From spatially variable streamflow to distributed hydrological models: Analysis of key modeling decisions

The effect of spatial throughfall pattern on soil moisture patterns at the hillslope scale

Improving the understanding of the controls on subsurface stormflow generation has been the goal of numerous experimental and modeling studies. However, the effect of the spatial variability of throughfall on soil moisture patterns and subsurface stormflow (SSF) generation has not yet been studied in detail. The objectives of this study are...

Inferring catchment precipitation by doing hydrology backward: A test in 24 small and mesoscale catchments in Luxembourg

The complexity of hydrological systems and the necessary simplification of models describing these systems remain major challenges in hydrological modeling. Kirchner's (2009) approach of inferring rainfall and evaporation from discharge fluctuations by “doing hydrology backward” is based on the assumption that catchment behavior can be...

Analytical derivation of the Budyko curve based on rainfall characteristics and a simple evaporation model

The Budyko curve is often used to estimate the actual evaporation as a function of the aridity index in a catchment. Different empirical equations exist to describe this relationship; however, these equations have very limited physical background. The model concept presented in this paper is physically based and uses only measurable parameters....

Understanding catchment behavior through stepwise model concept improvement

Lack of data is one of the main limitations for hydrological modeling. However, it is often used as a justification for over simplifying, poorly performing models. If we want to enhance our understanding of hydrological systems, it is important to fully exploit the information contained in the available data, and to learn from model deficiencies...

A comparison of alternative multiobjective calibration strategies for hydrological modeling

A conceptual hydrological model structure contains several parameters that have to be estimated through matching observed and modeled watershed behavior in a calibration process. The requirement that a model simulation matches different aspects of system response at the same time has led the calibration problem toward a multiobjective approach....

New technique to measure forest floor interception: An application in a beech forest in Luxembourg

A distributed stream temperature model using high resolution temperature observations

Is the groundwater reservoir linear? Learning from data in hydrological modelling

Although catchment behaviour during recession periods is better identifiable than in other periods, the representation of hydrograph recession is often weak in hydrological simulations. Among the various aspects that influence model performance during low flows, in this paper we concentrate on those more inherently related to the modelling, such...

Modelling subsurface storm flow with the Representative Elementary Watershed (REW) approach: Application to the Alzette River Basin