scholarly journals Hydrological drought across the world: impact of climate and physical catchment structure

2013 ◽  
Vol 17 (5) ◽  
pp. 1715-1732 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. A. J. Van Lanen ◽  
N. Wanders ◽  
L. M. Tallaksen ◽  
A. F. Van Loon
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Hydrological Drought ◽  
Temperate Climate ◽  
Minor Effect ◽  
Hydrological Models ◽  
Drought Duration ◽  
Groundwater System ◽  
Drought Characteristics ◽  
The World ◽  
Groundwater Systems

Abstract. Large-scale hydrological drought studies have demonstrated spatial and temporal patterns in observed trends, and considerable difference exists among global hydrological models in their ability to reproduce these patterns. In this study a controlled modeling experiment has been set up to systematically explore the role of climate and physical catchment structure (soils and groundwater systems) to better understand underlying drought-generating mechanisms. Daily climate data (1958–2001) of 1495 grid cells across the world were selected that represent Köppen–Geiger major climate types. These data were fed into a conceptual hydrological model. Nine realizations of physical catchment structure were defined for each grid cell, i.e., three soils with different soil moisture supply capacity and three groundwater systems (quickly, intermediately and slowly responding). Hydrological drought characteristics (number, duration and standardized deficit volume) were identified from time series of daily discharge. Summary statistics showed that the equatorial and temperate climate types (A- and C-climates) had about twice as many drought events as the arid and polar types (B- and E-climates), and the durations of more extreme droughts were about half the length. Selected soils under permanent grassland were found to have a minor effect on hydrological drought characteristics, whereas groundwater systems had major impact. Groundwater systems strongly controlled the hydrological drought characteristics of all climate types, but particularly those of the wetter A-, C- and D-climates because of higher recharge. The median number of droughts for quickly responding groundwater systems was about three times higher than for slowly responding systems. Groundwater systems substantially affected the duration, particularly of the more extreme drought events. Bivariate probability distributions of drought duration and standardized deficit for combinations of Köppen–Geiger climate, soil and groundwater system showed that the responsiveness of the groundwater system is as important as climate for hydrological drought development. This urges for an improvement of subsurface modules in global hydrological models to be more useful for water resources assessments. A foreseen higher spatial resolution in large-scale models would enable a better hydrogeological parameterization and thus inclusion of lateral flow.

scholarly journals Hydrological drought across the world: impact of climate and physical catchment structure

2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 12145-12192 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. A. J. Van Lanen ◽  
N. Wanders ◽  
L. M. Tallaksen ◽  
A. F. Van Loon
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Hydrological Drought ◽  
Temperate Climate ◽  
Minor Effect ◽  
Hydrological Models ◽  
Spatial And Temporal Patterns ◽  
Drought Duration ◽  
Drought Characteristics ◽  
The World ◽  
Groundwater Systems

Abstract. Large-scale hydrological drought studies have demonstrated spatial and temporal patterns in observed trends and considerable difference exists among global hydrological models in their ability to reproduce these patterns. A controlled modeling experiment has been set up to systematically explore the role of climate and physical catchment structure (soils and groundwater systems) to better understand underlying drought-generating mechanisms. Daily climate data (1958–2001) of 1495 grid cells across the world were selected that represent Köppen-Geiger major climate types. These data were fed into a hydrological model. Nine realizations of physical catchment structure were defined for each grid cell, i.e. three soils with different soil moisture supply capacity and three groundwater systems (quickly-, intermediary- and slowly-responding). Hydrological drought characteristics (number, duration and standardized deficit volume) were identified from time series of daily discharge. Summary statistics showed that the equatorial and temperate climate types (A- and C-climates) had about twice as many drought events as the arid and polar types (B- and E-climates) and the duration of more extreme droughts were about half the length. Soils were found to have a minor effect on hydrological drought characteristics, whereas groundwater systems had major impact. Groundwater systems strongly controlled the hydrological drought characteristics of all climate types, but particularly those of the wetter A-, C- and D-climates because of higher recharge. The median number of drought for quickly-responding groundwater systems was about three times higher than for slowly-responding systems, which substantially affected the duration, particularly of the more extreme drought events. Bivariate probability distributions of drought duration and standardized deficit for combinations of Köppen-Geiger climate, soil and groundwater system showed that responsiveness of groundwater systems is as important as climate for hydrological drought development. This urges for an improvement of subsurface modules in global hydrological models to be more useful for water resources assessments. A foreseen higher spatial resolution would enable a better hydrogeological parameterization and inclusion of lateral flow.

