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Testing of an alternative approach to calibration of a hydrological model under varying climatic conditions

In: Acta Hydrologica Slovaca, vol. 20, no. 2
Patrik Sleziak - Michal Danko - Ladislav Holko

Details:

Year, pages: 2019, 131 - 138
Language: eng
Keywords:
hydrological model calibration, method of wavelet transform, climate change
About article:
Conceptual rainfall-runoff models are routinely used in practical water resources investigations. Common uncertainties associated with these models (in addition to the uncertainty related to schematization and structure of the models) include for example errors in the inputs, calibration/validation uncertainties (e.g., choice of the suitable lengths of the two periods), uncertainties related to the use of the models in other climatic conditions, etc. This study addresses the uncertainties related to the choice of calibration/validation periods for the long data sets with varying climatic inputs. It is conducted in the pilot catchment of the Jalovecký Creek (area 22.2 km2) in Slovakia and uses data from the 30-years long period 1989–2018. A HBV type model (the TUW model) is used for the modelling. Two different approaches to selection of calibration period are compared. In the first approach, the calibration period is determined by division of the available data into three equally long periods (each of them is then used in model calibration and validation). Such an arbitrary division is the common practice in hydrological modelling. In the second approach, the selection of calibration periods is based on the cycles found in the measured data. The wavelet transform method revealed cyclical components in air temperature with period of 6-years. Periods in other data sets were less significant. In accordance with this finding, the model is calibrated for five 6-years long periods. Model performance for the two approaches to selection of the calibration periods is evaluated by visual comparison of measured and simulated monthly flows in different climatic periods and by the Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency coefficient. The two approaches to the selection of calibration period provided similar results. However, the model calibrated in colder period represents monthly flows more reliably than the model that was calibrated in warmer period. In terms of predictions related to climate change impacts it would mean that hydrological models calibrated in current period should provide reasonable simulations for warmer climate.
How to cite:
ISO 690:
Sleziak, P., Danko, M., Holko, L. 2019. Testing of an alternative approach to calibration of a hydrological model under varying climatic conditions. In Acta Hydrologica Slovaca, vol. 20, no.2, pp. 131-138. 2644-4690. DOI: https://doi.org/10.31577/ahs-2019-0020.02.0015

APA:
Sleziak, P., Danko, M., Holko, L. (2019). Testing of an alternative approach to calibration of a hydrological model under varying climatic conditions. Acta Hydrologica Slovaca, 20(2), 131-138. 2644-4690. DOI: https://doi.org/10.31577/ahs-2019-0020.02.0015
About edition:
Publisher: Institute of Hydrology SAS, Dúbravská cesta 9, 841 05 Bratislava, Slovakia
Published: 9. 12. 2019
Rights:
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License