Water balance of the Sudanese savannah woodland region

Abstract

The annual water balance for 39 grid cells covering the savannah woodland region of Sudan (10–16°N; 21–36°E) was determined and regional maps produced. Long-term (1961–1990) mean monthly climate data, National Forest Inventory data and Harmonized World Soil Database data for arenosols and vertisols, the two dominant soil types in the region, were used. Model validation was performed using daily data from a site in one of the grid cells and inter-annual (1961–1990) variation examined for another grid cell. Rainfall varied from 147 to 732 mm and only exceeded evapotranspiration for 18 of the grid cells, resulting in a small increase in soil moisture and runoff. Evapotranspiration accounted for, on average, 96% of rainfall and there was little difference between soil types. Drainage only occurred from AR soils and for four of the grid cells. Runoff varied from 0 to 89 mm for arenosols and from 0 to 109 mm for vertisols. The study provided useful insights into the spatial variability in water balance components across the region.

Editor D. Koutsoyiannis; Associate editor D. Gerten     

The water balance of Lake Kyoga,Uganda

Abstract

The annual water balance of Lake Kyoga is estimated by a comparison of upstream and downstream flows in the Nile channel during a period of reliable measurements (1940–1977), supported by rainfall records over the basin. The relative contributions of net lake rainfall and tributary inflows are estimated. Changes in annual rainfall and seasonal distribution are examined.

Editor Z.W. Kundzewicz

Citation Brown, E. and Sutcliffe, J.V., 2013. The water balance of Lake Kyoga, Uganda. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 58 (2), 342–353.     

Energy fluxes and melt rate of a seasonal snow cover in the Moroccan High Atlas

ABSTRACT

In this study, we used an energy balance model and two simple methods based on readily available data to identify the processes driving the point-scale energy and mass balance of the snowpack. Data were provided from an experimental site located at 3200 m. All models were evaluated by comparing observed and modelled snow water equivalents. Performances are variable from one season to the next and the energy balance model gives better results (mean of root mean square error, RMSE = 25 mm and r² = 0.90) than the two simplified approaches (mean of RMSE = 54 mm and r² = 0.70). There are significant amounts of snow sublimation but they are highly variable from season to season, depending on wind conditions (between 7 and 20% of the total). While the main source of energy for melting is net radiation, the amount of heat brought by sensible heat flux is significant for two of the most windy snow seasons.

Editor Z.W. Kundzewicz Associate editor not assigned     

Exploring the Juggling of Responsibilities with Space-Time Accessibility Analysis

The ways employed parents negotiate and combine employment and caring responsibilities has recently attracted increased attention in the social sciences. Nonetheless, many studies provide only limited insight into the opportunities that specific physical, institutional, and cultural contexts offer to parents for "juggling" responsibilities. Space-time accessibility modeling might be used to fill this gap, although its conceptualizations of human subjects, space, and time need to be rethought in light of feminist geographic concerns. We propose ethnographic or narrative space-time accessibility analysis as a partial and situated way of alerting readers/spectators to the ways constraints coalesce into opportunities for juggling responsibilities. The approach is illustrated through a case study of a highly educated mother who has to reconcile fixed employment times, chauffeuring her son to childcare, and a lengthy commute via the congested highways around Utrecht in the Netherlands.     

Coupling the terrestrial hydrology model with biogeochemistry to the integrated LAND surface model: Amazon Basin applications

ABSTRACT

We coupled the hydrologic routing and flood dynamics model Terrestrial Hydrology Model with Biogeochemistry (THMB) to the Integrated LAND Surface Model (INLAND) and compared simulations of the discharge and flood extent area against gauge station and satellite-based information in the Amazon Basin. The coupled model represents well the seasonality of the flooding and discharge, but underestimates both of them. This can be related to an already discussed underestimate of the precipitation in the east of the Andes Mountains. A photosynthesis limitation on the flooded area was also included, showing changes in plant productivity and reduction in vegetation carbon stocks. Despite its limitations, the model proves to be a valuable tool for studies of the hydrological cycle and flood dynamics response to climate change projections, allowing it to be used to represent the feedbacks between continental surface water cycle and vegetation.     

Lysimetric evaluation of SEBAL using high resolution airborne imagery from BEAREX08

In this study, Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (SEBAL) was evaluated for its ability to derive aerodynamic components and surface energy fluxes from very high resolution airborne remote sensing data acquired during the Bushland Evapotranspiration and Agricultural Remote Sensing Experiment 2008 (BEAREX08) in Texas, USA. Issues related to hot and cold pixel selection and the underlying assumptions of difference between air and surface temperature (dT) being linearly related to the surface temperature were also addressed. Estimated instantaneous evapotranspiration (ET) and other components of the surface energy balance were compared with measured data from four large precision weighing lysimeter fields, two each managed under irrigation and dryland conditions. Instantaneous ET was estimated with overall mean bias error and root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.13 and 0.15 mm h⁻¹ (23.8 and 28.2%) respectively, where relatively large RMSE was contributed by dryland field. Sensitivity analysis of the hot and cold pixel selection indicated that up to 20% of the variability in ET estimates could be attributed to differences in the surface energy balance and roughness properties of the anchor pixels. Adoption of an excess resistance to heat transfer parameter model into SEBAL significantly improved the instantaneous ET estimates.     

