Articles | Volume 22, issue 1
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 635–653, 2018
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-635-2018
© Author(s) 2018. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 635–653, 2018
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-22-635-2018
© Author(s) 2018. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Research article 25 Jan 2018
Research article | 25 Jan 2018
Mean transit times in headwater catchments: insights from the Otway Ranges, Australia
William Howcroft et al.
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Dylan J. Irvine, Cameron Wood, Ian Cartwright, and Tanya Oliver
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 5415–5424, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-5415-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-5415-2021, 2021
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It is widely assumed that 14C is in contact with the atmosphere until recharging water reaches the water table. Unsaturated zone (UZ) studies have shown that 14C decreases with depth below the land surface. We produce a relationship between UZ 14C and depth to the water table to estimate input 14C activities for groundwater age estimation. Application of the new relationship shows that it is important for UZ processes to be considered in groundwater mean residence time estimation.
Ian Cartwright
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2021-454, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2021-454, 2021
Preprint under review for HESS
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Using specific conductivity (SC) to estimate groundwater inflow to rivers is complicated by bank return waters, interflow, and flows off floodplains contributing to baseflow in all but the driest years. Using the maximum SC of the river in dry years to estimate the SC of groundwater produces the best baseflow vs streamflow trends. The variable composition of baseflow hinders calibration of hydrograph-based techniques to estimate groundwater inflows.
Michael Kilgour Stewart, Uwe Morgenstern, and Ian Cartwright
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2021-146, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2021-146, 2021
Revised manuscript under review for HESS
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The combined use of deuterium and tritium to determine travel time distributions in streams is an important development in catchment hydrology (Rodriguez et al, 2021). This comment, however, argues that their results do not generally invalidate the truncation hypothesis of Stewart et al. (2010) (i.e. that stable isotopes underestimate travel times through catchments) as they imply, but asserts instead that the hypothesis still applies to many other catchments.
Shovon Barua, Ian Cartwright, P. Evan Dresel, and Edoardo Daly
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 89–104, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-89-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-89-2021, 2021
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We evaluate groundwater recharge rates in a semi-arid area that has undergone land-use changes. The widespread presence of old saline groundwater indicates that pre-land-clearing recharge rates were low and present-day recharge rates are still modest. The fluctuations of the water table and tritium activities reflect present-day recharge rates; however, the water table fluctuation estimates are unrealistically high, and this technique may not be suited for estimating recharge in semi-arid areas.
Harald Hofmann, Dean Newborn, Ian Cartwright, Dioni I. Cendón, and Matthias Raiber
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 1293–1318, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-1293-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-1293-2020, 2020
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Fresh groundwater (GW) on barrier islands is affected by GW use and precipitation variability. Mean residence times (MRTs) of GW on a sand barrier island were determined. They ranged from 37 years to more than 150 years for tritium and had a much larger range (modern to 5000 years) for carbon-14. Perched aquifer systems in the unsaturated zone and peat formations around wetlands are the most likely cause of longer MRTs, as they have a significant impact on regional recharge and flow diversion.
Michael K. Stewart, Uwe Morgenstern, Maksym A. Gusyev, and Piotr Małoszewski
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 4615–4627, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-4615-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-4615-2017, 2017
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This paper presents for the first time the effects of aggregation errors on mean transit times and young fractions estimated using tritium concentrations. Such errors, due to heterogeneity in catchments, had previously been demonstrated for seasonal tracer cycles by Kirchner (2016a). We found that mean transit times derived from tritium are just as susceptible to aggregation bias as those from seasonal tracer cycles. Young fractions were found to be almost immune to aggregation bias.
Monique Beyer, Uwe Morgenstern, Rob van der Raaij, and Heather Martindale
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 4213–4231, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-4213-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-21-4213-2017, 2017
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The determination of groundwater age can aid characterization of aquifers, providing information on groundwater mixing, flow, volume, and recharge rates. Here we assess a recently discovered groundwater age tracer, Halon-1301. Its performance as an age tracer is assessed against six other well-established, widely used age tracers in 302 groundwater samples. We show Halon-1301 reliably inferred age, thus potentially becoming a useful groundwater age tracer where other tracers are compromised.
Ian Cartwright and Uwe Morgenstern
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 4757–4773, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-4757-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-4757-2016, 2016
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This research used tritium to determine the timescales that water is stored in peatlands and eucalyptus forest catchments in upland river systems in southeast Australia. The mean transit times in the peatland catchments of less than a few years contrast with much longer transit times (years to decades) in adjacent eucalyptus catchments. The peat is susceptible to drying which renders it vulnerable to degradation and bushfire and does not represent a long-term water store to upland streams.
