Performance and sensitivity of a spatially distributed hydrological conceptual flood model with snow components.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
François Colleoni ◽  
Catherine Fouchier ◽  
Pierre-André Garambois ◽  
Pierre Javelle ◽  
Maxime Jay-Allemand ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Significant Proportion ◽  
Slow Flow ◽  
Modeling Tools ◽  
Snow Modeling ◽  
Distributed Modelling ◽  
Distributed Framework ◽  
Mountainous Catchments ◽  
Spatially Distributed ◽  
Flow Components ◽  
Spatially Varying

<p>In France, flash floods are responsible for a significant proportion of damages caused by natural hazards, either human or material. Hence, advanced modeling tools are needed to perform effective predictions. However for mountainous catchments snow modeling components may be required to correctly simulate river discharge.</p><p>This contribution investigates the implementation and constrain of snow components in the spatially distributed SMASH* platform (Jay-Allemand et al. 2020). The goal is to upgrade model structure and spatially distributed calibration strategies for snow-influenced catchments, as well as to investigate parametric sensitivity and equifinality issues. First, the implementation of snow modules of varying complexity is addressed based on Cemaneige (Valery et al. 2010) in the spatially distributed framework. Next, tests are performed on a sample of 55 catchments in the French North Alps. Numerical experiments and global sensitivity analysis enable to determine pertinent combinations of flow components (including a slow flow one) and calibration parameters. Spatially uniform or distributed calibrations using a variational method (Jay-Allemand 2020) are performed and compared on the dataset, for different model structures and constrains. These tests show critical improvements in outlet discharge modeling by adding slow flow and snow modules, especially considering spatially varying parameters. Current and future works focus on testing and improving the constrains of snow modules and calibration strategy, as well as potential validation and multiobjective calibration with snow signatures gained from in situ or satellite data. </p><p>*SMASH: Spatially-distributed Modelling and ASsimilation for Hydrology, platform developped by INRAE-Hydris corp. for operational applications in the french flood forecast system VigicruesFlash</p>

scholarly journals Spatially distributed modelling of surface water-groundwater exchanges during overbank flood events – a case study at the Garonne River

2016 ◽  
Vol 94 ◽  
pp. 146-159 ◽  
Author(s):  
Léonard Bernard-Jannin ◽  
David Brito ◽  
Xiaoling Sun ◽  
Eduardo Jauch ◽  
Ramiro Neves ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Surface Water ◽  
Flood Events ◽  
Distributed Modelling ◽  
Garonne River ◽  
Spatially Distributed

scholarly journals Use of Sentinel-1 radar observations to evaluate snowmelt dynamics in alpine regions

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 935-956 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlo Marin ◽  
Giacomo Bertoldi ◽  
Valentina Premier ◽  
Mattia Callegari ◽  
Christian Brida ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Snow Water Equivalent ◽  
Melting Process ◽  
Liquid Water Content ◽  
Sar Images ◽  
Distributed Information ◽  
Snow Modeling ◽  
Alpine Regions ◽  
Snow Properties ◽  
Wet Snow ◽  
Spatially Distributed

Abstract. Knowing the timing and the evolution of the snow melting process is very important, since it allows the prediction of (i) the snowmelt onset, (ii) the snow gliding and wet-snow avalanches, (iii) the release of snow contaminants, and (iv) the runoff onset. The snowmelt can be monitored by jointly measuring snowpack parameters such as the snow water equivalent (SWE) or the amount of free liquid water content (LWC). However, continuous measurements of SWE and LWC are rare and difficult to obtain. On the other hand, active microwave sensors such as the synthetic aperture radar (SAR) mounted on board satellites are highly sensitive to LWC of the snowpack and can provide spatially distributed information with a high resolution. Moreover, with the introduction of Sentinel-1, SAR images are regularly acquired every 6 d over several places in the world. In this paper we analyze the correlation between the multitemporal SAR backscattering and the snowmelt dynamics. We compared Sentinel-1 backscattering with snow properties derived from in situ observations and process-based snow modeling simulations for five alpine test sites in Italy, Germany and Switzerland considering 2 hydrological years. We found that the multitemporal SAR measurements allow the identification of the three melting phases that characterize the melting process, i.e., moistening, ripening and runoff. In particular, we found that the C-band SAR backscattering decreases as soon as the snow starts containing water and that the backscattering increases as soon as SWE starts decreasing, which corresponds to the release of meltwater from the snowpack. We discuss the possible reasons of this increase, which are not directly correlated to the SWE decrease but to the different snow conditions, which change the backscattering mechanisms. Finally, we show a spatially distributed application of the identification of the runoff onset from SAR images for a mountain catchment, i.e., the Zugspitze catchment in Germany. Results allow us to better understand the spatial and temporal evolution of melting dynamics in mountain regions. The presented investigation could have relevant applications for monitoring and predicting the snowmelt progress over large regions.

