Output generated by LISFLOOD
LISFLOOD can generate a wide variety of outputs. Output files can be time series at specific points (.tss files) or maps (NetCDF format). Reporting of output files can be switched on and off using options in the LISFLOOD settings file. A number of output files are specific to optional modules, such as the simulation of reservoirs. This page lists the most common output time series and maps (note that the file names can always be changed by the user, although this is not recommended).
Time Series
Table: LISFLOOD output time series, some examples.
| Description | Units | File name |
|---|---|---|
| RATE VARIABLES AT GAUGES | ||
| $^{1,2}$ average river discharge | $\frac{m^3} {s}$ | dis.tss |
| $^{1,2}$ instantaneous rivers discharge | $\frac{m^3} {s}$ | chanq.tss |
| NUMERICAL CHECKS | ||
| $^2$ cumulative mass balance error | $m^3$ | mbError.tss |
| $^2$ cumulative mass balance error, expressed as mm water slice (average over catchment) | $mm$ | mbErrorMm.tss |
$^1$ Output only if option ‘InitLisflood’ = 1 (pre-run)
$^2$ Output only if option ‘InitLisflood’ = 0
Output time series can be classified in the following categories:
- Time series with values of meteorological input variables, averaged over the area upstream of each gauge location; reporting of these time series can be activated using the option repMeteoUpsGauges=1
- Time series with values of model state variables, averaged over area upstream of each gauge location; reporting of these time series can be activated using the option repStateUpsGauges=1
- Time series with values of model rate variables, averaged over area upstream of each gauge location; reporting of these time series can be activated using the option repRateUpsGauges=1
- Time series that are specific to other options (e.g. simulation of reservoirs).
- Time series with values of model state variables at user-defined locations (sites); reporting of these time series can be activated using the option repStateSites=1. Note that ‘sites’ can be either individual pixels or larger areas (e.g. catchments, administrative areas, and so on). In case of larger areas the model reports the average value for each respective area.
- Time series with values of model rate variables at user-defined locations (sites); reporting of these time series can be activated using the option repRateSites=1
Table: LISFLOOD optional output time series (only ‘InitLisflood’ = 0).
| Description | Units | Settings variable | Default name |
|---|---|---|---|
| TIME SERIES, AVERAGE UPSTREAM OF GAUGES | |||
| METEOROLOGICAL INPUT VARIABLES (option repMeteoUpsGauges) | |||
| precipitation | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | PrecipitationAvUpsTS | precipUps.tss |
| potential reference evapotranspiration | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | ETRefAvUpsTS | etUps.tss |
| potential evaporation from soil | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | ESRefAvUpsTS | esUps.tss |
| potential open water evaporation | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | EWRefAvUpsTS | ewUps.tss |
| average daily temperature | $°C$ | TavgAvUpsTS | tAvgUps.tss |
| STATE VARIABLES (option repStateUpsGauges) | |||
| depth of water on soil surface | $mm$ | WaterDepthAvUpsTS | wdepthUps.tss |
| depth of snow cover on | $mm$ | SnowCoverAvUpsTS | snowCoverUps.tss |
| depth of interception storage | $mm$ | CumInterceptionAvUpsTS | cumInterceptionUps.tss |
| soil moisture superficial layer | $\frac{mm^3}{mm^3}$ | Theta1AvUpsTS | th1AvUps.tss |
| soil moisture upper layer | $\frac{mm^3}{mm^3}$ | Theta2AvUpsTS | th2AvUps.tss |
| soil moisture lower layer | $\frac{mm^3}{mm^3}$ | Theta3AvUpsTS | th3AvUps.tss |
| groundwater upper zone | $mm$ | UZAvUpsTS | uzUps.tss |
| groundwater lower zone | $mm$ | LZAvUpsTS | lzUps.tss |
| number of days since last rain | $days$ | DSLRAvUpsTS | dslrUps.tss |
| frost index | $\frac{°C}{days}$ | FrostIndexAvUpsTS | frostUps.tss |
| RATE VARIABLES (option repRateUpsGauges) | |||
| rain (excluding snow) | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | RainAvUpsTS | rainUps.tss |
| snow | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | SnowAvUpsTS | snowUps.tss |
| snow melt | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | SnowmeltAvUpsTS | snowMeltUps.tss |
| actual evaporation | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | ESActAvUpsTS | esActUps.tss |
| actual transpiration | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | TaAvUpsTS | tActUps.tss |