scholarly journals Evaluation of drought propagation in an ensemble mean of large-scale hydrological models

2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (7) ◽  
pp. 8375-8424 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. F. Van Loon ◽  
M. H. J. Van Huijgevoort ◽  
H. A. J. Van Lanen
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Hydrological Drought ◽  
Hydrological Models ◽  
Drought Characteristics ◽  
Snow Season ◽  
Scale Models ◽  
Ensemble Mean ◽  
Semi Arid

Abstract. Hydrological drought is increasingly studied using large-scale models. It is, however, not sure whether large-scale models reproduce the development of hydrological drought correctly. The pressing question is: how well do large-scale models simulate the propagation from meteorological to hydrological drought? To answer this question, we evaluated the simulation of drought propagation in an ensemble mean of ten large-scale models, both land-surface models and global hydrological models, that were part of the model intercomparison project of WATCH (WaterMIP). For a selection of case study areas, we studied drought characteristics (number of droughts, duration, severity), drought propagation features (pooling, attenuation, lag, lengthening), and hydrological drought typology (classical rainfall deficit drought, rain-to-snow-season drought, wet-to-dry-season drought, cold snow season drought, warm snow season drought, composite drought). Drought characteristics simulated by large-scale models clearly reflected drought propagation, i.e. drought events became less and longer when moving through the hydrological cycle. However, more differentiation was expected between fast and slowly responding systems, with slowly responding systems having less and longer droughts in runoff than fast responding systems. This was not found using large-scale models. Drought propagation features were poorly reproduced by the large-scale models, because runoff reacted immediately to precipitation, in all case study areas. This fast reaction to precipitation, even in cold climates in winter and in semi-arid climates in summer, also greatly influenced the hydrological drought typology as identified by the large-scale models. In general, the large-scale models had the correct representation of drought types, but the percentages of occurrence had some important mismatches, e.g. an overestimation of classical rainfall deficit droughts, and an underestimation of wet-to-dry-season droughts and snow-related droughts. Furthermore, almost no composite droughts were simulated for slowly responding areas, while many multi-year drought events were expected in these systems. We conclude that drought propagation processes are reasonably well reproduced by the ensemble mean of large-scale models in contrasting catchments in Europe and that some challenges remain in catchments with cold and semi-arid climates and catchments with large storage in aquifers or lakes. Improvement of drought simulation in large-scale models should focus on a better representation of hydrological processes that are important for drought development, such as evapotranspiration, snow accumulation and melt, and especially storage. Besides the more explicit inclusion of storage (e.g. aquifers) in large-scale models, also parametrisation of storage processes requires attention, for example through a global scale dataset on aquifer characteristics.

scholarly journals Evaluation of drought propagation in an ensemble mean of large-scale hydrological models

2012 ◽  
Vol 16 (11) ◽  
pp. 4057-4078 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. F. Van Loon ◽  
M. H. J. Van Huijgevoort ◽  
H. A. J. Van Lanen
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Hydrological Drought ◽  
Hydrological Models ◽  
Drought Characteristics ◽  
Snow Season ◽  
Scale Models ◽  
Ensemble Mean ◽  
Semi Arid