Ian Cartwright and Harald Hofmann
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 3581–3600, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-3581-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-3581-2016, 2016
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This paper uses the natural geochemical tracer Rn together with streamflow measurements to differentiate between actual groundwater inflows and water that exits the river, flows through the near-river sediments, and subsequently re-enters the river downstream (parafluvial flow). Distinguishing between these two components is important to understanding the water balance in gaining streams and in managing and protecting surface water resources.
Maksym A. Gusyev, Uwe Morgenstern, Michael K. Stewart, Yusuke Yamazaki, Kazuhisa Kashiwaya, Terumasa Nishihara, Daisuke Kuribayashi, Hisaya Sawano, and Yoichi Iwami
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 20, 3043–3058, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-3043-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-20-3043-2016, 2016
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Tritium-estimated groundwater mean transit times (MTTs) and storage volumes provide useful information for water resources management especially during droughts. In Hokkaido, we find that (1) one tritium measurement at baseflow is already sufficient to estimate MTT for some catchments, (2) the hydrogeological settings control tritium transit times of subsurface groundwater storage at baseflow, and (3) in future, one tritium measurement will be sufficient to estimate MTT in most Japanese catchments.
I. Cartwright and U. Morgenstern
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 3771–3785, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-3771-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-3771-2015, 2015
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This study documents the age of water that contributes to rivers in upper catchments using the radioactive tracer tritium. River water in the upper Ovens Valley (Australia) is several years to decades old and water from different parts of the catchment (e.g., soil, regolith, and groundwater) is mobilised at different flow conditions. The results indicate that these rivers are buffered against short term climate variability but are susceptible to longer-term climate and land use changes
M. Beyer, R. van der Raaij, U. Morgenstern, and B. Jackson
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 2775–2789, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-2775-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-2775-2015, 2015
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We assess the potential of Halon-1301 as a new groundwater age tracer, which had not been assessed in detail. We determine Halon-1301 and infer age in 17 New Zealand groundwater samples and various modern waters. Halon-1301 reliably inferred age in 71% of the sites within 1 SD of the ages inferred from tritium and SF6. The remaining (anoxic) waters show reduced concentrations of Halon-1301 along with even further reduced concentrations of CFCs. The reason(s) for this need to be further assessed.
S. Kang, F. Wang, U. Morgenstern, Y. Zhang, B. Grigholm, S. Kaspari, M. Schwikowski, J. Ren, T. Yao, D. Qin, and P. A. Mayewski
The Cryosphere, 9, 1213–1222, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-1213-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-9-1213-2015, 2015
U. Morgenstern, C. J. Daughney, G. Leonard, D. Gordon, F. M. Donath, and R. Reeves
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 19, 803–822, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-803-2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-19-803-2015, 2015
N. P. Unland, I. Cartwright, D. I. Cendón, and R. Chisari
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 5109–5124, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-5109-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-5109-2014, 2014
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Periodic flooding of rivers should result in increased groundwater recharge near rivers and thus - younger and fresher groundwater near rivers. This study found the age and salinity of shallow groundwater to increase with proximity to the Tambo River in South East Australia. This appears to be due to the upwelling of older, regional groundwater closer the river. Other chemical parameters are consistent with this. This is a process that may be occurring in other similar river systems.
A. P. Atkinson, I. Cartwright, B. S. Gilfedder, D. I. Cendón, N. P. Unland, and H. Hofmann
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 4951–4964, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-4951-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-4951-2014, 2014
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This research article uses of radiogenic isotopes, stable isotopes and groundwater geochemistry to study groundwater age and recharge processes in the Gellibrand Valley, a relatively unstudied catchment and potential groundwater resource. The valley is found to contain both "old", regionally recharged groundwater (300-10,000 years) in the near-river environment, and modern groundwater (0-100 years old) further back on the floodplain. There is no recharge of the groundwater by high river flows.
M. A. Gusyev, D. Abrams, M. W. Toews, U. Morgenstern, and M. K. Stewart
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 3109–3119, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-3109-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-3109-2014, 2014
I. Cartwright, B. Gilfedder, and H. Hofmann
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 18, 15–30, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-15-2014, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-18-15-2014, 2014
M. C. L. Yu, I. Cartwright, J. L. Braden, and S. T. de Bree
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 4907–4924, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-4907-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-4907-2013, 2013
N. P. Unland, I. Cartwright, M. S. Andersen, G. C. Rau, J. Reed, B. S. Gilfedder, A. P. Atkinson, and H. Hofmann
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 3437–3453, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-3437-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-3437-2013, 2013
M. A. Gusyev, M. Toews, U. Morgenstern, M. Stewart, P. White, C. Daughney, and J. Hadfield
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 1217–1227, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-1217-2013, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-1217-2013, 2013
Related subject area
Subject: Catchment hydrology | Techniques and Approaches: Modelling approaches
How is Baseflow Index (BFI) impacted by water resource management practices?
