| Volumes Contents of Volume 29 |
www.adv-geosci.net/29/85/2011/
doi:10.5194/adgeo-29-85-2011
© Author(s) 2011. This work is distributed
under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
A comparison between ensemble and deterministic hydrological forecasts in an operational context
1Chaire de recherche EDS en prévisions et actions hydrologiques, Département de génie civil et de génie des eaux, Université Laval, Pavillon Pouliot, Québec, G1K 7P4, Canada
2Hydro-Québec Research Institute, Varennes, J3X 1S1, Canada
3Hydro-Québec, Head Office, Montréal, H2Z 1A4, Canada
Abstract. Ensemble forecasts can greatly benefit water resources management as they provide useful information regarding the uncertainty of the situation at hand. However, weather forecasting systems are evolving and the cost for reanalysis and reforecasts is prohibitive. Consequently, series of ensemble weather forecasts from a particular version of the forecasting system are often short. In this case study, we consider a hydrological event that took place in 2003 on the Gatineau watershed in Canada and caused management difficulties in a hydropower production context. The weather ensemble forecasting system in place at that time is now obsolete, but we show that with minimal post-processing of the forecasts, it is still beneficial to exploit ensemble rather than deterministic forecasts, even if the latter emerge from a more advanced meteorological model and possess superior spatial resolution.
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Citation: Boucher, M.-A., Anctil, F., Perreault, L., and Tremblay, D.: A comparison between ensemble and deterministic hydrological forecasts in an operational context, Adv. Geosci., 29, 85-94, doi:10.5194/adgeo-29-85-2011, 2011. Bibtex EndNote Reference Manager XML