| rainfall interception | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | InterceptionAvUpsTS | interceptionUps.tss |
| evaporation of intercepted water | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | EWIntAvUpsTS | ewIntActUps.tss |
| leaf drainage | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | LeafDrainageAvUpsTS | leafDrainageUps.tss |
| infiltration | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | InfiltrationAvUpsTS | infiltrationUps.tss |
| preferential (bypass) flow | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | PrefFlowAvUpsTS | prefFlowUps.tss |
| percolation upper to lower soil layer | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | PercolationAvUpsTS | dTopToSubUps.tss |
| percolation lower soil layer to subsoil | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | SeepSubToGWAvUpsTS | dSubToUzUps.tss |
| surface runoff | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | SurfaceRunoffAvUpsTS | surfaceRunoffUps.tss |
| outflow from upper zone | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | UZOutflowAvUpsTS | qUzUps.tss |
| outflow from lower zone | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | LZOutflowAvUpsTS | qLzUps.tss |
| total runoff | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | TotalRunoffAvUpsTS | totalRunoffUps.tss |
| percolation upper to lower zone | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | GwPercUZLZAvUpsTS | percUZLZUps.tss |
| loss from lower zone | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | GwLossTS | lossUps.tss |
| STATE VARIABLES AT SITES (option repStateSites) | |||
| depth of snow cover on soil surface (pixel-average) | $mm$ | SnowCoverTS | snowCover.tss |
| depth of interception storage | $mm$ | CumInterceptionTS | cumInt.tss |
| soil moisture content superficial layer | $\frac{mm^3}{mm^3}$ | Theta1TS | th1.tss |
| soil moisture content upper layer | $\frac{mm^3}{mm^3}$ | Theta2TS | th2.tss |
| soil moisture layer lower layer | $\frac{mm^3}{mm^3}$ | Theta3TS | th3.tss |
| storage in upper groundwater zone | $mm$ | UZTS | uz.tss |
| storage in lower groundwater zone | $mm$ | LZTS | lz.tss |
| number of days since last rain | $days$ | DSLRTS | dslr.tss |
| frost index | $\frac{°C}{days}$ | FrostIndexTS | frost.tss |
| RATE VARIABLES AT SITES (option repRateSites) | |||
| rain (excluding snow) | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | RainTS | rain.tss |
| Snow | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | SnowTS | snow.tss |
| snow melt | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | SnowmeltTS | snowMelt.tss |
| actual evaporation | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | ESActTS | esAct.tss |
| actual transpiration | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | TaTS | tAct.tss |
| rainfall interception | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | InterceptionTS | interception.tss |
| evaporation of intercepted water | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | EWIntTS | ewIntAct.tss |
| leaf drainage | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | LeafDrainageTS | leafDrainage.tss |
| infiltration | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | InfiltrationTS | infiltration.tss |
| preferential (bypass) flow | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | PrefFlowTS | prefFlow.tss |
| percolation upper to lower soil layer | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | PercolationTS | dTopToSub.tss |
| percolation lower soil layer to subsoil | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | SeepSubToGWTS | dSubToUz.tss |
| surface runoff | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | SurfaceRunoffTS | surfaceRunoff.tss |
| outflow from upper zone | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | UZOutflowTS | qUz.tss |
| outflow from lower zone | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | LZOutflowTS | qLz.tss |
| total runoff | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | TotalRunoffTS | totalRunoff.tss |
| percolation from upper to lower zone | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | GwPercUZLZTS | percUZLZ.tss |
| loss from lower zone | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | GwLossTS | loss.tss |
Maps
Output maps can be classified according to the following categories:
- Maps of discharge at each time step; reporting of these maps can be activated using the option repDischargeMaps=1.
