Articles | Volume 21, issue 4
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-2233-2017
© Author(s) 2017. 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-21-2233-2017
© Author(s) 2017. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Research article
| 
26 Apr 2017
Research article |
| 26 Apr 2017
Historical and future trends in wetting and drying in 291 catchments across China
Zhongwang Chen
Department of Hydraulic Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
State Key Laboratory of Hydro-Science and Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
Huimin Lei
Department of Hydraulic Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
State Key Laboratory of Hydro-Science and Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
Department of Hydraulic Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
State Key Laboratory of Hydro-Science and Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
Dawen Yang
Department of Hydraulic Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
State Key Laboratory of Hydro-Science and Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
Yongqiang Cao
School of Urban Planning and Environmental Science, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, 116029, China
Related authors
No articles found.
Yuan Liu, Yong Wang, Yong Zhao, Shouzhi Chen, Longhao Wang, Wenjing Yang, Xing Li, Xinxi Li, Huimin Lei, Huanyu Chang, Jiaqi Zhai, Yongnan Zhu, Qingming Wang, and Ting Ye
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3764, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-3764, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
In the real hydrological Earth system, the relationships between variables are not constant. This study employed advanced statistical models incorporating the physical mechanisms to examine how evaporation stress responds over time to key factors. We found that stronger soil drought effects can be expected undergoing rapid greening. It may enhance the comprehension of evaporation stress and help optimize parameters in Earth system models and promote greening initiatives.
Wangyipu Li, Zhaoyuan Yao, Yifan Qu, Hanbo Yang, Yang Song, Lisheng Song, Lifeng Wu, and Yaokui Cui
Earth Syst. Sci. Data Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2024-460, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2024-460, 2024
Revised manuscript accepted for ESSD
Short summary
Short summary
Due to shortcomings such as extensive data gaps and limited observation durations in current ground-based latent heat flux (LE) datasets, we developed a novel gap-filling and prolongation framework for ground-based LE observations, establishing a benchmark dataset for global evapotranspiration (ET) estimation from 2000 to 2022 across 64 sites at various time scales. This comprehensive dataset can strongly support ET modelling, water-carbon cycle monitoring, and long-term climate change analysis.
Yufen He, Changming Li, and Hanbo Yang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2024-349, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2024-349, 2024
Preprint under review for HESS
Short summary
Short summary
Our research presents an improved method to enhance the understanding and prediction of water flows in rivers and streams, focusing on key runoff components: surface flow, baseflow, and total runoff. Using a streamlined model, the MPS model, we analyzed over 600 catchments in China and the U.S., demonstrating its accuracy in capturing the spatial and temporal variability of these components. This model offers a practical tool for water resource management.
Ziwei Liu, Hanbo Yang, Changming Li, and Taihua Wang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 4349–4360, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-4349-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-4349-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
The determination of the coefficient α in the Priestley–Taylor equation is empirical. Based on an atmospheric boundary layer model, we derived a physically clear and parameter-free expression to investigate the behavior of α. We showed that the temperature dominates changes in α and emphasized that the variation of α with temperature should be considered for long-term hydrological predictions. Our works advance and promote the most classical models in the field.
Changming Li, Ziwei Liu, Wencong Yang, Zhuoyi Tu, Juntai Han, Sien Li, and Hanbo Yang
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 16, 1811–1846, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-16-1811-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-16-1811-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Using a collocation-based approach, we developed a reliable global land evapotranspiration product (CAMELE) by merging multi-source datasets. The CAMELE product outperformed individual input datasets and showed satisfactory performance compared to reference data. It also demonstrated superiority for different plant functional types. Our study provides a promising solution for data fusion. The CAMELE dataset allows for detailed research and a better understanding of land–atmosphere interactions.
Junxia Dou, Sue Grimmond, Shiguang Miao, Bei Huang, Huimin Lei, and Mingshui Liao
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 13143–13166, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-13143-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-13143-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Multi-timescale variations in surface energy fluxes in a suburb of Beijing are analyzed using 16-month observations. Compared to previous suburban areas, this study site has larger seasonal variability in energy partitioning, and summer and winter Bowen ratios are at the lower and higher end of those at other suburban sites, respectively. Our analysis indicates that precipitation, irrigation, crop/vegetation growth activity, and land use/cover all play critical roles in energy partitioning.
