High‐resolution fields of global runoff combining observed river discharge and simulated water balances

This paper demonstrates the potential of combining observed river discharge information with climate‐driven water balance model (WBM) outputs to develop composite runoff fields. Such combined runoff fields simultaneously reflect the numerical accuracy of the discharge measurements and preserve the spatial and temporal distribution of simulated runoff. Selected gauging stations from the World Meteorological Organization Global Runoff Data Centre (GRDC) data archive were geographically coregistered to a gridded simulated topological network at 30′ (longitude × latitude) spatial resolution (STN–30p). Interstation regions between gauging stations along the STN–30p network were identified, and annual interstation…

• NS
  National Science Foundation
• UD
  U.S. Department of Energy
• NA
  National Aeronautics and Space Administration
• GR
  Grains Research and Development Corporation