Technical note: RAT – a robustness assessment test for calibrated and uncalibrated hydrological models
Reduction of vegetation-accessible water storage capacity after deforestation affects catchment travel time distributions and increases young water fractions in a headwater catchment
Combining split-sample testing and hidden Markov modelling to assess the robustness of hydrological models
Hydrologically informed machine learning for rainfall–runoff modelling: towards distributed modelling
Development and evaluation of 0.05° terrestrial water storage estimates using Community Atmosphere Biosphere Land Exchange (CABLE) land surface model and assimilation of GRACE data
Conditioning ensemble streamflow prediction with the North Atlantic Oscillation improves skill at longer lead times
Technical note: Hydrology modelling R packages – a unified analysis of models and practicalities from a user perspective
A new fractal-theory-based criterion for hydrological model calibration
The value of water isotope data on improving process understanding in a glacierized catchment on the Tibetan Plateau
Machine learning deciphers CO2 sequestration and subsurface flowpaths from stream chemistry
Future changes in annual, seasonal and monthly runoff signatures in contrasting Alpine catchments in Austria
Using hydrologic landscape classification and climatic time series to assess hydrologic vulnerability of the western U.S. to climate
Evaluation of random forests for short-term daily streamflow forecasting in rainfall- and snowmelt-driven watersheds
Performance of automated methods for flash flood inundation mapping: a comparison of a digital terrain model (DTM) filling and two hydrodynamic methods
A novel method for cold-region streamflow hydrograph separation using GRACE satellite observations
A Bayesian approach to understanding the key factors influencing temporal variability in stream water quality – a case study in the Great Barrier Reef catchments
Projected changes in Rhine River flood seasonality under global warming
Technical note: Diagnostic efficiency – specific evaluation of model performance
How catchment characteristics influence hydrological pathways and travel times in a boreal landscape
Rainfall–runoff prediction at multiple timescales with a single Long Short-Term Memory network
User-oriented hydrological indices for early warning systems with validation using post-event surveys: flood case studies in the Central Apennine District
Space–time variability in soil moisture droughts in the Himalayan region
A multi-sourced assessment of the spatiotemporal dynamics of soil moisture in the MARINE flash flood model
Climate change impacts model parameter sensitivity – implications for calibration strategy and model diagnostic evaluation
Impact of karst areas on runoff generation, lateral flow and interbasin groundwater flow at the storm-event timescale
Benchmarking Data-Driven Rainfall-Runoff Models in Great Britain: A comparison of LSTM-based models with four lumped conceptual models
Triple oxygen isotope systematics of evaporation and mixing processes in a dynamic desert lake system
Irrigation, damming, and streamflow fluctuations of the Yellow River
Behind the scenes of streamflow model performance
Learning from satellite observations: increased understanding of catchment processes through stepwise model improvement
Diagnosis toward predicting mean annual runoff in ungauged basins
The era of infiltration
A time-varying parameter estimation approach using split-sample calibration based on dynamic programming
Numerical daemons of hydrological models are summoned by extreme precipitation
A history of TOPMODEL
Progressive water deficits during multiyear droughts in basins with long hydrological memory in Chile
A comparison of catchment travel times and storage deduced from deuterium and tritium tracers using StorAge Selection functions
The role and value of distributed precipitation data in hydrological models
Flood spatial coherence, triggers, and performance in hydrological simulations: large-sample evaluation of four streamflow-calibrated models
Effects of spatial resolution of terrain models on modelled discharge and soil loss in Oaxaca, Mexico
Flexible vector-based spatial configurations in land models
Two-stage variational mode decomposition and support vector regression for streamflow forecasting
Predicting probabilities of streamflow intermittency across a temperate mesoscale catchment
Importance of the informative content in the study area when regionalising rainfall-runoff model parameters: the role of nested catchments and gauging station density
Which rainfall score is more informative about the performance in river discharge simulation? A comprehensive assessment on 1318 basins over Europe
Assimilation of Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) brightness temperature into a large-scale distributed conceptual hydrological model to improve soil moisture predictions: the Murray–Darling basin in Australia as a test case
Frequency and magnitude variability of Yalu River flooding: numerical analyses for the last 1000 years
Assessing the degree of detail of temperature-based snow routines for runoff modelling in mountainous areas in central Europe
Adaptive clustering: reducing the computational costs of distributed (hydrological) modelling by exploiting time-variable similarity among model elements
John P. Bloomfield, Mengyi Gong, Benjamin P. Marchant, Gemma Coxon, and Nans Addor
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 5355–5379, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-5355-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-5355-2021, 2021
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Groundwater provides flow, known as baseflow, to surface streams and rivers. It is important as it sustains the flow of many rivers at times of water stress. However, it may be affected by water management practices. Statistical models have been used to show that abstraction of groundwater may influence baseflow. Consequently, it is recommended that information on groundwater abstraction is included in future assessments and predictions of baseflow.