Wencong Yang, Hanbo Yang, Changming Li, Taihua Wang, Ziwei Liu, Qingfang Hu, and Dawen Yang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 26, 6427–6441, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-6427-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-6427-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
We produced a daily 0.1° dataset of precipitation, soil moisture, and snow water equivalent in 1981–2017 across China via reconstructions. The dataset used global background data and local on-site data as forcing input and satellite-based data as reconstruction benchmarks. This long-term high-resolution national hydrological dataset is valuable for national investigations of hydrological processes.
Changming Li, Hanbo Yang, Wencong Yang, Ziwei Liu, Yao Jia, Sien Li, and Dawen Yang
Earth Syst. Sci. Data Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2021-456, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2021-456, 2022
Revised manuscript not accepted
Short summary
Short summary
A long-term (1980–2020) global ET product is generated based on a collocation-based merging method. The produced Collocation-Analyzed Multi-source Ensembled Land Evapotranspiration Data (CAMELE) performed well over different vegetation coverage against in-situ data. For global comparison, the spatial distribution of multi-year average and annual variation were in consistent with inputs.The CAMELE products is freely available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6283239 (Li et al., 2021).
Yuting Yang, Tim R. McVicar, Dawen Yang, Yongqiang Zhang, Shilong Piao, Shushi Peng, and Hylke E. Beck
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 3411–3427, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3411-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3411-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
This study developed an analytical ecohydrological model that considers three aspects of vegetation response to eCO2 (i.e., stomatal response, LAI response, and rooting depth response) to detect the impact of eCO2 on continental runoff over the past 3 decades globally. Our findings suggest a minor role of eCO2 on the global runoff changes, yet highlight the negative runoff–eCO2 response in semiarid and arid regions which may further threaten the limited water resource there.
Wencong Yang, Hanbo Yang, Dawen Yang, and Aizhong Hou
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2705–2720, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2705-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2705-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
This study quantified the causal effects of land cover changes and dams on the changes in annual maximum discharges (Q) in 757 catchments of China using panel regressions. We found that a 1 % point increase in urban areas causes a 3.9 % increase in Q, and a 1 unit increase in reservoir index causes a 21.4 % decrease in Q for catchments with no dam before. This study takes the first step to explain the human-caused flood changes on a national scale in China.
Yuting Yang, Shulei Zhang, Michael L. Roderick, Tim R. McVicar, Dawen Yang, Wenbin Liu, and Xiaoyan Li
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 2921–2930, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-2921-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-2921-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Many previous studies using offline drought indices report that future warming will increase worldwide drought. However, this contradicts observations/projections of vegetation greening and increased runoff. We resolved this paradox by re-calculating the same drought indices using direct climate model outputs and find no increase in future drought as the climate warms. We also find that accounting for the impact of CO2 on plant transpiration avoids the previous overestimation of drought.
Quan Zhang, Huimin Lei, Dawen Yang, Lihua Xiong, Pan Liu, and Beijing Fang
Biogeosciences, 17, 2245–2262, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-2245-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-17-2245-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Research into climate change has been popular over the past few decades. Greenhouse gas emissions are found to be responsible for climate change. Among all the ecosystems, cropland is the main food source for mankind, therefore its carbon cycle and contribution to the global carbon balance interest us. Our evaluation of the typical wheat–maize rotation cropland over the North China Plain shows it is a net CO2 emission to the atmosphere and that emissions will continue to rise in the future.
Xu Shan, Xingdong Li, and Hanbo Yang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2019-283, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2019-283, 2019
Manuscript not accepted for further review
Short summary
Short summary
The Budyko hypothesis has been generally used to quantify how much precipitation transforms into evaporation in one catchment. To approach this hypothesis, previous studies proposed analytical formulas derived based on mathematic reasoning. Differently, this study drew a new derivation for this hypothesis based on fundamental physical principles. It clearly reveals the underlying assumptions in the previous mathematic reasoning and promotes hydrologic understanding on this hypothesis.
Xu Shan, Xindong Li, and Hanbo Yang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2018-598, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2018-598, 2018
Manuscript not accepted for further review
Short summary
Short summary
The Budyko hypothesis has been generally used to quantify how much precipitation transforms into evaporation in one catchment. To approach this hypothesis, previous studies proposed analytical formulas derived based on mathematic reasoning. Differently, this study drew a new derivation for this hypothesis based on fundamental physical principles. It clearly reveals the underlying assumptions in the previous mathematic reasoning and promotes hydrologic understanding on this hypothesis.