Abstract. Hydrological drought is increasingly studied using large-scale models. It is, however, not sure whether large-scale models reproduce the development of hydrological drought correctly. The pressing question is how well do large-scale models simulate the propagation from meteorological to hydrological drought? To answer this question, we evaluated the simulation of drought propagation in an ensemble mean of ten large-scale models, both land-surface models and global hydrological models, that participated in the model intercomparison project of WATCH (WaterMIP). For a selection of case study areas, we studied drought characteristics (number of droughts, duration, severity), drought propagation features (pooling, attenuation, lag, lengthening), and hydrological drought typology (classical rainfall deficit drought, rain-to-snow-season drought, wet-to-dry-season drought, cold snow season drought, warm snow season drought, composite drought). Drought characteristics simulated by large-scale models clearly reflected drought propagation; i.e. drought events became fewer and longer when moving through the hydrological cycle. However, more differentiation was expected between fast and slowly responding systems, with slowly responding systems having fewer and longer droughts in runoff than fast responding systems. This was not found using large-scale models. Drought propagation features were poorly reproduced by the large-scale models, because runoff reacted immediately to precipitation, in all case study areas. This fast reaction to precipitation, even in cold climates in winter and in semi-arid climates in summer, also greatly influenced the hydrological drought typology as identified by the large-scale models. In general, the large-scale models had the correct representation of drought types, but the percentages of occurrence had some important mismatches, e.g. an overestimation of classical rainfall deficit droughts, and an underestimation of wet-to-dry-season droughts and snow-related droughts. Furthermore, almost no composite droughts were simulated for slowly responding areas, while many multi-year drought events were expected in these systems. We conclude that most drought propagation processes are reasonably well reproduced by the ensemble mean of large-scale models in contrasting catchments in Europe. Challenges, however, remain in catchments with cold and semi-arid climates and catchments with large storage in aquifers or lakes. This leads to a high uncertainty in hydrological drought simulation at large scales. Improvement of drought simulation in large-scale models should focus on a better representation of hydrological processes that are important for drought development, such as evapotranspiration, snow accumulation and melt, and especially storage. Besides the more explicit inclusion of storage in large-scale models, also parametrisation of storage processes requires attention, for example through a global-scale dataset on aquifer characteristics, improved large-scale datasets on other land characteristics (e.g. soils, land cover), and calibration/evaluation of the models against observations of storage (e.g. in snow, groundwater).

scholarly journals Future discharge drought across climate regions around the world modelled with a synthetic hydrological modelling approach forced by three general circulation models

2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 487-504 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Wanders ◽  
H. A. J. Van Lanen
Keyword(s):  
General Circulation ◽  
Reference Model ◽  
Control Period ◽  
General Circulation Models ◽  
Hydrological Drought ◽  
Drought Duration ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Drought Characteristics ◽  
The World ◽  
Drought Occurrence

Abstract. Hydrological drought characteristics (drought in groundwater and streamflow) likely will change in the 21st century as a result of climate change. The magnitude and directionality of these changes and their dependency on climatology and catchment characteristics, however, is uncertain. In this study a conceptual hydrological model was forced by downscaled and bias-corrected outcome from three general circulation models for the SRES A2 emission scenario (GCM forced models), and the WATCH Forcing Data set (reference model). The threshold level method was applied to investigate drought occurrence, duration and severity. Results for the control period (1971–2000) show that the drought characteristics of each GCM forced model reasonably agree with the reference model for most of the climate types, suggesting that the climate models' results after post-processing produce realistic outcomes for global drought analyses. For the near future (2021–2050) and far future (2071–2100) the GCM forced models show a decrease in drought occurrence for all major climates around the world and increase of both average drought duration and deficit volume of the remaining drought events. The largest decrease in hydrological drought occurrence is expected in cold (D) climates where global warming results in a decreased length of the snow season and an increased precipitation. In the dry (B) climates the smallest decrease in drought occurrence is expected to occur, which probably will lead to even more severe water scarcity. However, in the extreme climate regions (desert and polar), the drought analysis for the control period showed that projections of hydrological drought characteristics are most uncertain. On a global scale the increase in hydrological drought duration and severity in multiple regions will lead to a higher impact of drought events, which should motivate water resource managers to timely anticipate the increased risk of more severe drought in groundwater and streamflow and to design pro-active measures.