Pierre Nicolle, Vazken Andréassian, Paul Royer-Gaspard, Charles Perrin, Guillaume Thirel, Laurent Coron, and Léonard Santos
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 5013–5027, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-5013-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-5013-2021, 2021
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In this note, a new method (RAT) is proposed to assess the robustness of hydrological models. The RAT method is particularly interesting because it does not require multiple calibrations (it is therefore applicable to uncalibrated models), and it can be used to determine whether a hydrological model may be safely used for climate change impact studies. Success at the robustness assessment test is a necessary (but not sufficient) condition of model robustness.
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.
Etienne Guilpart, Vahid Espanmanesh, Amaury Tilmant, and François Anctil
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 4611–4629, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4611-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4611-2021, 2021
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The stationary assumption in hydrology has become obsolete because of climate changes. In that context, it is crucial to assess the performance of a hydrologic model over a wide range of climates and their corresponding hydrologic conditions. In this paper, numerous, contrasted, climate sequences identified by a hidden Markov model (HMM) are used in a differential split-sample testing framework to assess the robustness of a hydrologic model. We illustrate the method on the Senegal River.
Herath Mudiyanselage Viraj Vidura Herath, Jayashree Chadalawada, and Vladan Babovic
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 4373–4401, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4373-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4373-2021, 2021
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Existing hydrological knowledge has been integrated with genetic programming based on a machine learning algorithm (MIKA-SHA) to induce readily interpretable distributed rainfall–runoff models. At present, the model building components of two flexible modelling frameworks (FUSE and SUPERFLEX) represent the elements of hydrological knowledge. The proposed toolkit captures spatial variabilities and automatically induces semi-distributed rainfall–runoff models without any explicit user selections.
Natthachet Tangdamrongsub, Michael F. Jasinski, and Peter J. Shellito
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 4185–4208, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4185-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4185-2021, 2021
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Accurate estimation of terrestrial water storage (TWS) is essential for reliable water resource assessments. TWS can be estimated from the Community Atmosphere–Biosphere Land Exchange model (CABLE), but the resolution is limited to 0.5°. We reconfigure CABLE to improve TWS spatial details from 0.5° to 0.05°. GRACE satellite data are assimilated into CABLE to improve TWS accuracy. Our workflow relies only on publicly accessible data, allowing reproduction of 0.05° TWS in any region.
Seán Donegan, Conor Murphy, Shaun Harrigan, Ciaran Broderick, Dáire Foran Quinn, Saeed Golian, Jeff Knight, Tom Matthews, Christel Prudhomme, Adam A. Scaife, Nicky Stringer, and Robert L. Wilby
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 4159–4183, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4159-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-4159-2021, 2021
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We benchmarked the skill of ensemble streamflow prediction (ESP) for a diverse sample of 46 Irish catchments. We found that ESP is skilful in the majority of catchments up to several months ahead. However, the level of skill was strongly dependent on lead time, initialisation month, and individual catchment location and storage properties. We also conditioned ESP with the winter North Atlantic Oscillation and show that improvements in forecast skill, reliability, and discrimination are possible.
Paul C. Astagneau, Guillaume Thirel, Olivier Delaigue, Joseph H. A. Guillaume, Juraj Parajka, Claudia C. Brauer, Alberto Viglione, Wouter Buytaert, and Keith J. Beven
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 3937–3973, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3937-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3937-2021, 2021
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The R programming language has become an important tool for many applications in hydrology. In this study, we provide an analysis of some of the R tools providing hydrological models. In total, two aspects are uniformly investigated, namely the conceptualisation of the models and the practicality of their implementation for end-users. These comparisons aim at easing the choice of R tools for users and at improving their usability for hydrology modelling to support more transferable research.
Zhixu Bai, Yao Wu, Di Ma, and Yue-Ping Xu
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 3675–3690, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3675-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3675-2021, 2021
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To test our hypothesis that the fractal dimensions of streamflow series can be used to improve the calibration of hydrological models, we designed the E–RD efficiency ratio of fractal dimensions strategy and examined its usability in the calibration of lumped models. The results reveal that, in most aspects, introducing RD into model calibration makes the simulation of streamflow components more reasonable. Also, pursuing a better RD during calibration leads to only a minor decrease in E.
Yi Nan, Lide Tian, Zhihua He, Fuqiang Tian, and Lili Shao
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 3653–3673, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3653-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3653-2021, 2021
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This study integrated a water isotope module into the hydrological model THREW. The isotope-aided model was subsequently applied for process understanding in the glacierized watershed of Karuxung river on the Tibetan Plateau. The model was used to quantify the contribution of runoff component and estimate the water travel time in the catchment. Model uncertainties were significantly constrained by using additional isotopic data, improving the process understanding in the catchment.
