Advances in Geosciences www.adv-geosci.net 1680-7340 1680-7359 2 6th Plinius Conference on Mediterranean Storms (2004) 2005 10.5194/adgeo-2-31-2005 http://www.adv-geosci.net/2/31/2005/ http://www.adv-geosci.net/2/31/2005/adgeo-2-31-2005.html http://www.adv-geosci.net/2/31/2005/adgeo-2-31-2005.pdf 31 39 2005-03-23 DREAM: a distributed model for runoff, evapotranspiration, and antecedent soil moisture simulation S. Manfreda M. Fiorentino V. Iacobellis Dipartimento di Ingegneria e Fisica dell’Ambiente (DIFA), Università degli Studi della Basilicata, via dell’Ateneo Lucano 10, 85100, Potenza, Italia Dipartimento di Ingegneria delle Acque e di Chimica (DIAC), Politecnico di Bari, via E.Orabona 4, 70125, Bari, Italia Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08540, USA The paper introduces a semi-distributed hydrological model, suitable for continuous simulations, based upon the use of daily and hourly time steps. The model is called <U>D</U>istributed model for <U>R</U>unoff, <U>E</U>vapotranspiration, and <U>A</U>ntecedent soil <U>M</U>oisture simulation (DREAM). It includes a daily water budget and an "event scale" hourly rainfall-runoff module. The two modules may be used separately or in cascade for continuous simulation. The main advantages of this approach lay in the robust and physically based parameterization, which allows use of prior information and measurable data for parameter estimation. <P style="line-height: 20px;"> The proposed model was applied over four medium-sized basins in southern Italy, exhibiting considerable differences in climate and other physical characteristics. The capabilities of the two modules (daily and hourly) and of the combined runs were tested against measured data.