Articles | Volume 22, issue 10
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5243-2018
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-5243-2018
Research article
 | 
15 Oct 2018
Research article |  | 15 Oct 2018

Value of uncertain streamflow observations for hydrological modelling

Simon Etter, Barbara Strobl, Jan Seibert, and H. J. Ilja van Meerveld

Related authors

Training citizen scientists through an online game developed for data quality control
Barbara Strobl, Simon Etter, H. J. Ilja van Meerveld, and Jan Seibert
Geosci. Commun., 3, 109–126, https://doi.org/10.5194/gc-3-109-2020,https://doi.org/10.5194/gc-3-109-2020, 2020
Short summary

Related subject area

Subject: Catchment hydrology | Techniques and Approaches: Instruments and observation techniques
Technical note: High-frequency, multi-elemental stream water monitoring – experiences, feedbacks and suggestions from 7 years of running three French field laboratories (Riverlabs)
Nicolai Brekenfeld, Solenn Cotel, Mikael Faucheux, Colin Fourtet, Yannick Hamon, Patrice Petitjean, Arnaud Blanchouin, Celine Bouillis, Marie-Claire Pierret, Hocine Henine, Anne-Catherine Pierson-Wickmann, Sophie Guillon, Paul Floury, and Ophelie Fovet
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 29, 2615–2631, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-2615-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-2615-2025, 2025
Short summary
Hydrological controls on temporal contributions of three nested forested subcatchments to the export of dissolved organic carbon
Katharina Blaurock, Burkhard Beudert, and Luisa Hopp
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 29, 2377–2391, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-2377-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-2377-2025, 2025
Short summary
Changes in the flowing drainage network and stream chemistry during rainfall events for two pre-Alpine catchments
Izabela Bujak-Ozga, Jana von Freyberg, Margaret Zimmer, Andrea Rinaldo, Paolo Benettin, and Ilja van Meerveld
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 29, 2339–2359, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-2339-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-2339-2025, 2025
Short summary
Constructing a geography of heavy-tailed flood distributions: insights from common streamflow dynamics
Hsing-Jui Wang, Ralf Merz, and Stefano Basso
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 29, 1525–1548, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-1525-2025,https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-1525-2025, 2025
Short summary
Trends in hydroclimate extremes: How changes in winter conditions affect seasonal baseflow and storage
Tejshree Tiwari and Hjalmar Laudon
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2024-337,https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2024-337, 2024
Revised manuscript accepted for HESS
Short summary

Cited articles

Aschwanden, H. and Weingartner, R.: Die Abflussregimes der Schweiz, Geographisches Institut der Universität Bern, Abteilung Physikalische Geographie, Gewässerkunde, Bern, Switzerland, 1985. 
Bergström, S.: Development and application of a conceptual runoff model for Scandinavian catchments, Sveriges Meteorologiska och Hydrologiska Institut (SMHI), Norrköping, Sweden, available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/255274162_Development_and_Application_of_a_Conceptual_Runoff_Model_for_Scandinavian_Catchments (last access: 3 October 2018), 1976. 
Bergström, S., Carlsson, B., Grahn, G., and Johansson, B.: A More Consistent Approach to Watershed Response in the HBV Model, Vannet i Nord., 4, 1997. 
Beven, K.: Facets of uncertainty: epistemic uncertainty, non-stationarity, likelihood, hypothesis testing, and communication, Hydrol. Sci. J., 61, 1652–1665, https://doi.org/10.1080/02626667.2015.1031761, 2016. 
Beven, K. and Westerberg, I.: On red herrings and real herrings: disinformation and information in hydrological inference, Hydrol. Process., 25, 1676–1680, https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.7963, 2011. 
Download
Short summary
To evaluate the potential value of streamflow estimates for hydrological model calibration, we created synthetic streamflow datasets in various temporal resolutions based on the errors in streamflow estimates of 136 citizens. Our results show that streamflow estimates of untrained citizens are too inaccurate to be useful for model calibration. If, however, the errors can be reduced by training or filtering, the estimates become useful if also a sufficient number of estimates are available.
Share