scholarly journals Modelling the transfer of supraglacial meltwater to the bed of Leverett Glacier, Southwest Greenland

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 123-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. C. Clason ◽  
D. W. F. Mair ◽  
P. W. Nienow ◽  
I. D. Bartholomew ◽  
A. Sole ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Considerable Effort ◽  
Distributed Modelling ◽  
Supraglacial Lakes ◽  
Ice Surface ◽  
Air Temperatures ◽  
Spatially Distributed ◽  
Temporal And Spatial ◽  
Southwest Greenland ◽  
Efficient Transfer

Abstract. Meltwater delivered to the bed of the Greenland Ice Sheet is a driver of variable ice-motion through changes in effective pressure and enhanced basal lubrication. Ice surface velocities have been shown to respond rapidly both to meltwater production at the surface and to drainage of supraglacial lakes, suggesting efficient transfer of meltwater from the supraglacial to subglacial hydrological systems. Although considerable effort is currently being directed towards improved modelling of the controlling surface and basal processes, modelling the temporal and spatial evolution of the transfer of melt to the bed has received less attention. Here we present the results of spatially distributed modelling for prediction of moulins and lake drainages on the Leverett Glacier in Southwest Greenland. The model is run for the 2009 and 2010 ablation seasons, and for future increased melt scenarios. The temporal pattern of modelled lake drainages are qualitatively comparable with those documented from analyses of repeat satellite imagery. The modelled timings and locations of delivery of meltwater to the bed also match well with observed temporal and spatial patterns of ice surface speed-ups. This is particularly true for the lower catchment (<1000 m a.s.l.) where both the model and observations indicate that the development of moulins is the main mechanism for the transfer of surface meltwater to the bed. At higher elevations (e.g. 1250–1500 m a.s.l.) the development and drainage of supraglacial lakes becomes increasingly important. At these higher elevations, the delay between modelled melt generation and subsequent delivery of melt to the bed matches the observed delay between the peak air temperatures and subsequent velocity speed-ups, while the instantaneous transfer of melt to the bed in a control simulation does not. Although both moulins and lake drainages are predicted to increase in number for future warmer climate scenarios, the lake drainages play an increasingly important role in both expanding the area over which melt accesses the bed and in enabling a greater proportion of surface melt to reach the bed.

scholarly journals Stream discharge depends more on the temporal distribution of water inputs than on yearly snowfall fractions for a headwater catchment at the rain-snow transition zone

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leonie Kiewiet ◽  
Ernesto Trujillo ◽  
Andrew Hedrick ◽  
Scott Havens ◽  
Katherine Hale ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Transition Zone ◽  
Temporal Distribution ◽  
Low Flow ◽  
Stream Discharge ◽  
Stream Drying ◽  
Distributed Modelling ◽  
Spatially Distributed ◽  
Dry Out ◽  
Annual Discharge ◽  
Headwater Catchment

Abstract. Climate warming affects snowfall fractions and snowpack storage, displaces the rain-snow transition zone towards higher elevations, and impacts discharge timing and magnitude as well as low-flow patterns. However, it remains unknown how variations in the spatial and temporal distribution of precipitation at the rain-snow transition zone affect discharge. To investigate this, we used observations from eleven weather stations and snow depths measured in one aerial lidar survey to force a spatially distributed snowpack model (iSnobal/Automated Water Supply Model) in a semi-arid, 1.8 km2 headwater catchment at the rain-snow transition zone. We focused on surface water inputs (SWI; the summation of rainfall and snowmelt) for four years with contrasting climatological conditions (wet, dry, rainy and snowy) and compared simulated SWI to measured discharge. We obtained a strong spatial agreement between snow depth from the lidar survey and model (r2: 0.88), and a median Nash-Sutcliffe Efficiency (NSE) of 0.65 for simulated and measured snow depths for all modelled years (0.75 for normalized snow depths). The spatial pattern of SWI was consistent between the four years, with north-facing slopes producing 1.09 to 1.25 times more SWI than south-facing slopes, and snow drifts producing up to six times more SWI than the catchment average. We found that discharge in a snowy year was almost twice as high as in a rainy year, despite similar SWI. However, years with a lower snowfall fraction did not always have lower annual discharge nor earlier stream drying. Instead, we found that the dry-out date at the catchment outlet was positively correlated to the snowpack melt-out date. These results highlight the heterogeneity of SWI at the rain-snow transition zone and emphasize the need for spatially distributed modelling or monitoring of both the snowpack and rainfall.

scholarly journals Modelling the transfer of supraglacial meltwater to the bed of Leverett Glacier, southwest Greenland

2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 4243-4280 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. C. Clason ◽  
D. W. F. Mair ◽  
P. W. Nienow ◽  
I. D. Bartholomew ◽  
A. Sole ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Patterns ◽  
Greenland Ice Sheet ◽  
Temporal And Spatial Patterns ◽  
Distributed Modelling ◽  
Supraglacial Lakes ◽  
Ice Surface ◽  
Air Temperatures ◽  
Spatially Distributed ◽  
Temporal And Spatial ◽  
Efficient Transfer

