Title: | Development and application of a physically based landscape water balance in the SWAT model |
Authors: | White, E.D., Z.M. Easton, D.R. Fuka, A.S. Collick, E. Adgo, M. McCartney, S.B. Awulachew, Y.G. Selassie and T.S. Steenhuis |
Year: | 2011 |
Journal: | Hydrological Processes |
Volume (Issue): | 25(6) |
Pages: | 915-925 |
Article ID: | |
DOI: | 10.1002/hyp.7876 |
URL (non-DOI journals): | |
Model: | SWAT-WB & SWAT |
Broad Application Category: | hydrologic only |
Primary Application Category: | modified runoff curve number approach |
Secondary Application Category: | hydrologic assessment |
Watershed Description: | 1270 km^2 Gumera located in the headwaters of the Blue Nile in Ethiopia and 37 km^2 Town Brook in the Catskill Mountains of New York. Runoff in both watersheds is primarily generated via saturation-excess processes (i.e.; variable source areas - VSA hydrology). |
Calibration Summary: | |
Validation Summary: | |
General Comments: | This paper presents a simple way to use SWAT's existing soil-water calculations in order to model saturation-excess runoff with out relying upon the Curve Number methodology. Implementing this water balance method for calculating surface runoff returned more accurate results for a data-scarce watershed in Ethiopia than the Curve Number based SWAT. In the Catskills, the water balance returned results equal to the Curve Number, but with a physically based approach. This resulted in more accurate spatial distribution of runoff generating areas throughout the watershed. |
Language: | English |
Keywords: | SWAT model; water balance; Ethiopia; monsoonal climate; New York; runoff; variable source area; curve number |