Limitations in interpretable top-down effective rainfall-runoff modelling

J. P. Norton*

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

    Abstract

    The effective rainfall-flow module of a "top-down" hydrological model has linear, fixed dynamics, giving a two-exponential instantaneous unit hydrograph (IUH) often interpreted as summing slow- and quick-flow components. Such components suffer uncertainty due to ignorance of rainfall variation between samples and ignorance of delay in the IUH. If they are obtained from linear-in-parameters models, ill conditioning in the conversion amplifies the uncertainty. The extent of these uncertainties is analysed, with examples. The paper also considers alternatives to performance assessment of such models by Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency. Rather than employing the sample mean as an output-prediction benchmark, they use almost equally simple predictors taking the flow correlation structure into account. Again numerical examples are given.

    Original languageEnglish
    Title of host publicationModelling for Environment's Sake
    Subtitle of host publicationProceedings of the 5th Biennial Conference of the International Environmental Modelling and Software Society, iEMSs 2010
    Pages1770-1778
    Number of pages9
    Publication statusPublished - 2010
    Event5th Biennial Conference of the International Environmental Modelling and Software Society: Modelling for Environment's Sake, iEMSs 2010 - Ottawa, ON, Canada
    Duration: 5 Jul 20108 Jul 2010

    Publication series

    NameModelling for Environment's Sake: Proceedings of the 5th Biennial Conference of the International Environmental Modelling and Software Society, iEMSs 2010
    Volume2

    Conference

    Conference5th Biennial Conference of the International Environmental Modelling and Software Society: Modelling for Environment's Sake, iEMSs 2010
    Country/TerritoryCanada
    CityOttawa, ON
    Period5/07/108/07/10

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