LENS-GRM Applicability Analysis and Evaluation

Recently, there have been many abnormal natural phenomena caused by climate change. Anthropogenic factors associated with insufficient water resource management can be another cause. Among natural causes, rainfall intensity and volume often induce flooding. Therefore, accurate rainfall estimation and prediction can prevent and mitigate damage caused by these hazards. Sadly, uncertainties often hinder accurate rainfall forecasting. This study investigates the uncertainty of the Korean rainfall ensemble prediction data and runoff analysis model in order to enhance reliability and improve prediction. The objectives of this study include: (i) evaluating the spatial characteristics and applicability of limited area ensemble prediction system (LENS) data; (ii) understanding uncertainty using parameter correction and generalized likelihood uncertainty estimation (GLUE) and grid-based rainfall-runoff model (GRM); (iii) evaluating models before and after LENS-GRM correction. In this study, data from the Wicheon Basin was used. The informal likelihood (R2, NSE, PBIAS) and formal likelihood (log-normal) were used to evaluate model applicability. The results confirmed that uncertainty of the behavioral model exists using the likelihood threshold when applying the runoff model to rainfall forecasting data. Accordingly, this method is expected to enable more reliable flood prediction by reducing the uncertainties of the rainfall ensemble data and the runoff model when selecting the behavioral model for the user’s uncertainty analysis. It also provides a basis for flood prediction studies that apply rainfall and geographical characteristics for rainfall-runoff uncertainty analysis.