Articles | Volume 23, issue 7
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-3057-2019
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-23-3057-2019
Research article
 | 
18 Jul 2019
Research article |  | 18 Jul 2019

Assessing the performance of global hydrological models for capturing peak river flows in the Amazon basin

Jamie Towner, Hannah L. Cloke, Ervin Zsoter, Zachary Flamig, Jannis M. Hoch, Juan Bazo, Erin Coughlan de Perez, and Elisabeth M. Stephens

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Cited articles

Alfieri, L., Burek, P., Dutra, E., Krzeminski, B., Muraro, D., Thielen, J., and Pappenberger, F.: GloFAS – global ensemble streamflow forecasting and flood early warning, Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 17, 1161–1175, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-17-1161-2013, 2013. 
Adreadis, K. M., Schumann, G. J.-P., Stampoulis, D., Bates, P. D., Brakenridge, G. R., and Kettner, A. J.: Can atmospheric reanalysis datasets be used to reproduce flooding over large scales?, Geophys. Res. Lett., 44, 10369–10377, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017GL075502, 2017. 
Andreadis, K. M., Schumann, G. J. P., Stampoulis, D., Bates, P. D., Brakenridge, G. R., and Kettner, A. J.: Can Atmospheric Reanalysis Data Sets Be Used to Reproduce Flooding Over Large Scales?, Geophys. Res. Lett., 44, 10369–10377, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017GL075502, 2017. 
Arnell, N. W. and Gosling, S. N.: The impacts of climate change on river flood risk at the global scale, Climatic Change, 134, 387–401, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-014-1084-5, 2016. 
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Short summary
This study presents an intercomparison analysis of eight global hydrological models (GHMs), assessing their ability to simulate peak river flows in the Amazon basin. Results indicate that the meteorological input is the most influential component of the hydrological modelling chain, with the recent ERA-5 reanalysis dataset significantly improving the ability to simulate flood peaks in the Peruvian Amazon. In contrast, calibration of the Lisflood routing model was found to have no impact.
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