TY - JOUR
T1 - Breakdown of hydrologic patterns upon model coarsening at hillslope scales and implications for experimental design
AU - Mahmood, Taufique H.
AU - Vivoni, Enrique
N1 - Funding Information:
We would like to thank NSF SAHRA (Sustainability of semi-Arid Hydrology and Riparian Areas) and the Jemez River Basin-Santa Catalina Mountains Critical Zone Observatory (JRB-SCM CZO) for financial support.
PY - 2011/12/9
Y1 - 2011/12/9
N2 - Spatial sensitivity studies that assess the reliability of simulated patterns are important aspects of the modeling process. To date, limited knowledge exists on the impacts of model coarsening at the hillslope scale or on the threshold resolution below which the fidelity of simulated patterns are no longer reliable. In this study, we utilize the Triangulated Irregular Network (TIN)-based Real-time Integrated Basin Simulator (tRIBS) to investigate how model aggregation leads to the breakdown of spatial hydrologic patterns in a ponderosa pine hillslope parameterized at fine-resolution (~0.3. m). Results indicate that spatial patterns in soil moisture are controlled by small-scale curvature features at fine resolutions and by larger-scale vegetation patches at coarser resolutions. Model aggregation quickly eradicates curvature features and its spatial control on hydrologic patterns, while the level of coarsening possible in the hillslope still preserves vegetation patchiness. A threshold resolution of ~10% of the original topographic field is identified through analyses of homogeneity indices, correlation coefficients and spatial errors. Below this resolution, model aggregation leads to unrealistic patterns in soil moisture and a transition from curvature-controlled lateral fluxes to vegetation-mediated vertical fluxes. Based on spatial error analyses, we evaluate the use of the distributed hydrologic model to identify sampling sites that represent the hillslope behavior and minimize the sensitivity to model resolution. Our findings demonstrate that spatial sensitivity occurs within hillslope domains depending on the characteristics of the spatial features that control the hydrologic response.
AB - Spatial sensitivity studies that assess the reliability of simulated patterns are important aspects of the modeling process. To date, limited knowledge exists on the impacts of model coarsening at the hillslope scale or on the threshold resolution below which the fidelity of simulated patterns are no longer reliable. In this study, we utilize the Triangulated Irregular Network (TIN)-based Real-time Integrated Basin Simulator (tRIBS) to investigate how model aggregation leads to the breakdown of spatial hydrologic patterns in a ponderosa pine hillslope parameterized at fine-resolution (~0.3. m). Results indicate that spatial patterns in soil moisture are controlled by small-scale curvature features at fine resolutions and by larger-scale vegetation patches at coarser resolutions. Model aggregation quickly eradicates curvature features and its spatial control on hydrologic patterns, while the level of coarsening possible in the hillslope still preserves vegetation patchiness. A threshold resolution of ~10% of the original topographic field is identified through analyses of homogeneity indices, correlation coefficients and spatial errors. Below this resolution, model aggregation leads to unrealistic patterns in soil moisture and a transition from curvature-controlled lateral fluxes to vegetation-mediated vertical fluxes. Based on spatial error analyses, we evaluate the use of the distributed hydrologic model to identify sampling sites that represent the hillslope behavior and minimize the sensitivity to model resolution. Our findings demonstrate that spatial sensitivity occurs within hillslope domains depending on the characteristics of the spatial features that control the hydrologic response.
KW - Distributed hydrologic model
KW - Ecohydrology
KW - Hillslope hydrology
KW - Runoff generation
KW - Soil moisture
KW - Spatial patterns
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jhydrol.2011.10.011
DO - 10.1016/j.jhydrol.2011.10.011
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:81555208930
SN - 0022-1694
VL - 411
SP - 309
EP - 321
JO - Journal of Hydrology
JF - Journal of Hydrology
IS - 3-4
ER -