage in a headwater catchment with high glacierization and large-scale frozen ground on the Tibetan Plateau. Hence, this work provides a perspective to clarify the impact of glacial retreat and frozen ground degradation due to climate change on hydrological processes.
Francesc Gallart, Jana von Freyberg, María Valiente, James W. Kirchner, Pilar Llorens, and Jérôme Latron
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 1101–1107, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-1101-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-1101-2020, 2020
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How catchments store and release rain or melting water is still not well known. Now, it is broadly accepted that most of the water in streams is older than several months, and a relevant part may be many years old. But the age of water depends on the stream regime, being usually younger during high flows. This paper tries to provide tools for better analysing how the age of waters varies with flow in a catchment and for comparing the behaviour of catchments diverging in climate, size and regime.
Sebastian J. Gnann, Nicholas J. K. Howden, and Ross A. Woods
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 561–580, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-561-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-561-2020, 2020
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In many places, seasonal variability in precipitation and evapotranspiration (climate) leads to seasonal variability in river flow (streamflow). In this work, we explore how climate seasonality is transformed into streamflow seasonality and what controls this transformation (e.g. climate aridity and geology). The results might be used in grouping catchments, predicting the seasonal streamflow regime in ungauged catchments, and building hydrological simulation models.
Adam S. Ward, Steven M. Wondzell, Noah M. Schmadel, Skuyler Herzog, Jay P. Zarnetske, Viktor Baranov, Phillip J. Blaen, Nicolai Brekenfeld, Rosalie Chu, Romain Derelle, Jennifer Drummond, Jan H. Fleckenstein, Vanessa Garayburu-Caruso, Emily Graham, David Hannah, Ciaran J. Harman, Jase Hixson, Julia L. A. Knapp, Stefan Krause, Marie J. Kurz, Jörg Lewandowski, Angang Li, Eugènia Martí, Melinda Miller, Alexander M. Milner, Kerry Neil, Luisa Orsini, Aaron I. Packman, Stephen Plont, Lupita Renteria, Kevin Roche, Todd Royer, Catalina Segura, James Stegen, Jason Toyoda, Jacqueline Hager, and Nathan I. Wisnoski
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 5199–5225, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-5199-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-5199-2019, 2019
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The movement of water and solutes between streams and their shallow, connected subsurface is important to many ecosystem functions. These exchanges are widely expected to vary with stream flow across space and time, but these assumptions are seldom tested across basin scales. We completed more than 60 experiments across a 5th-order river basin to document these changes, finding patterns in space but not time. We conclude space-for-time and time-for-space substitutions are not good assumptions.
Lucy J. Barker, Jamie Hannaford, Simon Parry, Katie A. Smith, Maliko Tanguy, and Christel Prudhomme
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 4583–4602, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-4583-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-4583-2019, 2019
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It is important to understand historic droughts in order to plan and prepare for possible future events. In this study we use the standardised streamflow index for 1891–2015 to systematically identify, characterise and rank hydrological drought events for 108 near-natural UK catchments. Results show when and where the most severe events occurred and describe events of the early 20th century, providing catchment-scale detail important for both science and planning applications of the future.
Ralf Loritz, Axel Kleidon, Conrad Jackisch, Martijn Westhoff, Uwe Ehret, Hoshin Gupta, and Erwin Zehe
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 3807–3821, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-3807-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-3807-2019, 2019
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In this study, we develop a topographic index explaining hydrological similarity within a energy-centered framework, with the observation that the majority of potential energy is dissipated when rainfall becomes runoff.
Sophie Ehrhardt, Rohini Kumar, Jan H. Fleckenstein, Sabine Attinger, and Andreas Musolff
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 3503–3524, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-3503-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-3503-2019, 2019
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This study shows quantitative and temporal offsets between nitrogen input and riverine output, using time series of three nested catchments in central Germany. The riverine concentrations show lagged reactions to the input, but at the same time exhibit strong inter-annual changes in the relationship between riverine discharge and concentration. The study found a strong retention of nitrogen that is dominantly assigned to a hydrological N legacy, which will affect future stream concentrations.
Davide Zoccatelli, Francesco Marra, Moshe Armon, Yair Rinat, James A. Smith, and Efrat Morin
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 2665–2678, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-2665-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-2665-2019, 2019
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This study presents a comparison of flood properties over multiple Mediterranean and desert catchments. While in Mediterranean areas floods are related to rainfall amount, in deserts we observed a strong connection with the characteristics of the more intense part of storms. Because of the different mechanisms involved, despite having significantly shorter and more localized storms, deserts are able to produce floods with a magnitude comparable to Mediterranean areas.
Martina Botter, Paolo Burlando, and Simone Fatichi
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 1885–1904, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-1885-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-1885-2019, 2019
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The study focuses on the solute export from rivers with the purpose of discerning the impacts of anthropic activities and catchment characteristics on water quality. The results revealed a more detectable impact of the anthropic activities than of the catchment characteristics. The solute export follows different dynamics depending on catchment characteristics and mainly on solute-specific properties. The export modality is consistent across different catchments only for a minority of solutes.
Anne F. Van Loon, Sally Rangecroft, Gemma Coxon, José Agustín Breña Naranjo, Floris Van Ogtrop, and Henny A. J. Van Lanen
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 1725–1739, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-1725-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-1725-2019, 2019
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We explore the use of the classic
paired-catchmentapproach to quantify human influence on hydrological droughts. In this approach two similar catchments are compared and differences are attributed to the human activity present in one. In two case studies in UK and Australia, we found that groundwater abstraction aggravated streamflow drought by > 200 % and water transfer alleviated droughts with 25–80 %. Understanding the human influence on droughts can support water management decisions.
