| Summary: | Abstract: The objective of this work was to define the best alternative methods for estimating the reference evapotranspiration (ETo) in the main climatic types (Cfa and Cfb) of the state of Paraná, Brazil. The methods tested were Budyko, Camargo, Hargreaves-Samani, Linacre, and Thornthwaite, which were compared to the ETo calculated with the Penman-Monteith ASCE (EToPM) method, between 1986 and 2015, in eight meteorological stations. The performance of the alternative methods was obtained from the coefficient of determination (R2), index “d” of agreement, index “c” of performance, and root mean square error (RMSE). The Hargreaves-Samani method has a better performance in estimating the ETo for the main climatic types in the state of Paraná. The Camargo method allows smaller errors between the standard values of ETo, obtained with the Penman-Monteith method, and the estimated values. The methods of Thornthwaite, Linacre, and Budyko are not adequate to estimate the ETo in any climatic type of the state of Paraná, Brazil.
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