Hydrograph, Flood prediction

Hydrographs are charts that display the change of a hydrologic

variable over time.
A hydrograph is a graph showing the rate of flow (discharge)
versus time past a specific point in a river, channel, or conduit
carrying flow.

Here are several examples from the US Geological Survey's

gaging station on the Tioga River near Mansfield, Pennsylvania.
Although these examples are from a stream, hydrographs can
also be made for lakes, water wells, springs and other bodies of
water.
Here are several examples from the US
Geological Survey's gaging station on the Tioga
River near Mansfield, Pennsylvania. Although
these examples are from a stream, hydrographs
can also be made for lakes, water wells, springs
and other bodies of water.
Stream Discharge Hydrograph
This is one of the most frequently created
hydrographs. It shows the change in discharge of
a stream over time.
The blue line on the hydrograph above shows
how the discharge of the Tioga River changed
between August 29 and September 5, 2004. A
rainfall event in the late afternoon of August
30th produced about 1/4 inch of rain in the area
of the gage.
However, over one inch of rain fell in less than
15 minutes just a couple miles from the gaging
station. Runoff from this precipitation caused
the Tioga's discharge to rapidly increase from
about 100 cubic feet per second to over 2000
cubic feet per second.
Stream Stage Hydrograph
A stream stage hydrograph shows how the
height of the water above a reference datum
has changed over time. Because the discharge of
a stream is related to its stage, stage
hydrographs and discharge hydrographs have
very similar shapes.
Water Temperature Hydrograph
A water temperature hydrograph shows how the
temperature of the stream's water has changed
over time. This water temperature hydrograph
shows a daily cycle of temperature from solar
heating. When the morning sun begins heating
the land, stream, and atmosphere, the water
temperature begins to increase.
This temperature increase continues through
the day and reaches a maximum near sunset.
Temperatures drop through the night, and the
cycle begins again the next morning. In this
hydrograph, notice how the daily temperature
cycle was interrupted on August 30th. The cold
precipitation/runoff lowered the water
temperature and eliminated the daily
temperature rise.
pH Hydrograph
A pH hydrograph shows how the pH of the
stream has changed over time. The pH of the
Tioga River at this location is generally below
7.0. This low pH is caused by acid mine drainage
entering the river at several locations upstream.
The sharp increase in pH on August 30 was
caused by the large amount of
precipitation/runoff (probably with pH of about
7.0) entering the stream. The increased pH level
slowly fell over the next few days as runoff and
bank storage produced by the rainstorm slowly
left the drainage area.
Specific Conductance Hydrograph
Specific conductance is a measure of the ability
of water to carry an electric current. This ability
is proportional to the quantity of ions dissolved
in the water. If you study this specific
conductance hydrograph and compare it to the
discharge hydrograph, you should conclude that
the concentration of dissolved ions is inversely
proportional to the discharge of the stream.
Precipitation and runoff entering the river on
August 30th diluted the concentration of
dissolved ions, resulting in a sharp decrease in
specific conductance. The specific conductance
slowly rose through the rest of the week as
runoff and bank storage water left the drainage
area, and baseflow (with its high concentration
of dissolved ions) began contributing a greater
percentage of the stream's discharge.
Precipitation Hydrograph
A record of precipitation over time can also be
plotted as a hydrograph. The precipitation
hydrograph shown is a cumulative record of
precipitation at the Tioga River gaging station
between August 29th and September 5th.
Rainfall events are clearly shown by sharp
increases of the blue line.
Storm Hydrograph and Factors affecting it
Storm hydrographs are graphs that show how a
drainage basin responds to a period of rainfall.
They are useful in planning for flood situations
and times of drought as they show the discharge
(amount of water reaching channel via surface
run-off, throughflow, and base flow) that
originated as precipitation.
Baseflow - Water supplied to the river by the slow seepage of
water from groundwater. The response of baseslow to rain is
slow and can be negligible.
Rising Limb - Water entering the river, steeper rising limbs
indicate fast entering of water into the river.
Peak Discharge - Flow of water is at its highest.
Lag Time - Lag time is the time between highest rainfall and peak
discharge.
Falling/Recession Limb - Shows falling discharge in a river.
Approach Segment - This shows a river's flow before a storm.
When a storm begins rain does not readily enter into the river
and fills it, instead, most contributions comes from overland
flow(runoff) or throughflow. Short lag times indicate that rain is
heavy and entering the river fast. Long lag times indicate that
rain water(runoff) is slowly reaching the river.
Flood Hydrographs
Flood hydrographs are graphs that show how a drainage basin
responds to a period of rainfall. They are used to plan
for flood situations and times of drought. They show the river
discharge that occurs as a result of precipitation from an earlier storm.

Key terms on the hydrograph, illustrated below, are:

• Peak rainfall – time of the highest rainfall level.
• Peak discharge – time of the highest river channel level.
• Lag time – difference in time between the peak rainfall and peak
discharge.
• Rising limb – the increase in river discharge.
• Falling limb – the fall in river discharge.
• Base flow – normal river level.

(Image of flood hydrograph on the following slide)

Factors Affecting the Storm /Flood Hydrograph
Several factors affects the time water reaches a river and
its discharge.

Precipitation
Heavy, sudden bursts of rainfalls leads to steep rising
limbs and short lag times. Water is not given time
to infiltrate thoroughly. This is why in deserts dried up
rivers quickly replenish after a heavy storm (flash floods).
Conversely, light rains favours gradual and thorough
infiltration, hence less water reaches the river. This results
in long lag times. But if rainfall continues for a long
period, the ground may become completely saturated
and water can flow as saturation overland flow, this is
typical of tropical areas.
Nature of Surface
Ice covered surfaces hinders infiltration and
encourage high run-off rates leading to higher
discharges and short lag times. Baked surfaces in
arid regions prevents infiltration and encourage
more run-off. The results are high peak discharges
and short lag times.
Vegetation Cover
Vegetation can absorb and hinder surface runoff
from reaching the river. In addition, densely
vegetated areas in tropical regions can intercept
rainwater and less water reaches the surface as
runoff.
Soil/Rock Type
Porous soils such as sands or rocks such as
limestone are permeable, therefore runoff is
reduced and leading to long lag times and
gentler hydrographs.

Slope
Overland flow (run-off) is highest on steep
slopes because infiltration is reduced, therefore
water reaches the river fast (short lag time) and
discharge is high.
Basin Morphology and size
Small circular catchments will have short lag times
as runoff water quickly reaches the river. High
elevated basins results in high runoff rates which
shortens the lag time.

Human Impacts Affecting Storm Hydrographs

Deforestation
Lack of vegetation encourages high runoff rates. In
addition, interception is reduced and water readily
reaches the surface. This result in short lag times
and high peak discharge.
Lack of vegetation encourages high runoff rates. In addition,
interception is reduced and water readily reaches the surface.
This result in short lag times and high peak discharge.

Afforestation
Conversely, dense vegetation cover hinders runoff and
intercept more rainwater. In addition, roots absorb water
which reduce runoff.

Urbanisation
Roads and pavements impedes infiltration and favours high
runoff, thereby increasing surface runoff and short lag times
and high peak discharges. Storm drains channels water to
rivers increasing discharge. Urbanisation produce intense
rainfalls and which increase the overall river discharge.
Dam/Resevoirs
Dams stores water and blocks off the natural flow of the river.
This can create long lag times.

Agriculture
Poor farming methods, tractors and cattle cane compact the soil
creating a hard layer which hinders infiltration and encourage
high runoff which in turn shorten the lag time. The removal of
vegetation for farming also mean that run-off increases which
shortens the time water reaches a river.