SuperflexPy 1.3.0: an open-source Python framework for building, testing, and improving conceptual hydrological models
<p>Catchment-scale hydrological models are widely used to represent and improve our understanding of hydrological processes and to support operational water resource management. Conceptual models, which approximate catchment dynamics using relatively simple storage and routing elements, offer...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Copernicus Publications
2021-11-01
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| Series: | Geoscientific Model Development |
| Online Access: | https://gmd.copernicus.org/articles/14/7047/2021/gmd-14-7047-2021.pdf |
| Summary: | <p>Catchment-scale hydrological models are widely used to represent and improve
our understanding of hydrological processes and to support operational water
resource management. Conceptual models, which approximate catchment
dynamics using relatively simple storage and routing elements, offer an
attractive compromise in terms of predictive accuracy, computational
demands, and amenability to interpretation. This paper introduces
SuperflexPy, an open-source Python framework implementing the SUPERFLEX
principles (Fenicia et al., 2011) for building conceptual
hydrological models from generic components, with a high degree of control
over all aspects of model specification. SuperflexPy can be used to build
models of a wide range of spatial complexity, ranging from simple lumped
models (e.g., a reservoir) to spatially distributed configurations (e.g., nested sub-catchments), with the ability to customize all individual model
components. SuperflexPy is a Python package, enabling modelers to exploit
the full potential of the framework without the need for separate software
installations and making it easier to use and interface with existing
Python code for model deployment. This paper presents the general
architecture of SuperflexPy, discusses the software design and
implementation choices, and illustrates its usage to build conceptual models
of varying degrees of complexity. The illustration includes the usage of
existing SuperflexPy model elements, as well as their extension to implement
new functionality. Comprehensive documentation is available online and
provided as a Supplement to this paper. SuperflexPy is available
as open-source code and can be used by the hydrological community to
investigate improved process representations for model comparison and for
operational work.</p> |
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| ISSN: | 1991-959X 1991-9603 |