Stochastic models in hydrology

A stochastic approach to the analysis of hydrologic processes is defined along with a discussion of causes of tendency, periodicity and stochasticity in hydrologic series. Sources of temporal non-stationarity are described along with objectives and methods of analysis of processes and, in general, of information extraction from data. Transferred information as measured by correlation coefficients is compared with the transferable information as measured by entropy coefficients. Various multivariate approaches to hydrologic stochastic modeling are classified in light of complexities of spatial/temporal hydrologic processes. Alternatives of time series structural decomposition and modeling are compared. A special approach to modeling of space properties further contributes to approximate simulations of spatial/temporal processes over large areas. Several aspects of stochastic models in hydrology are concisely reviewed.