Andrew R. Shaughnessy, Xin Gu, Tao Wen, and Susan L. Brantley
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 3397–3409, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3397-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3397-2021, 2021
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It is often difficult to determine the sources of solutes in streams and how much each source contributes. We developed a new method of unmixing stream chemistry via machine learning. We found that sulfate in three watersheds is related to groundwater flowpaths. Our results emphasize that acid rain reduces a watershed's capacity to remove CO2 from the atmosphere, a key geological control on climate. Our method will help scientists unmix stream chemistry in watersheds where sources are unknown.
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.
Chas E. Jones Jr., Scott G. Leibowitz, Keith A. Sawicz, Randy L. Comeleo, Laurel E. Stratton, Philip E. Morefield, and Christopher P. Weaver
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 3179–3206, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3179-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-3179-2021, 2021
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Our research assesses the hydrologic vulnerability of the western U.S. to climate by classifying the landscape based on its physical and climatic characteristics and analyzing climate data. We also apply the approach to examine the vulnerabilities of case studies in the ski and wine industries. We show that the west and its ski areas are vulnerable to changes in snow, while vineyard vulnerability varies. This allows us to consider climatic impacts across landscapes, industries, and stakeholders.
Leo Triet Pham, Lifeng Luo, and Andrew Finley
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2997–3015, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2997-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2997-2021, 2021
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Model evaluation metrics suggest that RF performs better in snowmelt-driven watersheds. The largest improvements in forecasts compared to benchmark models are found among rainfall-driven watersheds. RF performance deteriorates with increases in catchment slope and soil sandiness. We note disagreement between two popular measures of RF variable importance and recommend jointly considering these measures with the physical processes under study.
Nabil Hocini, Olivier Payrastre, François Bourgin, Eric Gaume, Philippe Davy, Dimitri Lague, Lea Poinsignon, and Frederic Pons
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2979–2995, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2979-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2979-2021, 2021
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Efficient flood mapping methods are needed for large-scale, comprehensive identification of flash flood inundation hazards caused by small upstream rivers. An evaluation of three automated mapping approaches of increasing complexity, i.e., a digital terrain model (DTM) filling and two 1D–2D hydrodynamic approaches, is presented based on three major flash floods in southeastern France. The results illustrate some limits of the DTM filling method and the value of using a 2D hydrodynamic approach.
Shusen Wang, Junhua Li, and Hazen A. J. Russell
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2649–2662, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2649-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2649-2021, 2021
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Separating river flow into baseflow and surface runoff provides useful information for hydrology and climate studies, but traditional methods have critical limitations in the lack of physics, identifying snowmelt runoff and watershed size. This study developed a novel model using the GRACE satellite observations to address these limitations. It also includes estimates for watershed hydraulic conductivity and drainable water storage, which help assess aquifer properties and water resources.
Shuci Liu, Dongryeol Ryu, J. Angus Webb, Anna Lintern, Danlu Guo, David Waters, and Andrew W. Western
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2663–2683, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2663-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2663-2021, 2021
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Riverine water quality can change markedly at one particular location. This study developed predictive models to represent the temporal variation in stream water quality across the Great Barrier Reef catchments, Australia. The model structures were informed by a data-driven approach, which is useful for identifying important factors determining temporal changes in water quality and, in turn, providing critical information for developing management strategies.
Erwin Rottler, Axel Bronstert, Gerd Bürger, and Oldrich Rakovec
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2353–2371, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2353-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2353-2021, 2021
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The mesoscale hydrological model (mHM) forced with an ensemble of climate projection scenarios was used to assess potential future changes in flood seasonality in the Rhine River basin. Results indicate that future changes in flood characteristics are controlled by increases in precipitation sums and diminishing snowpacks. The decreases in snowmelt can counterbalance increasing precipitation, resulting in only small and transient changes in streamflow maxima.
Robin Schwemmle, Dominic Demand, and Markus Weiler
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2187–2198, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2187-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2187-2021, 2021
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A better understanding of the reasons why model performance is unsatisfying represents a crucial part for meaningful model evaluation. We propose the novel diagnostic efficiency (DE) measure and diagnostic polar plots. The proposed evaluation approach provides a diagnostic tool for model developers and model users and facilitates interpretation of model performance.
Elin Jutebring Sterte, Fredrik Lidman, Emma Lindborg, Ylva Sjöberg, and Hjalmar Laudon
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2133–2158, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2133-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2133-2021, 2021
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A numerical model was used to estimate annual and seasonal mean travel times across 14 long-term nested monitored catchments in the boreal region. The estimated travel times and young water fractions were consistent with observed variations of base cation concentration and stable water isotopes, δ18O. Soil type was the most important factor regulating the variation in mean travel times among sub-catchments, while the areal coverage of mires increased the young water fraction.
