Global-scale Pareto-optimal calibration of a hydrological model

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Andreas Güntner
• Subject Area: Hydrogeology, Hydrology, Limnology, Urban Water Management, Water Chemistry, Integrated Water Resources Management
• Term: from 2018 to 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 324641997

The goal of project P3 is to improve the simulation of continental water cycle dynamics with the global hydrological model WaterGAP after parameter calibration against a broad range of observational water storage and flux data sets. To this end, a multi-objective calibration framework based on the principle of Pareto optimality (POC: Pareto-optimal calibration approach) has been set up by P3 in the first phase of GlobalCDA. In the second phase, POC will be expanded to a seamless global-scale calibration scheme. More complex hydrological signatures will be considered as calibration targets, in particular a novel approach for calibration against the dominant spatio-temporal patterns of water storage based on Empirical Orthogonal Function analysis. An optimal design of the calibration and data assimilation (C/DA) scheme including uncertainty assessment will be figured out in dedicated C/DA experiments together with the projects P1 to P4.

• DFG Programme: Research Units
• Subproject of: FOR 2630: Understanding the global freshwater system by combining geodetic and remote sensing information with modelling using a calibration/data assimilation approach (GlobalCDA)