Assessing the Potential to Simulate Peak Discharge of Arctic Alaskan Basins Using Minimal Input Datasets
Abstract
The hydrologic regime in Arctic Alaska is a challenge to model due to many complicating processes and limited data. The presence of continuous permafrost restricts infiltration to deeper groundwater and enhances shallow subsurface flow in the active layer (maximum thickness at summer's end) and surface storage in ponds, lakes, and wetlands. Snowmelt is the primary runoff event of the year, but in some high gradient basins, scattered rainfall events may also generate peak discharge that is higher than snowmelt. The biggest problem is the sparse datasets available in Alaska to use in models. The purpose of this study is to determine the viability of using the Swedish HBV model in basins to estimate snowmelt and summer peak discharge. We approach this problem by using several smaller gauged Alaskan Arctic basins for parameterization of the model and then apply it to a number of other minimally or ungauged basins of larger sizes in the same region. Model input data is very limited, particularly the basin average end of winter maximum snow water equivalent, where only a handful of point measurements exist within each basin.
- Publication:
-
AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2010
- Bibcode:
- 2010AGUFM.H41B1084Y
- Keywords:
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- 0740 CRYOSPHERE / Snowmelt;
- 0744 CRYOSPHERE / Rivers;
- 1847 HYDROLOGY / Modeling;
- 1874 HYDROLOGY / Ungaged basins