Bing Gao, Dawen Yang, Yue Qin, Yuhan Wang, Hongyi Li, Yanlin Zhang, and Tingjun Zhang
The Cryosphere, 12, 657–673, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-657-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-12-657-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
This study developed a distributed hydrological model coupled with cryospherical processes and applied it in order to simulate the long-term change of frozen ground and its effect on hydrology in the upper Heihe basin. Results showed that the permafrost area shrank by 8.8%, and the frozen depth of seasonally frozen ground decreased. Runoff in cold seasons and annual liquid soil moisture increased due to frozen soils change. Groundwater recharge was enhanced due to the degradation of permafrost.
Tingting Gong, Huimin Lei, Dawen Yang, Yang Jiao, and Hanbo Yang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 863–877, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-863-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-863-2017, 2017
Short summary
Short summary
Seasonal and inter-annual features of ET were analyzed over four periods. A normalization method was adopted to exclude the effects of potential evapotranspiration and soil water stress on ET. During the land degradation process, when natural vegetation (including leaves and branches), sand dunes, dry sand layers, and BSCs were all bulldozed, ET was observed to increase at a mild rate. In a vegetation rehabilitation process with sufficient groundwater, ET also increased at a faster rate.
Bing Gao, Dawen Yang, Yue Qin, Yuhan Wang, Hongyi Li, Yanlin Zhang, and Tingjun Zhang
The Cryosphere Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-2016-289, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-2016-289, 2017
Revised manuscript not accepted
Short summary
Short summary
This study developed a distributed hydrological model coupled with cryospherical processes and used it to simulate the long-term change of frozen ground and hydrological impacts in the upper Heihe basin. Results showed that the permafrost area shrank by 9.5 %, and frozen depth of seasonally frozen ground decreased at a rate of 4.1 cm/10 yr. Runoff increased in cold season due to the increase in liquid soil moisture. Groundwater recharge was enhanced due to the degradation of permafrost.
Quan Zhang, Hui-Min Lei, Da-Wen Yang, Lihua Xiong, and Beijing Fang
Biogeosciences Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2016-484, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-2016-484, 2016
Revised manuscript not accepted
Short summary
Short summary
With the increasing concern about global warming, investigating carbon cycle becomes imperative to predict future climate trend. As cropland has great potentials in mitigating carbon emissions, therefore we designed a comprehensive carbon budget assessment in a typical cropland in North China Plain, the results indicate the high groundwater table contributes to carbon sink of this cropland. The conclusion confirms that field management has profound effect on cropland carbon cycle.
Zhongwei Huang, Hanbo Yang, and Dawen Yang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 2573–2587, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-2573-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-2573-2016, 2016
Short summary
Short summary
The hydrologic processes have been influenced by different climatic factors. However, the dominant climatic factor driving annual runoff change is still unknown in many catchments in China. By using the climate elasticity method proposed by Yang and Yang (2011), the elasticity of runoff to climatic factors was estimated, and the dominant climatic factors driving annual runoff change were detected at catchment scale over China.
D. Zhang, Z. Cong, G. Ni, D. Yang, and S. Hu
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 1977–1992, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-1977-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-1977-2015, 2015
Short summary
Short summary
1. Catchments with higher snow ratio tend to have larger runoff index.
2. A modified Budyko method is proposed to illustrate the snow effect on runoff.
3. Snow ratio change has a significant contribution to runoff change, according to historical observations and projected future climate scenarios, especially in northwestern mountainous and northern high-latitude areas of China.
T. T. Gong, H. M. Lei, D. W. Yang, Y. Jiao, and H. B. Yang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-11-13571-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-11-13571-2014, 2014
Revised manuscript not accepted
D. N. Huntzinger, C. Schwalm, A. M. Michalak, K. Schaefer, A. W. King, Y. Wei, A. Jacobson, S. Liu, R. B. Cook, W. M. Post, G. Berthier, D. Hayes, M. Huang, A. Ito, H. Lei, C. Lu, J. Mao, C. H. Peng, S. Peng, B. Poulter, D. Riccuito, X. Shi, H. Tian, W. Wang, N. Zeng, F. Zhao, and Q. Zhu
Geosci. Model Dev., 6, 2121–2133, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-6-2121-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-6-2121-2013, 2013
Related subject area
Subject: Catchment hydrology | Techniques and Approaches: Theory development
HESS Opinions: Floods and droughts – are land use, soil management, and landscape hydrology more significant drivers than increasing CO2?