scholarly journals Future discharge drought across climate regions around the world modelled with a synthetic hydrological modelling approach forced by three General Circulation Models

2013 ◽  
Vol 1 (6) ◽  
pp. 7701-7738 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Wanders ◽  
H. A. J. van Lanen
Keyword(s):  
General Circulation ◽  
Reference Model ◽  
Control Period ◽  
General Circulation Models ◽  
Hydrological Drought ◽  
Severe Drought ◽  
Drought Duration ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
The World ◽  
Drought Occurrence

Abstract. Hydrological droughts characteristics (drought in groundwater and streamflow) likely will change in the 21st century as a results of climate change. Magnitude and directionality of these changes and their dependency on climatology and catchment characteristics, however, is largely unknown. In this study a conceptual hydrological model was forced by downscaled and bias-corrected outcome from three General Circulation Models for the A2 emission scenario (GCM forced models), and the WATCH Forcing Data re-analysis dataset(reference model). The threshold level method was applied to investigate drought occurrence, duration and deficit volume. Results for the control period (1971–2000) show that the drought characteristics of each GCM forced model reasonably agree with the reference model for most of the climate types, suggesting that the climate model's results after post-processing produce realistic outcome for global drought analyses. For the near future (2021–2050) and far future (2071–2100) the GCM forced models show a decrease in drought occurrence for all major climates around the world and increase of both average drought duration and deficit volume of the remaining drought events. The largest decrease in hydrological drought occurrence is expected in cold (D-)climates where global warming results in a decreased length of the snow season and an increased precipitation. In the dry B-climates the smallest decrease in drought occurrence is expected to occur, which probably will lead to even more severe water scarcity. However, in the extreme climate regions (desert and polar), the analysis for the control period showed that projections are in these regions most uncertain. On a global scale the increase in hydrological drought duration and severity will lead to a higher impact of drought events, which urges water resources managers to timely anticipate on the increased risk on more severe drought in groundwater and streamflow and to design pro-active measures.

scholarly journals Hydrological Drought Characteristics Based on Groundwater and Runoff Across Europe

2020 ◽  
Vol 383 ◽  
pp. 281-290
Author(s):  
Samuel Jonson Sutanto ◽  
Henny A. J. Van Lanen
Keyword(s):  
Hydrological Model ◽  
Meteorological Drought ◽  
Hydrological Drought ◽  
Weather Data ◽  
Model Resolution ◽  
Southeast Europe ◽  
Annual Average ◽  
Drought Duration ◽  
Drought Characteristics ◽  
Groundwater Drought

Abstract. Hydrological drought often gets less attention compared to meteorological drought. For water resources managers, information on hydrological drought characteristics is prerequisite for adequate drought planning and management. Therefore, the aim of this study is to analyse hydrological drought characteristics in the pan-European region based on past drought events from 1990 to 2017. The annual average drought duration, deficit volume, onset, termination, and intensity during drought years were calculated using daily runoff and groundwater data. All data were simulated with the LISFLOOD hydrological model (resolution 5×5 km) fed with gridded time series of observed weather data. Results based on runoff and groundwater data show that regions in Northeast to Southeast Europe, which stretched out from Poland to Bulgaria, were identified as profound regions to severe hydrological drought hazards. The most severe droughts during our study period were observed in 1992 to 1997, where on average Europe experienced drought events, which lasted up to 4 months. Long average drought durations up to 4 and 8 months in runoff and groundwater occurred in a few parts of the European regions (around 10 % area). Longer drought durations and a lower number of drought events were found in groundwater drought than in runoff, which proved that slow responding variables (groundwater) are better in showing extreme drought compared to fast responding variables (runoff). Based on our results, the water managers can better prepare for upcoming drought and foster drought adaptation actions.

