Articles | Volume 29, issue 15
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-3447-2025
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-29-3447-2025
Review article
 | 
01 Aug 2025
Review article |  | 01 Aug 2025

Barriers to urban hydrometeorological simulation: a review

Xuan Chen, Job Augustijn van der Werf, Arjan Droste, Miriam Coenders-Gerrits, and Remko Uijlenhoet

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This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Hydrology and Earth System Sciences (HESS).
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Cited articles

Aboulnaga, M., Trombadore, A., Mostafa, M., and Abouaiana, A.: Understanding urban heat island effect: Causes, impacts, factors, and strategies for better livability and climate change mitigation and adaptation, in: Livable Cities: Urban Heat Islands Mitigation for Climate Change Adaptation Through Urban Greening, edited by: Aboulnaga, M., Trombadore, A., Mostafa, M., and Abouaiana, A., Springer International Publishing, Cham, 283–366, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-51220-9_2, 2024. a
Aliabadi, A. A., Chen, X., Yang, J., Madadizadeh, A., and Siddiqui, K.: Retrofit optimization of building systems for future climates using an urban physics model, Build. Environ., 243, 110655, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2023.110655, 2023. a
Bera, D., Kumar, P., Siddiqui, A., and Majumdar, A.: Assessing impact of urbanisation on surface runoff using vegetation-impervious surface-soil (V-I-S) fraction and NRCS curve number (CN) model, Modeling Earth Systems and Environment, 8, 309–322, https://doi.org/10.1007/s40808-020-01079-z, 2022. a
Berggren, K., Olofsson, M., Viklander, M., Svensson, G., and Gustafsson, A.-M.: Hydraulic impacts on urban drainage systems due to changes in rainfall caused by climatic change, J. Hydrol. Eng., 17, 92–98, https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)HE.1943-5584.0000406, 2012. a
Berthier, E., Andrieu, H., and Creutin, J. D.: The role of soil in the generation of urban runoff: Development and evaluation of a 2D model, J. Hydrol., 299, 252–266, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2004.08.008, 2004.  a, b, c
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Short summary
The review highlights the need to integrate urban land surface and hydrological models to better predict and manage compound climate events in cities. We find that inadequate representation of water surfaces, hydraulic systems and detailed building representations are key areas for improvement in future models. Coupled models show promise but face challenges at regional and neighbourhood scales. Interdisciplinary communication is crucial to enhance urban hydrometeorological simulations.
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