Causal relationships of vegetation productivity with root zone water availability and atmospheric dryness at the catchment scale
Annual memory in the terrestrial water cycle
Can system dynamics explain long-term hydrological behaviors? The role of endogenous linking structure
Catchment hydrological response and transport are affected differently by precipitation intensity and antecedent wetness
Characterizing nonlinear, nonstationary, and heterogeneous hydrologic behavior using ensemble rainfall–runoff analysis (ERRA): proof of concept
The role of catchment characteristics, discharge, and active layer thaw on seasonal stream chemistry across ten permafrost catchments
Ratio limits of water storage and outflow in a rainfall–runoff process
Delayed Stormflow Generation in a Semi-humid Forested Watershed Controlled by Soil Water Storage and Groundwater
Technical Note: The divide and measure nonconformity – how metrics can mislead when we evaluate on different data partitions
Bimodal hydrographs in a semi-humid forested watershed: characteristics and occurrence conditions
Flood drivers and trends: a case study of the Geul River catchment (the Netherlands) over the past half century
Power law between the apparent drainage density and the pruning area
Stream water sourcing from high-elevation snowpack inferred from stable isotopes of water: a novel application of d-excess values
Elasticity curves describe streamflow sensitivity to precipitation across the entire flow distribution
Seasonal and interannual dissolved organic carbon transport process dynamics in a subarctic headwater catchment revealed by high-resolution measurements
Links between seasonal suprapermafrost groundwater, the hydrothermal change of the active layer, and river runoff in alpine permafrost watersheds
Technical note: Isotopic fractionation of evaporating waters: effect of sub-daily atmospheric variations and eventual depletion of heavy isotopes
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
Karl Auerswald, Juergen Geist, John N. Quinton, and Peter Fiener
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 29, 2185–2200, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-2185-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-2185-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
Floods, droughts, and heatwaves are increasing globally. This is often attributed to CO2-driven climate change. However, at the global scale, CO2-driven climate change neither reduces precipitation nor adequately explains droughts. Land-use change, particularly soil sealing, compaction, and drainage, is likely to be more significant for water losses by runoff leading to flooding and water scarcity and is therefore an important part of the solution to mitigate floods, droughts, and heatwaves.
Guta Wakbulcho Abeshu, Hong-Yi Li, Mingjie Shi, and L. Ruby Leung
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 29, 1847–1864, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-1847-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-1847-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
This study examined how water availability, climate dryness, and plant productivity interact at the catchment scale. Using various indices and statistical methods, we found a 0–2-month lag in these interactions. Strong correlations during peak-productivity months were observed, with a notable hysteresis effect in vegetation response to changes in water availability and climate dryness. The findings help better understand catchment responses to climate variability.
Wouter R. Berghuijs, Ross A. Woods, Bailey J. Anderson, Anna Luisa Hemshorn de Sánchez, and Markus Hrachowitz
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 29, 1319–1333, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-1319-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-1319-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
Water balances of catchments will often strongly depend on their state in the recent past, but such memory effects may persist at annual timescales. We use global data sets to show that annual memory is typically absent in precipitation but strong in terrestrial water stores and also present in evaporation and streamflow (including low flows and floods). Our experiments show that hysteretic models provide behaviour that is consistent with these observed memory behaviours.
Xinyao Zhou, Zhuping Sheng, Kiril Manevski, Rongtian Zhao, Qingzhou Zhang, Yanmin Yang, Shumin Han, Jinghong Liu, and Yonghui Yang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 29, 159–177, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-159-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-159-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
Conventional hydrological models erratically replicate slow hydrological dynamics, necessitating model modification and paradigm shift in hydrological science. The system dynamics approach successfully explains patterns of slow hydrological behaviors at inter-annual and decadal scales by dividing a hydrological system into different hierarchies and building endogenous linking structure among stocks. In spite of the simplicity, it holds potential to integrate hydrological behaviors across scales.
Julia L. A. Knapp, Wouter R. Berghuijs, Marius G. Floriancic, and James W. Kirchner
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2024-371, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2024-371, 2024
Revised manuscript accepted for HESS
Short summary
Short summary
This study explores how streams react to rain and how water travels through the landscape to reach them, two processes rarely studied together. Using detailed data from two temperate areas, it shows that streams respond to rain much faster than rainwater travels to them. Wetter conditions lead to stronger runoff by releasing older stored water, while heavy rainfall moves newer rainwater to streams faster. These findings offer new insights into how water moves through the environment.