scholarly journals A generic method for hydrological drought identification across different climate regions

2012 ◽  
Vol 16 (8) ◽  
pp. 2437-2451 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. H. J. van Huijgevoort ◽  
P. Hazenberg ◽  
H. A. J. van Lanen ◽  
R. Uijlenhoet
Keyword(s):  
Land Surface ◽  
Threshold Level ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Hydrological Drought ◽  
Dry Period ◽  
Drought Duration ◽  
Variable Threshold ◽  
The World ◽  
Level Method ◽  
Zero Runoff

Abstract. The identification of hydrological drought at global scale has received considerable attention during the last decade. However, climate-induced variation in runoff across the world makes such analyses rather complicated. This especially holds for the drier regions of the world (both cold and warm), where, for a considerable period of time, zero runoff can be observed. In the current paper, we present a method that enables to identify drought at global scale across climate regimes in a consistent manner. The method combines the characteristics of the classical variable threshold level method that is best applicable in regions with non-zero runoff most of the time, and the consecutive dry days (period) method that is better suited for areas where zero runoff occurs. The newly presented method allows a drought in periods with runoff to continue in the following period without runoff. The method is demonstrated by identifying droughts from discharge observations of four rivers situated within different climate regimes, as well as from simulated runoff data at global scale obtained from an ensemble of five different land surface models. The identified drought events obtained by the new approach are compared to those resulting from application of the variable threshold level method or the consecutive dry period method separately. Results show that, in general, for drier regions, the threshold level method overestimates drought duration, because zero runoff periods are included in a drought, according to the definition used within this method. The consecutive dry period method underestimates drought occurrence, since it cannot identify droughts for periods with runoff. The developed method especially shows its relevance in transitional areas, because, in wetter regions, results are identical to the classical threshold level method. By combining both methods, the new method is able to identify single drought events that occur during positive and zero runoff periods, leading to a more realistic global drought characterization, especially within drier environments.

scholarly journals Global hydrological droughts in the 21st century under a changing hydrological regime

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Wanders ◽  
Y. Wada ◽  
H. A. J. Van Lanen
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Hydrological Regime ◽  
Hydrological Drought ◽  
Climate Projections ◽  
Variable Threshold ◽  
Low Flows ◽  
Drought Characteristics ◽  
The World ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Climate change very likely impacts future hydrological drought characteristics across the world. Here, we quantify the impact of climate change on future low flows and associated hydrological drought characteristics on a global scale using an alternative drought identification approach that considers adaptation to future changes in hydrological regime. The global hydrological model PCR-GLOBWB was used to simulate daily discharge at 0.5° globally for 1971–2099. The model was forced with CMIP5 climate projections taken from five global circulation models (GCMs) and four emission scenarios (representative concentration pathways, RCPs), from the Inter-Sectoral Impact Model Intercomparison Project. Drought events occur when discharge is below a threshold. The conventional variable threshold (VTM) was calculated by deriving the threshold from the period 1971–2000. The transient variable threshold (VTMt) is a non-stationary approach, where the threshold is based on the discharge values of the previous 30 years implying the threshold to vary every year during the 21st century. The VTMt adjusts to gradual changes in the hydrological regime as response to climate change. Results show a significant negative trend in the low flow regime over the 21st century for large parts of South America, southern Africa, Australia and the Mediterranean. In 40–52% of the world reduced low flows are projected, while increased low flows are found in the snow-dominated climates. In 27% of the global area both the drought duration and the deficit volume are expected to increase when applying the VTMt. However, this area will significantly increase to 62% when the VTM is applied. The mean global area in drought, with the VTMt, remains rather constant (11.7 to 13.4%), compared to the substantial increase when the VTM is applied (11.7 to 20%). The study illustrates that an alternative drought identification that considers adaptation to an altered hydrological regime has a substantial influence on future hydrological drought characteristics.

