Rainfall runoff modeling using doppler weather radar data

Abstract

Precipitation is a significant input to hydrologic models so it needs to be quantified accurately A dense network of automatic rain gauges is desired to measure the spatial and temporal distribution of rainfall for precise rainfall runoff estimation Currently few rain gauges are used to measure point rainfall in the field and are integrated to provide the aerial distributions of rainfall Radar derived rainfall estimates complement the existing ground observations Meteorological long range radars have several advantages over newlinethe conventional rain gauges as a single site can obtain coverage over a wide area with high temporal and spatial resolution India has been traditionally vulnerable to various hazards such as floods droughts and cyclones The India Meteorological Department has installed a number of Doppler Weather Radars along coastal India These radar data are hitherto utilized for weather prediction and detection of cyclones approaching Indian coast, and are not utilized for hydrological modeling and flood related studies The S band DWR available at Cyclone Detection Radar centre Chennai quantifies rainfall data for a 100 km radius from the radar station Chennai city which is located in Tamil Nadu India experienced major flooding in Adyar River which runs through the city during the years 1976 1985 2005 and 2008 Hence this research endeavors to simulate rainfall runoff processes for two watersheds namely Adyar and Nemam located in Chennai newline