James W. Kirchner
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 4427–4454, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-4427-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-4427-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Here, I present a new way to quantify how streamflow responds to rainfall across a range of timescales. This approach can estimate how different rainfall intensities affect streamflow. It can also quantify how runoff response to rainfall varies, depending on how wet the landscape already is before the rain falls. This may help us to understand processes and landscape properties that regulate streamflow and to assess the susceptibility of different landscapes to flooding.
Arsh Grewal, Erin M. Nicholls, and Sean K. Carey
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2645, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2645, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Stream chemistry in permafrost watersheds is highly seasonal. This variability can be driven by the seasonal thawing of the active layer (the layer of soil above the permafrost that thaws each year) or by streamflow (streamflow is typically highest during snowmelt). In this paper, we disentangle the influence of active layer thaw and streamflow on the seasonality of stream chemistry. We found that topography and the extent of permafrost are key factors controlling the degree of this seasonality.
Yulong Zhu, Yang Zhou, Xiaorong Xu, Changqing Meng, and Yuankun Wang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 4251–4261, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-4251-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-4251-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
A timely local flood forecast is an effective way to reduce casualties and economic losses. The current theoretical or numerical models play an important role in local flood forecasting. However, they still cannot bridge the contradiction between high calculation accuracy, high calculation efficiency, and simple operability. Therefore, this paper expects to propose a new flood forecasting model with higher computational efficiency and simpler operation.
Zhen Cui and Fuqiang Tian
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2177, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-2177, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
This study investigates stormflow patterns in a forested watershed in North China, revealing that delayed stormflow is influenced by soil water content and groundwater levels. When soil moisture exceeds its storage capacity, excess water recharges groundwater, which then flows into streams more slowly. As groundwater levels rise, they enhance water movement and connectivity, causing a delayed stormflow peak to merge with the direct stormflow peak.
Daniel Klotz, Martin Gauch, Frederik Kratzert, Grey Nearing, and Jakob Zscheischler
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 3665–3673, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-3665-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-3665-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
The evaluation of model performance is essential for hydrological modeling. Using performance criteria requires a deep understanding of their properties. We focus on a counterintuitive aspect of the Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency (NSE) and show that if we divide the data into multiple parts, the overall performance can be higher than all the evaluations of the subsets. Although this follows from the definition of the NSE, the resulting behavior can have unintended consequences in practice.
Zhen Cui, Fuqiang Tian, Zilong Zhao, Zitong Xu, Yongjie Duan, Jie Wen, and Mohd Yawar Ali Khan
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 3613–3632, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-3613-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-3613-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We investigated the response characteristics and occurrence conditions of bimodal hydrographs using 10 years of hydrometric and isotope data in a semi-humid forested watershed in north China. Our findings indicate that bimodal hydrographs occur when the combined total of the event rainfall and antecedent soil moisture index exceeds 200 mm. Additionally, we determined that delayed stormflow is primarily contributed to by shallow groundwater.
Athanasios Tsiokanos, Martine Rutten, Ruud J. van der Ent, and Remko Uijlenhoet
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 3327–3345, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-3327-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-3327-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We focus on past high-flow events to find flood drivers in the Geul. We also explore flood drivers’ trends across various timescales and develop a new method to detect the main direction of a trend. Our results show that extreme 24 h precipitation alone is typically insufficient to cause floods. The combination of extreme rainfall and wet initial conditions determines the chance of flooding. Precipitation that leads to floods increases in winter, whereas no consistent trends are found in summer.
Soohyun Yang, Kwanghun Choi, and Kyungrock Paik
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 3119–3132, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-3119-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-3119-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
In extracting a river network from a digital elevation model, an arbitrary pruning area should be specified. As this value grows, the apparent drainage density is reduced following a power function. This reflects the fractal topographic nature. We prove this relationship related to the known power law in the exceedance probability distribution of drainage area. The power-law exponent is expressed with fractal dimensions. Our findings are supported by analysis of 14 real river networks.
Matthias Sprenger, Rosemary W. H. Carroll, David Marchetti, Carleton Bern, Harsh Beria, Wendy Brown, Alexander Newman, Curtis Beutler, and Kenneth H. Williams
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 1711–1723, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1711-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1711-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Stable isotopes of water (described as d-excess) in mountain snowpack can be used to infer proportions of high-elevation snowmelt in stream water. In a Colorado River headwater catchment, nearly half of the water during peak streamflow is derived from melted snow at elevations greater than 3200 m. High-elevation snowpack contributions were higher for years with lower snowpack and warmer spring temperatures. Thus, we suggest that d-excess could serve to assess high-elevation snowpack changes.
