USGS Hydrologic modeling software
Models developed by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) are widely used to predict the responses of hydrologic systems to changes such as increases in precipitation or groundwater pumping rates, and to anticipate the movement and fate of solutes and contaminants in water, crucial aspects of agricultural production.
United States Geological Survey (USGS) models are widely used to predict responses of hydrologic systems to changing stresses such as increased precipitation or groundwater pumping rates, as well as to predict the fate and movement of solutes and contaminants in water, characteristics of great importance to agricultural production. Within the software is the Single Water Hydrologic Flow Model (MF-OWHM) which is an integrated hydrologic flow model. MF-OWHM is designed for the analysis of a wide range of joint use problems, MF-OWHM allows for the simulation, analysis, and management of human and natural water movement within a physically based supply and demand framework. Another software is the MODPATH Observation Process (MODPATH-OBS) which is a program developed to calculate simulated equivalents to transport observations derived from simulated particle tracking with or without field measurements for a variety of common field situations or hydrologic environments. The method can be used for both transient and steady-state flow simulations. There is also the Cascade Routing Tool (CRT) which is a software application for watershed models that includes the coupled groundwater-surface flow model and the Precipitation and Runoff Modeling System (PRMS). CRT generates output to define cascading surface and subsurface flow paths for grid-based model domains. Finally there is INFIL3.0, which is perhaps the most important for agriculture as it is a deterministic grid-based distributed parameter water balance model that estimates the temporal and spatial distribution of daily net water infiltration through the lower boundary of the root zone. The root zone bottom is the estimated maximum depth below the soil surface affected by evapotranspiration. In many field applications, net infiltration below the root zone bottom can be assumed to be equal to the net recharge of an aquifer from the underlying water table. The daily water balance simulated by INFIL3.0 includes precipitation as rain or snow; snowfall accumulation, sublimation, and snowmelt; root zone infiltration; root zone evapotranspiration; drainage and redistribution of water content within the root zone profile; surface water runoff to and from adjacent grid cells; and net infiltration through the bottom of the root zone.
N.A
Estimated value:
It is a solution for the current and future water situation in the world.
Expected environmental impact:
Urban/Rural
Sector:
N.A
Efficiency (%):
Electric
Energy used:
N.A
Precipitation (mm):
2, 6, 9 and 13
SDGs impacted:
Water production and storage and water use efficiency
Main theme:
N.A
Precipitation:
Other
Region:
Average
Application difficulty:
Hydrologic Modeling | US Geological Survey (usgs.gov)
Links of interest: