A numerical simulation of the surface water budget during HAPEX-MOBILHY

A simple land surface parameterization scheme previously validated at the daily time scale is studied for monthly periods using the HAPEX-MOBILHY data set. For a set of six locations, the scheme reproduces with good accuracy two components of the surface water budget (evaporation and soil moisture depletion) when the observed rainfall rate at the ground surface is specified. For two sites where the superficial soil moisture content has been measured, the model provides a reasonable evolution for this quantity. The validation has been completed by examining the screen-level temperature and relative humidity. The agreement with observations is fair, except when the local properties of the site strongly differ from those of the surroundings.