Measurements

• Variable
– Represent an entity variable in time and space
• Parameter
– A constant, typically constants in equations and models.

• Important issues in data collection

– Area – point values:
• We measure at a point, needs areal values
• Can we measure areal values directly
• Do we measure enough data to represent the area (representativity)?
– Short – long term balance
• Remember storage
– Scale
• Do we measure at a resolution that represent the processes we need to
describe?
• Period
– Do we measure often enough to cover the processes
1
 Discharge
• Most important variable in hydrology for engineering.
• In Norway: NVE is responsible for national network
• Daily data most common
• Indirect measurement most common:
– Measure stage
– Compute discharge from stage-discharge relationship

• Unit: m3/s (= 1000 l/s)

• Volume, yearly volume, typically i mill. m3 / år
• Specific discharge: l/s*km2. In Norway specific discharge
can be found from runoff maps.

2
 Measuring discharge

• Direct methods
– Volumetric
– Velocity – area method
– Dilution
• Indirect methods
– Natural profile – empirical stage – discharge relationship
– Artificial profile – theoretical stage – discharge relationship

• Indirect method with natural profile most common

3
 Set up automatic discharge measurement
Natural profile

1. Establish stage measurement

1. Pressure transducer or float-counterweight system
2. Data collection and transfer

2. Find the stage – discharge curve: Q = F(H)

1. Measure related Q and H values in the field
2. Fit curve on the form Q = aHb or Q = a(H-H0)b if Q not 0
when H = 0.
3. Fit using e.g. log transformation. Remember option of
multiple segments.
4. Extrapolation in the curve is linked with uncertainty

4
 Vannføringskurve
Example Svarttjønnbekken
Svarttjønnbekken
Vannføringskurve Svarttjønnbekken

3500.0
3500.0

3000.0
3000.0

2500.0
2500.0
l/s
Vannføring,l/s
Vannføring,

2000.0
2000.0

1500.0
1500.0

1000.0
1000.0

500.0
500.0

0.0
0.0
00 20
20 40
40 60
60 80
80 100
100 120
120
5
Vannstand,
Vannstand,cm
cm
 Precipitation
• Measured (collected) in gauges with automatic or manual
reading. For short time precipitation special gauges are
available.
• DNMI is responsible for measurements in Norway. Provides
data and statistics.
• Two different phases must be measured: rain and snow. This
makes the measurements more complicated.

• Usually measured as mm (mm/m2) – a volume.

• The catchment links runoff and precipitation. Example:
– Nidelva: Area 3125 km2, annual precipitation ca 900 mm.
– Annual runoff vol: 3125 * 900 / 106 * 1000 = 2812 mill m3 / år
– Mean annual discharge: 2812*106/(24*365*60*60) = 89 m3/s
• Intensity, (mm precipitation)/time, usually as l/(s*hektar)

6
 The other variables in the water
balance
• Evaporation
– Measured as mm
– Complicated to measure – usually computed from climate data

• Storage
– Snow (measured as water equivalent in mm)
– Water in unsaturated zone
– Groundwater
– Surface storage

7
 Climate

• Temperature

• Relative humidity
– % water vapour in air

• Wind
– Direction
– Speed

• Radiation
– Shortwave
– Longwave

8
 Collection and transfer

• Previously mostly writing and manual stations

• Today mostly automated stations with digital storage and

data transmission by radio or phone.

Eggafoss discharge Portable climate station

9
 Sagelva research basin

• Sagelva established 1969

• Two climate stations S5

– K1-svarttjønnbekken S4

– K2-Helligdagshaugen Q2

• Discharge
– Q1-Svarttjønnbekken
Q3
S2 Q1

– Q2-Hokfossen K1
S7
– Q3-Hestsjøosen G1

– Q4-Øvre hestsjøbekk
G2
Q4 S3
G3
• Snow
S1
– Snowpillows
– Manual snowcourses
G4
• Groundwater
– G2 - automatic K2
S6

10
 Data in hydrology
Timeseries of temperature
• Data is important in hydrlogy. Typical 35

data types:
30

25

– Timeseries – varies with time

Temperatur (gr.C)
20

– Profiles – data measured in e.g. 15

different elevations 10

– Area dsitributed – variables 5

distributed over an area

0
10:14:53 10:29:17 10:43:41 10:58:05 11:12:29 11:26:53 11:41:17 11:55:41
Tid (hh:mm :ss)

• Statistics describes and analyzes Profiles - snow

data: 90 0,45

– Expected values 80

70
0,40

0,35

– Developments and trends in data 60 0,30

Tettleik (g/cm3)
Snødjup (cm)
50 0,25

– Correlation in data values 40 0,20

30 0,15

– Distributions and extremes 20 0,10

10 0,05

0 0,00
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

11 Snødjup Tettleik
 Statistical measures

• Statistical moment s
– Mean – Used as long term expectance value, often termed
”normal”
– Standard deviation
– Coefficient of skewness

• Percentiles
– Median – central tendency – divides data 50 - 50. Normal
distribution: median = mean
– Upper quantile (75% percentile): 25% larger, 75% less
– Lower quantile (25% percentile): 75% larger, 25% less

12
 Distributions

• We fit distributions to be
able to analyze data and to
find extremes.

• Several distributions are used

in hydrlogy:

• Two parameter:
– Mean, std.dev

• Three parameter:
– Mean, std.dev,skewness

13
 Duration curve
• Summarize variability in a timeseries
• Show the % of time a variable with a given value exceeds the
long term observation
• To create:
– Sort data descending
– Rank values, the larges should have rank 1
– Exceedeance probability: p = 100*(m/n+1), m=rank number,
n=total number of data.
0.60
0.55
0.50
0.45
Discharge (m3/s)

0.40
0.35
0.30
0.25
0.20
0.15
0.10
0.05
0.00
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100
14
% exceedance
 Double mass analysis
Stasjon Stasjon
År A Sum B Sum
1926 38.38 38.38 32.85 32.85
1927 37.49 75.86 28.08 60.93 800

1928 43.18 119.04 33.51 94.44 700

y = 1.0531x - 53.511

1929 37.11 156.15 29.58 124.02 600

1930 37.43 193.58 23.76 147.78 500

y = 0.7502x + 4.5305
1931 51.95 245.53 58.39 206.17 400

1932 43.66 289.19 46.24 252.41

300

200
1933 32.26 321.45 30.34 282.75
100
1934 38.91 360.36 46.78 329.53
0
1935 41.33 401.69 38.06 367.59 0.00 100.00 200.00 300.00 400.00 500.00 600.00 700.00 800.00

1936 34.71 436.40 42.82 410.41 1926-1930 1930-1942 Linear (1930-1942) Linear (1926-1930)

1937 43.32 479.72 37.93 448.34

• Check consistency in data series.

• Sum series and plot them against each other
– Changes in slope indicates breach of homogenity

15
 Correlation & regression
• Correlation – tendency of variables to fluctuate in paralell
– Correlation factor: 1 – positive Correlation, 0 – no correlation, -1
negative correlation (opposite fluctuation (low x-high y)

• Regression – Find functional relationship between two

variables. Remember cause – effect

1800.00

1600.00
Vassføring Svarttjønnbekken (l/s)

1400.00

1200.00 y = 0.4148x - 1.5222

R2 = 0.9244
1000.00

800.00

600.00

400.00

200.00

0.00
0.0 500.0 1000.0 1500.0 2000.0 2500.0 3000.0 3500.0 4000.0
16 Vassføring Hokfossen (l/s)