Martin Gauch, Frederik Kratzert, Daniel Klotz, Grey Nearing, Jimmy Lin, and Sepp Hochreiter
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2045–2062, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2045-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-2045-2021, 2021
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We present multi-timescale Short-Term Memory (MTS-LSTM), a machine learning approach that predicts discharge at multiple timescales within one model. MTS-LSTM is significantly more accurate than the US National Water Model and computationally more efficient than an individual LSTM model per timescale. Further, MTS-LSTM can process different input variables at different timescales, which is important as the lead time of meteorological forecasts often depends on their temporal resolution.
Annalina Lombardi, Valentina Colaiuda, Marco Verdecchia, and Barbara Tomassetti
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1969–1992, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1969-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1969-2021, 2021
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The paper presents a modelling approach for the assessment of extremes in the hydrological cycle at a multi-catchment scale. It describes two new hydrological stress indices, innovative instruments that could be used by Civil Protection operators, for flood mapping in early warning systems. The main advantage in using the proposed indices is the possibility of displaying hydrological-stress information over any geographical domain.
Santosh Nepal, Saurav Pradhananga, Narayan Kumar Shrestha, Sven Kralisch, Jayandra P. Shrestha, and Manfred Fink
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1761–1783, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1761-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1761-2021, 2021
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This paper examines soil moisture drought in the central Himalayan region by applying a process-based hydrological model. Our results suggest that both the occurrence and severity of droughts have increased over the last 3 decades, especially in the winter and
pre-monsoon seasons. The insights provided into the frequency, spatial coverage, and severity of the drought conditions can provide valuable inputs towards improved management of water resources and greater agricultural productivity.
Judith Eeckman, Hélène Roux, Audrey Douinot, Bertrand Bonan, and Clément Albergel
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1425–1446, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1425-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1425-2021, 2021
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The risk of flash flood is of growing importance for populations, particularly in the Mediterranean area in the context of a changing climate. The representation of soil processes in models is a key factor for flash flood simulation. The importance of the various methods for soil moisture estimation are highlighted in this work. Local measurements from the field as well as data derived from satellite imagery can be used to assess the performance of model outputs.
Lieke Anna Melsen and Björn Guse
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1307–1332, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1307-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1307-2021, 2021
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Certain hydrological processes become more or less relevant when the climate changes. This should also be visible in the models that are used for long-term predictions of river flow as a consequence of climate change. We investigated this using three different models. The change in relevance should be reflected in how the parameters of the models are determined. In the different models, different processes become more relevant in the future: they disagree with each other.
Martin Le Mesnil, Roger Moussa, Jean-Baptiste Charlier, and Yvan Caballero
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1259–1282, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1259-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1259-2021, 2021
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We present an innovative approach consisting of the statistical analysis and comparison of 15 hydrological descriptors, characterizing catchment response to rainfall events. The distribution of these descriptors is analysed according to the occurrence of karst areas inside 108 catchments. It shows that karst impacts on storm events mainly result in river losses and that interbasin groundwater flows can represent a significant part of the catchment water budget ah the event timescale.
Thomas Lees, Marcus Buechel, Bailey Anderson, Louise Slater, Steven Reece, Gemma Coxon, and Simon J. Dadson
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2021-127, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2021-127, 2021
Revised manuscript accepted for HESS
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We used deep learning models to simulate the amount of water travelling through a river channel (discharge), based on the rainfall, temperature and potential evaporation in the previous days. We compared the performance of these deep learning models to four models that are currently used by hydrologists and engineers. We tested how these different methods simulate discharge at 518 points around Great Britain. Ultimately, we found that the deep learning models produced more accurate simulations.
Claudia Voigt, Daniel Herwartz, Cristina Dorador, and Michael Staubwasser
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1211–1228, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1211-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1211-2021, 2021
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Evaporation trends in the stable isotope composition (18O/16O, 17O/16O, 2H/1H) of throughflow ponds in a hydrologically complex and seasonally dynamic lake system can be reliably predicted by the classic Craig–Gordon isotope evaporation model. We demonstrate that the novel 17O-excess parameter is capable of resolving different types of evaporation with and without recharge and of identifying mixing processes that cannot be resolved using the classic δ2H–δ18O system alone.
Zun Yin, Catherine Ottlé, Philippe Ciais, Feng Zhou, Xuhui Wang, Polcher Jan, Patrice Dumas, Shushi Peng, Laurent Li, Xudong Zhou, Yan Bo, Yi Xi, and Shilong Piao
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 1133–1150, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1133-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-1133-2021, 2021
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We improved the irrigation module in a land surface model ORCHIDEE and developed a dam operation model with the aim to investigate how irrigation and dams affect the streamflow fluctuations of the Yellow River. Results show that irrigation mainly reduces the annual river flow. The dam operation, however, mainly affects streamflow variation. By considering two generic operation rules, flood control and base flow guarantee, our dam model can sustainably improve the simulation accuracy.
