Articles | Volume 29, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-159-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-159-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
14 Jan 2025
Research article |
| 14 Jan 2025
| 14 Jan 2025
Can system dynamics explain long-term hydrological behaviors? The role of endogenous linking structure
Key Laboratory of Agricultural Water Resources, Hebei Laboratory of Agricultural Water-Saving, Center for Agricultural Resources Research, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shijiazhuang 050021, China
Zhuping Sheng
Department of Civil Engineering, Morgan State University, Baltimore, MD 21251, USA
Kiril Manevski
Department of Agroecology, Aarhus University, Tjele 8830, Denmark
Sino-Danish College, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yanqihu Campus, Beijing 101408, China
Department of Environmental Science, iClimate – Aarhus University Interdisciplinary Center for Climate Change, Roskilde 4000, Denmark
Rongtian Zhao
State Key Laboratory of Resources and Environmental Information System, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
Qingzhou Zhang
Land Resources Exploration Center of Hebei Bureau of Geology and Mineral Exploration and Development (Hebei Mine and Geological Disaster Emergency Rescue Center), Shijiazhuang 050081, China
Yanmin Yang
Key Laboratory of Agricultural Water Resources, Hebei Laboratory of Agricultural Water-Saving, Center for Agricultural Resources Research, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shijiazhuang 050021, China
Shumin Han
Key Laboratory of Agricultural Water Resources, Hebei Laboratory of Agricultural Water-Saving, Center for Agricultural Resources Research, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shijiazhuang 050021, China
Jinghong Liu
Key Laboratory of Agricultural Water Resources, Hebei Laboratory of Agricultural Water-Saving, Center for Agricultural Resources Research, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shijiazhuang 050021, China
College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
Yonghui Yang
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Key Laboratory of Agricultural Water Resources, Hebei Laboratory of Agricultural Water-Saving, Center for Agricultural Resources Research, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shijiazhuang 050021, China
Sino-Danish College, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yanqihu Campus, Beijing 101408, China
College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
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The hydrological processes of a watershed system are affected by both natural conditions, such as rainfall and drought, and human activities, such as deforestation and afforestation. Therefore different hydrological responses to climatic and anthropogenic changes are expected. Using a spectral approach, this study confirmed that the driving factors of water storage and streamflow generation mechanism vary over time. This is important for water resources management under changing world.
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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.
Conventional hydrological models erratically replicate slow hydrological dynamics, necessitating...