Abstract. Meltwater delivered to the bed of the Greenland Ice Sheet is a driver of variable ice-motion through changes in effective pressure and enhanced basal lubrication. Ice surface velocities have been shown to respond rapidly both to meltwater production at the surface and to drainage of supraglacial lakes, suggesting efficient transfer of meltwater from the supraglacial to subglacial hydrological systems. Although considerable effort is currently being directed towards improved modelling of the controlling surface and basal processes, modelling the temporal and spatial evolution of the transfer of melt to the bed has received less attention. Here we present the results of spatially-distributed modelling for prediction of moulins and lake drainages on the Leverett Glacier in south-west Greenland. The model is run for the 2009 and 2010 ablation seasons, and for future increased melt scenarios. The temporal and spatial patterns of modelled lake drainages are qualitatively comparable with those seen from analyses of satellite imagery. The modelled timings and locations of delivery of meltwater to the bed match well with observed temporal and spatial patterns of ice surface speed ups. This is particularly true for the lower catchment (< 1000 m a.s.l.) where both the model and observations indicate that the development of moulins is the main mechanism for the transfer of surface meltwater to the bed. At higher elevations (e.g. 1250–1500 m a.s.l.) the development and drainage of supraglacial lakes becomes increasingly important. At these higher elevations, the delay between modelled melt generation and subsequent delivery of melt to the bed matches the observed delay between the peak air temperatures and subsequent velocity speed ups. Although both moulins and lake drainages are predicted to increase in number for future warmer climate scenarios, the lake drainages play an increasingly important role in both expanding the area over which melt accesses the bed and in enabling a greater proportion of surface melt to reach the bed.

scholarly journals Application of WaSiM-ETH model to Northern German lowland catchments: model performance in relation to catchment characteristics and sensitivity to land use change

2010 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Bormann ◽  
S. Elfert
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Use Change ◽  
Water Balance ◽  
Model Performance ◽  
Catchment Characteristics ◽  
Mountainous Catchments ◽  
Spatially Distributed ◽  
Distributed Process ◽  
Effects Of Land Use ◽  
Catchment Model

Abstract. The hydrological catchment model WaSiM-ETH (Water Balance Simulation Model) is a spatially distributed, process- and grid-based hydrological catchment model which was primarily developed to simulate the water balance of mountainous catchments. In this study, the ability of WaSiM-ETH was tested to describe the hydrological processes of lowland catchments. In addition, the resulting model performance was related to subcatchment characteristics and the model's sensitivity to possible future land use change. The prediction of the hydrological effects of land use change is a major challenge in contemporary hydrological model applications. The study revealed that WaSiM-ETH is a suitable tool for the simulation of the hydrological behaviour of lowland catchments. However, for a few subcatchments model validation failed. Analysing the correlation between model performance and physiographic catchment characteristics revealed that WaSiM-ETH performs better in sloped catchments compared to plane ones. Modelling results were also better in heterogeneous catchments with respect to soils and vegetation compared to homogenous ones. However, the hydrological reaction to land use change scenarios was similar in all investigated catchments.

scholarly journals Spatially distributed modelling of soil erosion and sediment yield at regional scales in Spain

2008 ◽  
Vol 60 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 393-415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joris de Vente ◽  
Jean Poesen ◽  
Gert Verstraeten ◽  
Anton Van Rompaey ◽  
Gerard Govers
Keyword(s):  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Sediment Yield ◽  
Distributed Modelling ◽  
Spatially Distributed

scholarly journals Applying a time-lapse camera network to observe snow processes in mountainous catchments

2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. 10687-10717
Author(s):  
J. Garvelmann ◽  
S. Pohl ◽  
M. Weiler
Keyword(s):  
Time Lapse ◽  
Precipitation Event ◽  
Digital Cameras ◽  
Camera Network ◽  
Canopy Interception ◽  
Mountainous Catchments ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Spatially Distributed ◽  
Winter Flooding ◽  
Flooding Events

Abstract. A network of 45 spatially distributed time-lapse cameras was used to carry out a continuous observation of snow processes and snow cover properties throughout three mid-latitude medium elevation mountain catchments in hourly intervals. A simple technical modification was conducted to enable the deployment of the standard digital cameras in any location. Image analysis software was applied to extract information about snow depth, surface albedo, and canopy interception from the digital images. Furthermore, the distributed design of the camera network made it possible to identify the elevation of the snow rain interface for any precipitation event for the interpretation of winter flooding events resulting from snow melt. Study results prove that the application of digital time-lapse photography is an appropriate technique to observe the spatial distribution and temporal evolution of seasonal snow covers in a mountainous environment.

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