Integrating a Water Tracer Model Into WRF‐Hydro for Characterizing the Effect of Lateral Flow in Hydrologic Simulations

Hu, Huancui; Leung, L. Ruby; Dominguez, Francina; Gochis, David; Chen, Xingyuan; Good, Stephen; Dugger, Aubrey; Larsen, Laurel; Barlage, Michael

doi:10.1029/2023WR034938

Title: Integrating a Water Tracer Model Into WRF‐Hydro for Characterizing the Effect of Lateral Flow in Hydrologic Simulations

Journal Article · 08 July 2024 · Water Resources Research

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1029/2023WR034938 · OSTI ID:2395970

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Atmospheric Sciences and Global Change Division Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Richland WA USA
Department of Atmospheric Sciences University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign Urbana IL USA
National Center for Atmospheric Research Boulder CO USA
Department of Biological &, Ecological Engineering Oregon State University Corvallis OR USA
Department of Geography and Civil &, Environmental Engineering University of California Berkeley CA USA
National Center for Atmospheric Research Boulder CO USA, Now at NOAA/Environmental Modeling Center College Park MD USA

Abstract Most current land models approximate terrestrial hydrological processes as one‐dimensional vertical flow, neglecting lateral water movement from ridges to valleys. Such lateral flow is fundamental at catchment scales and becomes crucial for finer‐scale land models. To test the effect of incorporating lateral flow toward three‐dimensional representations of hydrological processes in the next generation land models, we integrate a water tracer model into the WRF‐Hydro framework to track water movement from precipitation to discharge and evapotranspiration. This hydrologic‐tracer integrated system allows us to identify the key mechanisms by which lateral flow affects the flow paths and transit times in WRF‐Hydro. By comparing modeling experiments with and without lateral routing in two contrasting catchments, we determine the impacts of lateral flow on the transit times of precipitation event‐water. Results show that with limited hydrologic connectivity, lateral flow extends the transit times by reducing (increasing) event‐water drainage loss (accumulation) in ridges (valleys) and allowing reinfiltration of infiltration‐excess flow, which is missing in most land models. On the contrary with high hydrologic connectivity, lateral flow can effectively accelerate the water release to streams and reduce the transit time. However, the transit times are substantially underestimated by the model compared with isotope‐derived estimates, indicating model limitations in representing flow paths and transit times. This study provides some insights on the fundamental differences in terrestrial hydrology simulated by land models with and without lateral flow representation.

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Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE

OSTI ID:: 2395970

Journal Information:: Water Resources Research, Journal Name: Water Resources Research Journal Issue: 7 Vol. 60; ISSN 0043-1397

Publisher:: American Geophysical Union (AGU)Copyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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