Impact of spatially-variable soil thickness and texture on simulated hydrologic conditions in a semiarid watershed in northwest Mexico
Soil depth and texture exert strong controls on the spatial distribution of water and energy fluxes and states in semiarid watersheds. As a result, realistic representations of the spatial soil characteristics within watersheds are important for the improvement of process-based distributed hydrologi...
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Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
2016-12-01
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| Series: | Revista Mexicana de Ciencias Geológicas |
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| Online Access: | https://rmcg.unam.mx/index.php/rmcg/article/view/451 |
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| author | Luis A. Méndez-Barroso Enrique R. Vivoni Giuseppe Mascaro |
| author_facet | Luis A. Méndez-Barroso Enrique R. Vivoni Giuseppe Mascaro |
| author_sort | Luis A. Méndez-Barroso |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Soil depth and texture exert strong controls on the spatial distribution of water and energy fluxes and states in semiarid watersheds. As a result, realistic representations of the spatial soil characteristics within watersheds are important for the improvement of process-based distributed hydrologic modeling applications. In this study, we evaluated the effects of combinations of soil thickness and soil texture products with varying spatial distributions to assess their effects on the simulated hydrologic response in the semiarid Sierra Los Locos watershed in Sonora, Mexico. The main findings of the hydrological simulations show that soil texture exerted a strong control on evapotranspiration and soil moisture patterns, while soil thickness was directly related with the magnitude and range of the simulated values. Furthermore, soil texture patterns were an important factor controlling the spatial and temporal persistence of soil moisture which is highly evident during the transition from dry to wet conditions in the North American monsoon region. Once vegetation cover increases in the watershed in response to seasonal rainfall, the influence of soil texture decreases for determining the spatial distribution of the simulated hydrologic response and soil thickness becomes more important. Spatially-variable soil thickness tends to create soil depressions that store and transmit subsurface water, leading to large spatial variations in soil moisture, evapotranspiration and runoff generation. The results of this study highlight the sensitivity of estimated water fluxes and states with respect to the spatial distribution of soil depth and texture as obtained in a distributed hydrologic model representative of modern approaches. Finally, this research work offers insight into the importance of field studies and remote sensing approaches to better characterize these watershed properties. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e20132572c3e41b987b96355d3e6ab29 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1026-8774 2007-2902 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2016-12-01 |
| publisher | Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Revista Mexicana de Ciencias Geológicas |
| spelling | doaj-art-e20132572c3e41b987b96355d3e6ab292025-08-20T02:32:44ZengUniversidad Nacional Autónoma de MéxicoRevista Mexicana de Ciencias Geológicas1026-87742007-29022016-12-0133310.22201/cgeo.20072902e.2016.3.451Impact of spatially-variable soil thickness and texture on simulated hydrologic conditions in a semiarid watershed in northwest MexicoLuis A. Méndez-Barroso0Enrique R. Vivoni1Giuseppe Mascaro2Departamento de Ciencias del Agua y del Medio Ambiente, Instituto Tecnológico de Sonora, Ciudad Obregón, Sonora, C.P. 85000, Mexico. School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, United States of America.School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, United States of America. School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, United States of America.School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, United States of America. Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, United States of America.Soil depth and texture exert strong controls on the spatial distribution of water and energy fluxes and states in semiarid watersheds. As a result, realistic representations of the spatial soil characteristics within watersheds are important for the improvement of process-based distributed hydrologic modeling applications. In this study, we evaluated the effects of combinations of soil thickness and soil texture products with varying spatial distributions to assess their effects on the simulated hydrologic response in the semiarid Sierra Los Locos watershed in Sonora, Mexico. The main findings of the hydrological simulations show that soil texture exerted a strong control on evapotranspiration and soil moisture patterns, while soil thickness was directly related with the magnitude and range of the simulated values. Furthermore, soil texture patterns were an important factor controlling the spatial and temporal persistence of soil moisture which is highly evident during the transition from dry to wet conditions in the North American monsoon region. Once vegetation cover increases in the watershed in response to seasonal rainfall, the influence of soil texture decreases for determining the spatial distribution of the simulated hydrologic response and soil thickness becomes more important. Spatially-variable soil thickness tends to create soil depressions that store and transmit subsurface water, leading to large spatial variations in soil moisture, evapotranspiration and runoff generation. The results of this study highlight the sensitivity of estimated water fluxes and states with respect to the spatial distribution of soil depth and texture as obtained in a distributed hydrologic model representative of modern approaches. Finally, this research work offers insight into the importance of field studies and remote sensing approaches to better characterize these watershed properties.https://rmcg.unam.mx/index.php/rmcg/article/view/451Distributed hydrologic modelingsoil depthsensitivity analysisarid and semiarid hydrologyspatial patternsSierra Los Locos |
| spellingShingle | Luis A. Méndez-Barroso Enrique R. Vivoni Giuseppe Mascaro Impact of spatially-variable soil thickness and texture on simulated hydrologic conditions in a semiarid watershed in northwest Mexico Revista Mexicana de Ciencias Geológicas Distributed hydrologic modeling soil depth sensitivity analysis arid and semiarid hydrology spatial patterns Sierra Los Locos |
| title | Impact of spatially-variable soil thickness and texture on simulated hydrologic conditions in a semiarid watershed in northwest Mexico |
| title_full | Impact of spatially-variable soil thickness and texture on simulated hydrologic conditions in a semiarid watershed in northwest Mexico |
| title_fullStr | Impact of spatially-variable soil thickness and texture on simulated hydrologic conditions in a semiarid watershed in northwest Mexico |
| title_full_unstemmed | Impact of spatially-variable soil thickness and texture on simulated hydrologic conditions in a semiarid watershed in northwest Mexico |
| title_short | Impact of spatially-variable soil thickness and texture on simulated hydrologic conditions in a semiarid watershed in northwest Mexico |
| title_sort | impact of spatially variable soil thickness and texture on simulated hydrologic conditions in a semiarid watershed in northwest mexico |
| topic | Distributed hydrologic modeling soil depth sensitivity analysis arid and semiarid hydrology spatial patterns Sierra Los Locos |
| url | https://rmcg.unam.mx/index.php/rmcg/article/view/451 |
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