Bailey J. Anderson, Manuela I. Brunner, Louise J. Slater, and Simon J. Dadson
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 1567–1583, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1567-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1567-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Elasticityrefers to how much the amount of water in a river changes with precipitation. We usually calculate this using average streamflow values; however, the amount of water within rivers is also dependent on stored water sources. Here, we look at how elasticity varies across the streamflow distribution and show that not only do low and high streamflows respond differently to precipitation change, but also these differences vary with water storage availability.
Danny Croghan, Pertti Ala-Aho, Jeffrey Welker, Kaisa-Riikka Mustonen, Kieran Khamis, David M. Hannah, Jussi Vuorenmaa, Bjørn Kløve, and Hannu Marttila
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 1055–1070, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1055-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-1055-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
The transport of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from land into streams is changing due to climate change. We used a multi-year dataset of DOC and predictors of DOC in a subarctic stream to find out how transport of DOC varied between seasons and between years. We found that the way DOC is transported varied strongly seasonally, but year-to-year differences were less apparent. We conclude that the mechanisms of transport show a higher degree of interannual consistency than previously thought.
Jia Qin, Yongjian Ding, Faxiang Shi, Junhao Cui, Yaping Chang, Tianding Han, and Qiudong Zhao
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 973–987, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-973-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-973-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
The linkage between the seasonal hydrothermal change of active layer, suprapermafrost groundwater, and surface runoff, which has been regarded as a “black box” in hydrological analyses and simulations, is a bottleneck problem in permafrost hydrological studies. Based on field observations, this study identifies seasonal variations and causes of suprapermafrost groundwater. The linkages and framework of watershed hydrology responding to the freeze–thaw of the active layer also are explored.
Francesc Gallart, Sebastián González-Fuentes, and Pilar Llorens
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 28, 229–239, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-229-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-28-229-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Normally, lighter oxygen and hydrogen isotopes are preferably evaporated from a water body, which becomes enriched in heavy isotopes. However, we observed that, in a water body subject to prolonged evaporation, some periods of heavy isotope depletion instead of enrichment happened. Furthermore, the usual models that describe the isotopy of evaporating waters may be in error if the atmospheric conditions of temperature and relative humidity are time-averaged instead of evaporation flux-weighted.
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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
Short summary
Short summary
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.
Cited articles
Alkama, R., Marchand, L., Ribes, A., and Decharme, B.: Detection of global runoff changes: results from observations and CMIP5 experiments, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 2967–2979, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-2967-2013, 2013.
Allan, R. P., Soden, B. J., John, V. O., Ingram, W., and Good, P.: Current changes in tropical precipitation, Environ. Res. Lett., 5, 025205, https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/5/2/025205, 2010.
Allen, R. G., Pereira, L. S., Raes, D., and Smith, M.: Crop evapotranspiration – Guidelines for computing crop water requirements, FAO Irrigation and drainage paper 56, FAO, Rome, 1998.
Arnell, N. W.: Climate change and global water resources, Global Environ. Change, 9, S31–S49, 1999.
Budyko, M. I.: Evaporation under Natural Conditions, Israel Program for Scientific Translations, Jerusalem, 1948.
Chou, C. and Neelin, J. D.: Mechanisms of global warming impacts on regional tropical precipitation, J. Climate, 17, 2688–2701, https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0442(2004)017<2688:MOGWIO>2.0.CO;2, 2004.
Chou, C., Neelin, J. D., Chen, C., and Tu, J.: Evaluating the
Rich-Get-RicherMechanism in Tropical Precipitation Change under Global Warming, J. Climate, 22, 1982–2005, https://doi.org/10.1175/2008JCLI2471.1, 2009.
Chou, C., Chiang, J. C. H., Lan, C., Chung, C., Liao, Y., and Lee, C.: Increase in the range between wet and dry season precipitation, Nat. Geosci., 6, 263–267, https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo1744, 2013.
Choudhury, B. J.: Evaluation of an empirical equation for annual evaporation using field observations and results from a biophysical model, J. Hydrol., 216, 99–110, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-1694(98)00293-5, 1999.
Dai, A., Qian, T., Trenberth, K. E., and Milliman, J. D.: Changes in continental freshwater discharge from 1948 to 2004, J. Climate, 22, 2773–2792, https://doi.org/10.1175/2008JCLI2592.1, 2009.
Durack, P. J., Wijffels, S. E., and Matear, R. J.: Ocean Salinities Reveal Strong Global Water Cycle Intensification During 1950 to 2000, Science, 336, 455–458, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1212222, 2012.
Fu, B.: On the calculation of the evaporation from land surface, Scienta Atmos. Sin., 5, 23–31, 1981.
Greve, P., Orlowsky, B., Mueller, B., Sheffield, J., Reichstein, M., and Seneviratne, S. I.: Global assessment of trends in wetting and drying over land, Nat. Geosci., 7, 716–721, https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo2247, 2014.
Guo, W., Liu, S., Yao, X., Xu, J., Shangguan, D., Wu, L., Zhao, J., Liu, Q., Jiang, Z., Wei, J., Bao, W., Yu, P., Ding, L., Li, G., Li, P., Ge, C., and Wang, Y.: The second glacier inventory dataset of China (Version 1.0), Cold and Arid Regions Science Data Center, Lanzhou, https://doi.org/10.3972/glacier.001.2013.db, 2014.
Hagemann, S., Chen, C., Haerter, J. O., Heinke, J., Gerten, D., and Piani, C.: Impact of a statistical bias correction on the projected hydrological changes obtained from three GCMs and two hydrology models, J. Hydrometeorol., 12, 556–578, 2011.
Hamlet, A. F., Mote, P. W., Clark, M. P., and Lettenmaier, D. P.: Twentieth-century trends in runoff, evapotranspiration, and soil moisture in the Western United States, J. Climate, 20, 1468–1486, https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI4051.1, 2007.
Held, I. M. and Soden, B. J.: Robust responses of the hydrological cycle to global warming, J. Climate, 19, 5686–5699, https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI3990.1, 2006.
Koster, R. D. and Suarez, M. J.: A simple framework for examining the interannual variability of land surface moisture fluxes, J. Climate, 12, 1911–1917, https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0442(1999)012<1911:ASFFET>2.0.CO;2, 1999.
Kumar, S., Zwiers, F., Dirmeyer, P. A., Lawrence, D. M., Shrestha, R., and Werner, A. T.: Terrestrial contribution to the heterogeneity in hydrological changes under global warming, Water Resour. Res., 52, 3127–3142, https://doi.org/10.1002/2016WR018607, 2016.
Legates, D. R. and McCabe, G. J.: Evaluating the use of
goodness-of-fitmeasures in hydrologic and hydroclimatic model validation, Water Resour. Res., 35, 233–241, https://doi.org/10.1029/1998WR900018, 1999.
Lim, W. H. and Roderick, M. L.: An atlas of the global water cycle: based on the IPCC AR4 Models, Australian National University Press, Canberra, 2009.
Liu, C., and Allan, R. P.: Observed and simulated precipitation responses in wet and dry regions 1850–2100, Environ. Res. Lett., 8, 034002, https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/8/3/034002, 2013.
Milly, P. C. D., Dunne, K. A., and Vecchia, A. V.: Global pattern of trends in streamflow and water availability in a changing climate, Nature, 438, 347–350, https://doi.org/10.1038/nature04312, 2005.
Oudin, L., Andréassian, V., Lerat, J., and Michel, C.: Has land cover a significant impact on mean annual streamflow? An international assessment using 1508 catchments, J. Hydrol., 357, 303–316, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2008.05.021, 2008.
Pasquini, A. I. and Depetris, P. J.: Discharge trends and flow dynamics of South American rivers draining the southern Atlantic seaboard: an overview, J. Hydrol., 333, 385–399, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2006.09.005, 2007.
Penman, H. L.: Natural evaporation from open water, bare soil and grass, P. Roy. Soc. A, 193, 120–145, https://doi.org/10.1098/rspa.1948.0037, 1948.
Piani, C., Weedon, G. P., Best, M., Gomes, S. M., Viterbo, P., Hagemann, S., and Haerter, J. O.: Statistical bias correction of global simulated daily precipitation and temperature for the application of hydrological models, J. Hydrol., 395, 199–215, 2010.
Piao, S., Ciais, P., Huang, Y., Shen, Z., Peng, S., Li, J., Zhou, L., Liu, H., Ma, Y., Ding, Y., Friedlingstein, P., Liu, C., Tan, K., Yu, Y., Zhang, T., and Fang, J.: The impacts of climate change on water resources and agriculture in China, Nature, 467, 43–51, https://doi.org/10.1038/nature09364, 2010.
Pike, J. G.: The estimation of annual run-off from meteorological data in a tropical climate, J. Hydrol., 2, 116–123, 1964.