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.
Yuan Gao, Lili Yao, Ni-Bin Chang, and Dingbao Wang
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 945–956, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-945-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-945-2021, 2021
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Mean annual runoff prediction is of great interest but still poses a challenge in ungauged basins. The purpose of this study is to diagnose the data requirement for predicting mean annual runoff in ungauged basins based on a water balance model, in which the effects of climate variability are explicitly represented. The performance of predicting mean annual runoff can be improved by employing better estimation of soil water storage capacity including the effects of soil, topography, and bedrock.
Keith Beven
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 851–866, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-851-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-851-2021, 2021
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Inspired by a quotation from Howard Cook in 1946, this paper traces the evolution of the infiltration theory of runoff from the work of Robert Horton and LeRoy Sherman in the 1930s to the early digital computer models of the 1970s and 1980s. Reconsideration of the perceptual model for many catchments, partly as a result of the greater appreciation of the contribution of subsurface flows to the hydrograph indicated by tracer studies, suggests a reconsideration of hydrological nomenclature.
Xiaojing Zhang and Pan Liu
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 711–733, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-711-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-711-2021, 2021
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Rainfall–runoff models are useful tools for streamflow simulation. However, efforts are needed to investigate how their parameters vary in response to climate changes and human activities. Thus, this study proposes a new method for estimating time-varying parameters, by considering both simulation accuracy and parameter continuity. The results show the proposed method is effective for identifying temporal variations of parameters and can simultaneously provide good streamflow simulation.
Peter T. La Follette, Adriaan J. Teuling, Nans Addor, Martyn Clark, Koen Jansen, and Lieke A. Melsen
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2021-28, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2021-28, 2021
Revised manuscript accepted for HESS
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Hydrological models are useful tools that allow us to predict distributions and movement of water. A variety of numerical methods are used by these models. We demonstrate which numerical methods yield large errors when subject to extreme precipitation. As the climate is changing such that extreme precipitation is more common, we find that some numerical methods are better suited for use in hydrological models. Also, we find that many current hydrological models use relatively inaccurate methods.
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.
Camila Alvarez-Garreton, Juan Pablo Boisier, René Garreaud, Jan Seibert, and Marc Vis
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 429–446, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-429-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-429-2021, 2021
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The megadrought experienced in Chile (2010–2020) has led to larger than expected water deficits. By analysing 106 basins with snow-/rainfall regimes, we relate such intensification with the hydrological memory of the basins, explained by snow and groundwater. Snow-dominated basins have larger memory and thus accumulate the effect of persistent precipitation deficits more strongly than pluvial basins. This notably affects central Chile, a water-limited region where most of the population lives.
Nicolas Björn Rodriguez, Laurent Pfister, Erwin Zehe, and Julian Klaus
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 401–428, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-401-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-401-2021, 2021
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Different parts of water have often been used as tracers to determine the age of water in streams. The stable tracers, such as deuterium, are thought to be unable to reveal old water compared to the radioactive tracer called tritium. We used both tracers, measured in precipitation and in a stream in Luxembourg, to show that this is not necessarily true. It is, in fact, advantageous to use the two tracers together, and we recommend systematically using tritium in future studies.
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.
Manuela I. Brunner, Lieke A. Melsen, Andrew W. Wood, Oldrich Rakovec, Naoki Mizukami, Wouter J. M. Knoben, and Martyn P. Clark
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 105–119, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-105-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-25-105-2021, 2021
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Assessments of current, local, and regional flood hazards and their future changes often involve the use of hydrologic models. A reliable model ideally reproduces both local flood characteristics and regional aspects of flooding. In this paper we investigate how such characteristics are represented by hydrologic models. Our results show that both the modeling of local and regional flood characteristics are challenging, especially under changing climate conditions.
Sergio Naranjo, Francelino A. Rodrigues Jr., Georg Cadisch, Santiago Lopez-Ridaura, Mariela Fuentes, and Carsten Marohn
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2020-641, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-2020-641, 2020
Revised manuscript accepted for HESS
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This study pioneers in the integration of a spatially explicit soil erosion model with plot and watershed scale characterization and high resolution drone imagery to assess the effect of spatial resolution DTM on discharge and soil loss. Results showed reduction of slope due to resampling-down of DTM. High resolution translates into higher slope, denser fluvial system, and extremer values of soil loss reducing time of concentration and increasing soil loss at the outlet. Best resolution was 4 m.
Shervan Gharari, Martyn P. Clark, Naoki Mizukami, Wouter J. M. Knoben, Jefferson S. Wong, and Alain Pietroniro
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 5953–5971, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5953-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5953-2020, 2020
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This work explores the trade-off between the accuracy of the representation of geospatial data, such as land cover, soil type, and elevation zones, in a land (surface) model and its performance in the context of modeling. We used a vector-based setup instead of the commonly used grid-based setup to identify this trade-off. We also assessed the often neglected parameter uncertainty and its impact on the land model simulations.
