Effects of spatial soil moisture variability in forest plots on model parametrization and simulated groundwater recharge estimates

Fichtner, Thomas; Aguilar Avila, Yuly Juliana; Ehrenberg, Katja; Seeger, Stefan; Maier, Martin; Raspe, Stephan; Hartmann, Andreas

doi:10.5194/hess-30-5711-2026

Articles | Volume 30, issue 17

https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-30-5711-2026

© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-30-5711-2026

© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 30, issue 17

Research article

|

09 Sep 2026

Research article |

| 09 Sep 2026

Effects of spatial soil moisture variability in forest plots on model parametrization and simulated groundwater recharge estimates

Thomas Fichtner, Yuly Juliana Aguilar Avila, Katja Ehrenberg, Stefan Seeger, Martin Maier, Stephan Raspe, and Andreas Hartmann

Supplement

https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-30-5711-2026-supplement

Data sets

Soil moisture monitoring and processed meteorological data for forest water balance modelling at Kienhorst and Tharandt site T. Fichtner and K. Ehrenberg https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21886983

Short summary

The study examines how spatial soil moisture variability affects Soil-Vegetation-Atmosphere Transfer (SVAT) model calibration and groundwater recharge estimates in forest ecosystems. It is demonstrated that model-inherent uncertainties outweight the influence of soil moisture variability. The results indicate that reliable groundwater recharge can be achieved using data from three to eleven profiles, offering practical guidance for efficient monitoring and calibration.