Effort to improve predictions in soil moisture and groundwater table depth
First Author
Yilin Fang
yilin.fang@pnnl.gov
All Authors
Gautam Bisht, Michael Brunke, Teklu Tesfa, Ruby Leung
Topic
‘Land - River - Human’
Project
E3SM
Abstract
Soil moisture and groundwater table depth are key variables in hydrological processes, land-atmosphere interactions, and climate feedbacks. They play a crucial role in the movement of water within the soil profile, groundwater recharge, streamflow generation, energy partitioning, evapotranspiration, and local climate conditions. Accurately representing these variables in ELM can lead to a better understanding of hydrological processes, including infiltration, runoff, and groundwater-surface water interactions, as well as improved predictions of water availability for vegetation, ecosystem productivity, and nutrient cycling. However, when comparing the soil moisture and groundwater table depth simulated by E3SM to observations such as ERA5-LAND and observed water table depth datasets, we noticed large discrepancies. For instance, ELM exhibits a tendency to overestimate soil moisture in regions other than South America. Additionally, the mean water table depth simulated by ELM is lower than that observed in the real-world. These discrepancies highlight potential deficiencies in ELM's ability to accurately capture the underlying processes that control soil moisture and water table dynamics. Ongoing efforts are being made to improve the accuracy of soil moisture and groundwater table depth simulations in ELM through parameter estimation. These endeavors aim to enhance the model's representation of soil moisture and groundwater table depth, leading to more reliable predictions of hydrological processes, water availability, and ecosystem dynamics.
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