Roderick, M. L. and Farquhar, G. D.: A simple framework for relating variations in runoff to variations in climatic conditions and catchment properties, Water Resour. Res., 47, W00G07, https://doi.org/10.1029/2010WR009826, 2011.
Roderick, M. L., Sun, F., Lim, W. H., and Farquhar, G. D.: A general framework for understanding the response of the water cycle to global warming over land and ocean, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 1575–1589, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-1575-2014, 2014.
Roderick, M. L., Greve, P., and Farquhar, G. D.: On the assessment of aridity with changes in atmospheric CO2, Water Resour. Res., 51, 5450–5463, https://doi.org/10.1002/2015WR017031, 2015.
Shuttleworth, W. J.: Daily estimates of evaporation, in: Terrestrial Hydrometeorology, John Wiley, Chichester, UK, 334–358, https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119951933, 2012.
Stahl, K., Hisdal, H., Hannaford, J., Tallaksen, L. M., van Lanen, H. A. J., Sauquet, E., Demuth, S., Fendekova, M., and Jódar, J.: Streamflow trends in Europe: evidence from a dataset of near-natural catchments, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 14, 2367–2382, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-14-2367-2010, 2010.
Teng, J., Chiew, F. H. S., Vaze, J., Marvanek, S., and Kirono, D. G. C.: Estimation of climate change impact on mean annual runoff across continental Australia using Budyko and Fu equations and hydrological models, J. Hydrometeorol., 13, 1094–1106, https://doi.org/10.1175/JHM-D-11-097.1, 2012.
Wang, D. and Tang, Y.: A one-parameter Budyko model for water balance captures emergent behavior in Darwinian hydrologic models, Geophys. Res. Lett., 41, 4569–4577, 2014.
Xiong, L. and Guo, S.: Appraisal of Budyko formula in calculating long-term water balance in humid watersheds of southern China, Hydrol. Process., 26, 1370–1378, https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.8273, 2012.
Xu, K., Yang, D., Yang, H., Li, Z., Qin, Y., and Shen, Y.: Spatio-temporal variation of drought in China during 1961–2012: A climatic perspective, J. Hydrol., 526, 253–264, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2014.09.047, 2015.
Xu, X., Yang, D., Yang, H., and Lei, H.: Attribution analysis based on the Budyko hypothesis for detecting the dominant cause of runoff decline in Haihe basin, J. Hydrol., 510, 530–540, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2013.12.052, 2014.
Yang, D., Sun, F., Liu, Z., Cong, Z., Ni, G., and Lei, Z.: Analyzing spatial and temporal variability of annual water-energy balance in nonhumid regions of China using the Budyko hypothesis, Water Resour. Res., 43, W04426, https://doi.org/10.1029/2006WR005224, 2007.
Yang, H. and Yang, D.: Derivation of climate elasticity of runoff to assess the effects of climate change on annual runoff, Water Resour. Res., 47, W07526, https://doi.org/10.1029/2010WR009287, 2011.
Yang, H., Yang, D., Lei, Z., and Sun, F.: New analytical derivation of the mean annual water-energy balance equation, Water Resour. Res., 44, W03410, https://doi.org/10.1029/2007WR006135, 2008.
Yang, H., Qi, J., Xu, X., Yang, D., and Lv, H.: The regional variation in climate elasticity and climate contribution to runoff across China, J. Hydrol., 517, 607–616, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2014.05.062 ,2014.
Zhang, L., Dawes, W. R., and Walker, G. R.: Response of mean annual evapotranspiration to vegetation changes at catchment scale, Water Resour. Res., 37, 701–708, https://doi.org/10.1029/2000WR900325, 2001.
Zhang, L., Potter, N., Hickel, K., Zhang, Y., and Shao, Q.: Water balance modeling over variable time scales based on the Budyko framework – model development and testing, J. Hydrol., 360, 117–131, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2008.07.021, 2008.
Zhou, S., Yu, B., Huang, Y., and Wang, G.: The complementary relationship and generation of the Budyko functions, Geophys. Res. Lett., 42, 1781–1790, 2015.
Short summary
The significant climate changes remind us to characterize the hydrological response to it. Based on the long-term observed hydrological and meteorological data in 291 catchments across China, we find a pattern of the response stating that
drier regions are more likely to become drier, whereas wetter regions are more likely to become wetter. We also reveal that the precipitation changes play the most significant role in this process.
The significant climate changes remind us to characterize the hydrological response to it. Based...
