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    EVALUATING THE IMPACTS OF INPUT AND PARAMETER UNCERTAINTY ON STREAMFLOW SIMULATIONS IN LARGE UNDER-INSTRUMENTED BASINS

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    Author
    Demaria, Eleonora Maria
    Issue Date
    2010
    Keywords
    error propagation
    la plata basin
    land surface models
    parameter uncertainty
    satellite precipitation
    streamflow simulations
    Advisor
    Valdes, Juan B.
    Committee Chair
    Valdes, Juan B.
    
    Metadata
    Show full item record
    Publisher
    The University of Arizona.
    Rights
    Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author.
    Embargo
    Release after 2/16/2011
    Abstract
    In data-poor regions around the world, particularly in less-privileged countries, hydrologists cannot always take advantage of available hydrological models to simulate a hydrological system due to the lack of reliable measurements of hydrological variables, in particular rainfall and streamflows, needed to implement and evaluate these models. Rainfall estimates obtained with remotely deployed sensors constitute an excellent source of precipitation for these basins, however they are prone to errors that can potentially affect hydrologic simulations. Concurrently, limited access to streamflow measurements does not allow a detailed representation of the system's structure through parameter estimation techniques. This dissertation presents multiple studies that evaluate the usefulness of remotely sensed products for different hydrological applications and the sensitivity of simulated streamflow to parameter uncertainty across basins with different hydroclimatic characteristics with the ultimate goal of increasing the applicability of land surface models in ungauged basins, particularly in South America. Paper 1 presents a sensitivity analysis of daily simulated streamflows to changes in model parameters along a hydroclimatic gradient. Parameters controlling the generation of surface and subsurface flow were targeted for the study. Results indicate that the sensitivity is strongly controlled by climate and that a more parsimonious version of the model could be implemented. Paper 2 explores how errors in satellite-estimated precipitation, due to infrequent satellite measurements, propagate through the simulation of a basin's hydrological cycle and impact the characteristics of peak streamflows within the basin. Findings indicate that nonlinearities in the hydrological cycle can introduce bias in simulated streamflows with error-corrupted precipitation. They also show that some characteristics of peak discharges are not conditioned by errors in satellite-estimated precipitation at a daily time step. Paper 3 evaluates the dominant sources of error in three satellite products when representing convective storms and how shifts in the location of the storm affect simulated peak streamflows in the basin. Results indicate that satellite products show some deficiencies retrieving convective processes and that a ground bias correction can mitigate these deficiencies but without sacrificing the potential for real-time hydrological applications. Finally, spatially shifted precipitation fields affect the magnitude of the peaks, however, its impact on the timing of the peaks is dampened out by the system's response at a daily time scale.
    Type
    text
    Electronic Dissertation
    Degree Name
    Ph.D.
    Degree Level
    doctoral
    Degree Program
    Hydrology
    Graduate College
    Degree Grantor
    University of Arizona
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