Comparative performance of soil water balance models in computing semi-arid aquifer recharge

Abstract

Estimating groundwater recharge is essential to ensure the sustainable use of groundwater resources, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions. Soil water balances have been frequently advocated as valuable tools to estimate groundwater recharge. This article compares the performance of three soil water balance models (Hydrobal, Visual Balan v2.0 and Thornthwaite) in the Ventós-Castellar aquifer, Spain. The models were used to simulate wet and dry years. Recharge estimates were transformed into water table fluctuations by means of a lumped groundwater model. These, in turn, were calibrated against piezometric data. Overall, the Hydrobal model shows the best fit between observed and calculated levels (r² = 0.84), highlighting the role of soil moisture and vegetation in recharge processes.

Editor D. Koutsoyiannis; Associate editor X. Chen

Citation Touhami, I., et al., 2014. Comparative performance of soil water balance models in computing semi-arid aquifer recharge. Hydrological Sciences Journal, 59 (1), 193–203.     

Estimation of the Budyko model parameter for small basins in China

At the mean annual scale, water availability of a basin is substantially determined by how much precipitation will be partitioned into evapotranspiration and run-off. The Budyko framework provides a simple but efficient tool to estimate precipitation partitioning at the basin scale. As one form of the Budyko framework, Fu's equation has been widely used to model long-term basin-scale water balance. The major difficulty in applications of Fu's equation is determining how to estimate the curve shape parameter ω efficiently. Previous studies have suggested that the parameter ω is closely related to the long-term vegetation coverage on large river basins globally. However, on small basins, the parameter ω is difficult to estimate due to the diversity of controlling factors. Here, we focused on the estimation of ω for small basins in China. We identified the major factors controlling the basin-specific (calibrated) ω from nine catchment attributes based on a dataset from 206 small basins (≤50,000 km²) across China. Next, we related the calibrated ω to the major factors controlling ω using two statistical models, that is, the multiple linear regression (MLR) model and artificial neural network (ANN) model. We compared and validated the two statistical models using an independent dataset of 80 small basins. The results indicated that in addition to vegetation, other landscape factors (e.g., topography and human activity) need to be considered to capture the variability of ω on small basins better. Contrary to previous findings reached on large basins worldwide, the basin-specific ω and remote sensing-based vegetation greenness index exhibit a significant negative correlation. Compared with the default ω value of 2.6 used in the Budyko curve method, the two statistical models significantly improved the mean annual ET simulations on validation basins by reducing the root mean square error from 114 mm/year to 74.5 mm/year for the MLR model and 70 mm/year for the ANN model. In comparison, the ANN model can provide a better ω estimation than the MLR model.     

Spatio-temporal patterns of the interaction between groundwater and surface water in plains

The study of the dynamics of anthropic disturbances that have an effect on the hydrological systems in plains requires integral simulation tools for their diagnosis. The objective of this article is, first, to analyse and reproduce the spatio-temporal interactions between groundwater (GW) and surface water, net recharge, GW level, surface run-off, and evapotranspiration in the upper creek basin of Del Azul, which is located in the centre of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and second, to obtain insights to apply the methodology to other similar situations. For this purpose, a model coupling the semidistributed hydrological model (Soil and Water Assessment Tool [SWAT]) and the hydrogeological model (MODFLOW) has been used. A simulation was carried out for a period of 13 years (2003–2015) on a daily scale. The application of the SWAT–MODFLOW coupling gave good results based on the adjustment between the calculated flows and levels, reaching a Nash–Sutcliffe of 0.6 and R²0.6 at the Seminario hydrometric station located at the watershed outlet point. According to the annual average balance, out of the total rainfall, evapotranspiration accounts for 85%, recharge accounts for 10.2%, and surface run-off accounts for 4.8%. Annual and monthly trends of the stream–aquifer interaction were determined, obtaining on average an annual GW discharge of 34 mm and an annual average recharge of the stream to the aquifer of 1.4 mm. Monthly GW discharges are higher in winter–spring (July to December with an average of 3.3 mm) and lower in summer–autumn (January to June with an average of 2.8 mm). The monthly average recharge of the stream towards the aquifer varies from 0.02 to 0.36 mm and is higher in March, May, and August, when water excess is produced in the basin. Through the analysis of coupled modelling, it is possible to analyse and reproduce the spatio-temporal transitions of flow existing between the stream, the hyporheic zone, and the aquifer.