Karl Auerswald, Peter Moyle, Simon Paul Seibert, and Juergen Geist
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 1035–1044, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-1035-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-1035-2019, 2019
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The demand for flood protection often results in the construction of more and bigger levees along rivers. We highlight that such technical solutions often result in undesired socio-economic and ecological consequences such as increased downstream flooding risk, changes of groundwater levels, and a loss of aquatic and terrestrial biodiversity. We propose a transdisciplinary approach of integrated flood management and green infrastructure instead of reliance on technical protection measures.
Elena Diamantini, Stefano Mallucci, and Alberto Bellin
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 573–593, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-573-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-573-2019, 2019
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The description of pharmaceutical fate and transport introduced into a watershed is a challenging topic, especially because of the possible adverse effects on human health. In addition, an accurate estimation of solute sources and routes is still missing. This study uses a new promising modeling approach to predict pharmaceutical concentrations in rivers. Results show an interesting relationship between solute concentrations in waters and touristic fluxes.
Sheng Ye, Qihua Ran, Xudong Fu, Chunhong Hu, Guangqian Wang, Gary Parker, Xiuxiu Chen, and Siwei Zhang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 549–556, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-549-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-549-2019, 2019
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Our study shows that there is declining coupling between sediment concentration and discharge from daily to annual scales for gauges across the Yellow River basin (YRB). Not only the coupling, but also the magnitude of sediment response to discharge variation decreases with long-term mean discharge. This emergent stationarity can be related to sediment retardation by vegetation, suggesting the shift of dominance from water to vegetation as mean annual discharge increases.
Dingbao Wang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 6567–6578, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-6567-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-6567-2018, 2018
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A novel distribution function is proposed for describing the spatial distribution of soil water storage capacity, and then the classical and empirical hydrologic model (the SCS curve number method) is derived as when the initial soil water storage is zero. This distribution function unifies the SCS curve number method and probability-distributed models such as the VIC and Xinanjiang models. The unified model provides a better way for modeling surface runoff.
Magdalena Uber, Jean-Pierre Vandervaere, Isabella Zin, Isabelle Braud, Maik Heistermann, Cédric Legoût, Gilles Molinié, and Guillaume Nord
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 6127–6146, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-6127-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-6127-2018, 2018
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We investigate how rivers in a flash-flood-prone region in southern France respond to rainfall depending on initial soil moisture. Therefore, high-resolution data of rainfall, river discharge and soil moisture were used. We find that during dry initial conditions, the rivers hardly respond even for heavy rain events, but for wet initial conditions, the response remains unpredictable: for some rain events almost all rainfall is transformed to discharge, whereas this is not the case for others.
Jana von Freyberg, Bjørn Studer, Michael Rinderer, and James W. Kirchner
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 5847–5865, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5847-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5847-2018, 2018
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We show event- and pre-event-water volumes as fractions of precipitation, rather than discharge, to provide an alternative and more insightful approach to study catchment hydrological processes. For this, we analyze 24 storm events using high-frequency measurements of stable water isotopes in stream water and precipitation at a pre-Alpine catchment. Antecedent wetness and storm characteristics are dominant controls on event-water discharge and pre-event-water mobilization from storage.
Tjitske J. Geertsema, Adriaan J. Teuling, Remko Uijlenhoet, Paul J. J. F. Torfs, and Antonius J. F. Hoitink
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 5599–5613, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5599-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5599-2018, 2018
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This study investigate the processes and effects of simultaneous flood peaks at a lowland confluence. The flood peaks are analyzed with the relatively new dynamic time warping method, which offers a robust means of tracing flood waves in discharge time series at confluences. The time lag between discharge peaks in the main river and its lowland tributaries is small compared to the wave duration; therefore the exact timing of discharge peaks may be little relevant to flood risk.
Vijay P. Santikari and Lawrence C. Murdoch
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 4725–4743, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-4725-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-4725-2018, 2018
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The curve number (CN) method is the most widely used approach for estimating runoff from rainfall. Despite its popularity, there is a conceptual flaw where CN varies with rainfall although it is assumed to be constant. In this paper, we describe theoretical analyses that show how this behavior is due to watershed heterogeneity, and we then provide simple modifications to the method to improve its runoff predictions. The findings will benefit hydrologists and watershed models that use CN method.
Katheryn Burd, Suzanne E. Tank, Nicole Dion, William L. Quinton, Christopher Spence, Andrew J. Tanentzap, and David Olefeldt
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 4455–4472, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-4455-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-4455-2018, 2018
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In this study we investigated whether climate change and wildfires are likely to alter water quality of streams in western boreal Canada, a region that contains large permafrost-affected peatlands. We monitored stream discharge and water quality from early snowmelt to fall in two streams, one of which drained a recently burned landscape. Wildfire increased the stream delivery of phosphorous and possibly increased the release of old natural organic matter previously stored in permafrost soils.
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Short summary
The core component of many hydrological systems, the moisture storage capacity available to vegetation, is typically treated as a calibration parameter in hydrological models and often considered to remain constant in time. In this paper we test the potential of a recently introduced method to robustly estimate catchment-scale root-zone storage capacities exclusively based on climate data to reproduce the temporal evolution of root-zone storage under change (deforestation).
The core component of many hydrological systems, the moisture storage capacity available to...