Ganggang Zuo, Jungang Luo, Ni Wang, Yani Lian, and Xinxin He
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 5491–5518, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5491-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5491-2020, 2020
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A two-stage variational mode decomposition and support vector regression is designed to reduce the influence of boundary effects without removing or correcting boundary-affected decompositions. The proposed model significantly reduces the boundary effect consequences, saves modeling time and computation resources, barely overfits the calibration samples, and forecasts monthly runoff reasonably well compared to the benchmark models.
Nils Hinrich Kaplan, Theresa Blume, and Markus Weiler
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 5453–5472, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5453-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5453-2020, 2020
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In recent decades the demand for detailed information of spatial and temporal dynamics of the stream network has grown in the fields of eco-hydrology and extreme flow prediction. We use temporal streamflow intermittency data obtained at various sites using innovative sensing technology as well as spatial predictors to predict and map probabilities of streamflow intermittency. This approach has the potential to provide intermittency maps for hydrological modelling and management practices.
Mattia Neri, Juraj Parajka, and Elena Toth
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 5149–5171, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5149-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-5149-2020, 2020
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One of the most informative ways to gain information on ungauged river sections is through the implementation of a rainfall-runoff model, exploiting the information collected in gauged catchments in the study area. This study analyses how the performances of different model regionalisation approaches are influenced by the informative content of the available regional data set, in order to identify the methods that are more suitable for the data availability in the region.
Stefania Camici, Christian Massari, Luca Ciabatta, Ivan Marchesini, and Luca Brocca
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 4869–4885, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4869-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4869-2020, 2020
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The paper performs the most comprehensive European-scale evaluation to date of satellite rainfall products for river flow prediction. In doing so, how errors transfer from satellite-based rainfall products into flood simulation is investigated in depth and, for the first time, quantitative guidelines on the use of these products for hydrological applications are provided. This result can represent a keystone in the use of satellite rainfall products, especially in data-scarce regions.
Renaud Hostache, Dominik Rains, Kaniska Mallick, Marco Chini, Ramona Pelich, Hans Lievens, Fabrizio Fenicia, Giovanni Corato, Niko E. C. Verhoest, and Patrick Matgen
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 4793–4812, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4793-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4793-2020, 2020
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Our objective is to investigate how satellite microwave sensors, particularly Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS), may help to reduce errors and uncertainties in soil moisture simulations with a large-scale conceptual hydro-meteorological model. We assimilated a long time series of SMOS observations into a hydro-meteorological model and showed that this helps to improve model predictions. This work therefore contributes to the development of faster and more accurate drought prediction tools.
Hui Sheng, Xiaomei Xu, Jian Hua Gao, Albert J. Kettner, Yong Shi, Chengfeng Xue, Ya Ping Wang, and Shu Gao
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 4743–4761, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4743-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4743-2020, 2020
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This paper investigates the variability of past flooding by applying a numerical model coupled with historical records of regional climate and anthropogenic activity under the deficiency of observations. We conclude that trends in flooding frequency were predominantly modulated by the intensity and frequency of extreme rainfall events, which highlights the need for the implementation of effective river engineering measures to counteract increasing flood risks as a result of the future.
Marc Girons Lopez, Marc J. P. Vis, Michal Jenicek, Nena Griessinger, and Jan Seibert
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 4441–4461, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4441-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4441-2020, 2020
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Snow processes are crucial for runoff in mountainous areas, but their complexity makes water management difficult. Temperature models are widely used as they are simple and do not require much data, but not much thought is usually given to which model to use, which may lead to bad predictions. We studied the impact of many model alternatives and found that a more complex model does not necessarily perform better. Finding which processes are most important in each area is a much better strategy.
Uwe Ehret, Rik van Pruijssen, Marina Bortoli, Ralf Loritz, Elnaz Azmi, and Erwin Zehe
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 24, 4389–4411, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4389-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-24-4389-2020, 2020
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In this paper we propose adaptive clustering as a new method for reducing the computational efforts of distributed modelling. It consists of identifying similar-acting model elements during the runtime, clustering them, running the model for just a few representatives per cluster, and mapping their results to the remaining model elements in the cluster. With the example of a hydrological model, we show that this saves considerable computation time, while largely maintaining the output quality.
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Short summary
Documenting mean transit times is critical for understanding and managing catchments. Mean transit times in six headwater catchments of the Otway Ranges, Australia, determined using tritium, range from 7 to 230 years. Tritium activities correlate well with streamflow but are difficult to predict from catchment attributes or major ion geochemistry. The long mean transit times suggest that the catchments are buffered from short-term rainfall variations.
Documenting mean transit times is critical for understanding and managing catchments. Mean...