scholarly journals Global hydrological droughts in the 21st century under a changing hydrological regime

2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 649-681 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Wanders ◽  
Y. Wada ◽  
H. A. J. Van Lanen
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Hydrological Regime ◽  
Hydrological Drought ◽  
Climate Projections ◽  
Variable Threshold ◽  
Low Flows ◽  
Drought Characteristics ◽  
The World ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Climate change very likely impacts future hydrological drought characteristics across the world. Here, we quantify the impact of climate change on future low flows and associated hydrological drought characteristics on a global scale using an alternative drought identification approach that considers adaptation to future changes in hydrological regime. The global hydrological model PCR-GLOBWB was used to simulate daily discharge at 0.5° globally for 1971–2099. The model was forced with CMIP5 climate projections taken from five GCMs and four emission scenarios (RCPs), from the Inter-Sectoral Impact Model Intercomparison Project. Drought events occur when discharge is below a threshold. The conventional variable threshold (VTM) was calculated by deriving the threshold from the period 1971–2000. The transient variable threshold (VTMt) is a non-stationary approach, where the threshold is based on the discharge values of the previous 30 years implying the threshold to vary every year during the 21st century. The VTMt adjusts to gradual changes in the hydrological regime as response to climate change. Results show a significant negative trend in the low flow regime over the 21st century for large parts of South America, southern Africa, Australia and the Mediterranean. In 40–52% of the world reduced low flows are projected, while increased low flows are found in the snow dominated climates. In 27% of the global area both the drought duration and the deficit volume are expected to increase when applying the VTMt. However, this area will significantly increase to 62% when the VTM is applied. The mean global area in drought, with the VTMt, remains rather constant (11.7 to 13.4%), compared to the substantial increase when the VTM is applied (11.7 to 20%). The study illustrates that an alternative drought identification that considers adaptation to an altered hydrological regime, has a substantial influence on future hydrological drought characteristics.

scholarly journals A generic method for hydrological drought identification across different climate regions

2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 2033-2070 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. H. J. van Huijgevoort ◽  
P. Hazenberg ◽  
H. A. J. van Lanen ◽  
R. Uijlenhoet
Keyword(s):  
Land Surface ◽  
Threshold Level ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Hydrological Drought ◽  
Dry Period ◽  
Drought Duration ◽  
Variable Threshold ◽  
The World ◽  
Level Method ◽  
Zero Runoff

Abstract. The identification of hydrological drought at global scale has received considerable attention during the last decade. However, climate-induced variation in runoff across the world makes such analyses rather complicated. This especially holds for the drier regions of the world (both cold and warm), where for a considerable period of time, zero runoff can be observed. In the current paper, we present a method that enables to identify drought at global scale across climate regimes in a consistent manner. The method combines the characteristics of the classical variable threshold level method that is best applicable in regions with non zero runoff most of the time, and the consecutive dry days (period) method that is better suited for areas where zero runoff occurs. The newly presented method allows a drought in periods with runoff to continue in the following period without runoff. The method was demonstrated by identifying droughts from discharge observations of four rivers situated within different climate regimes, as well as from simulated runoff data at global scale obtained from an ensemble of five different land surface models. The identified drought events obtained by the new approach were compared to those resulting from application of the variable threshold level method or the consecutive dry period method separately. Results show that, in general, for drier regions, the threshold level method overestimates drought duration, because zero runoff periods were included in a drought, according to the definition used within this method. The consecutive dry period method underestimates drought occurrence, since it cannot identify droughts for periods with runoff. The developed method especially shows its relevance in transitional areas, because in wetter regions, results were identical to the classical threshold level method. By combining both methods, the new method is able to identify single drought events that occur during positive and zero runoff periods, leading to a more realistic global drought characterization, especially within drier environments.

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