- Maps with values of driving meteorological values at each time step.
- Maps with values of model state variables at each time step.
- Maps with values of model rate variables at each time step.
- Maps that are specific to other options (e.g. simulation of reservoirs).
In addition, some additional maps and time series may be reported for debugging purposes. In general these are not of any interest to the LISFLOOD user, so they are not documented here.
Note the domains for which variables are valid: all rate variables are reported as pixel-average values. Soil moisture and groundwater storage are reported for the permeable fraction of each pixel only. The reported snow cover is the average of the snow depths in snow zones A, B and C.
Table: LISFLOOD initialization output maps (Output only if option ‘InitLisflood’ = 1).
| Description | Units | File name | Domain |
|---|---|---|---|
| AVERAGE RECHARGE MAP (for lower groundwater zone and channel discharge) (option InitLisflood) | |||
| average inflow to lower zone | $mm$ | lzavin.nc | whole pixel |
| average channel discharge (if option ‘SplitRouting’ = 1) | $\frac{m^3}{s}$ | avgdis.nc | channel |
LISFLOOD can also generate output end-files to allow the initialization of the soil moisture of the three soil layers and the water content of the upper groundwater zone, as well as maps of the average seppage flow from the second to the third soil layer. More details are provided in the chapter dedicated to model initialization. To speed up the pre-run and to prevent that results are taken from the pre-run, not necessary outputs are disabled if option ‘InitLisflood’ = 1 is chosen.
Table: LISFLOOD optional output maps
| Description | Option | Units | Settings variable | Prefix |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DISCHARGE | ||||
| discharge | repDischargeMaps | $\frac{m^3}{s}$ | DischargeMaps | dis |
| METEOROLOGICAL INPUT VARIABLES | ||||
| precipitation | repPrecipitationMaps | $mm$ | PrecipitationMaps | pr |
| potential reference evapotranspiration | repETRefMaps | $mm$ | ETRefMaps | et |
| potential evaporation from soil | repESRefMaps | $mm$ | ESRefMaps | es |
| potential open water evaporation | repEWRefMaps | $mm$ | EWRefMaps | ew |
| average daily temperature | repTavgMaps | $°C$ | TavgMaps | tav |
| VOLUME VARIABLES | ||||
| depth of water on soil surface (overland flow) | repWaterDepthMaps | $mm$ | WaterDepthMaps | wdep |
| depth of snow cover on soil surface | repSnowCoverMaps | $mm$ | SnowCoverMaps | scov |
| depth of interception storage | repCumInterceptionMaps | $mm$ | CumInterceptionMaps (other fraction) CumInterceptionForestMaps CumInterceptionIrrigationMaps CumIntSealedMaps |
cum cumf cumi cums |
| soil moisture content of the three soil layers | repThetaMaps | $\frac{mm^3}{mm^3}$ | Theta1Maps Theta1ForestMaps Theta1IrrigationMaps Theta2Maps Theta2ForestMaps Theta2IrrigationMaps Theta3Maps Theta3ForestMaps Theta3IrrigationMaps |
tha thfa thia thb thfb thib thc thfc thic |
| storage in upper groundwater zone | repUZMaps | $mm$ | UZMaps UZForestMaps UZIrrigationMaps |
uz uzf uzi |
| storage in lower groundwater zone | repLZMaps | $mm$ | LZMaps | lz |
| number of days since last rain | repDSLRMaps | $days$ | DSLRMaps DSLRForestMaps |
dslr dslF |
| frost index | repFrostIndexMaps | $\frac{°C}{days}$ | FrostIndexMaps | frost |
| Total Water Storage | repTotalWaterStorageMaps | $mm$ | TotalWaterStorageMaps | tws |
| RATE VARIABLES | ||||
| rain (excluding snow) | repRainMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | RainMaps | rain |
| snow | repSnowMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | SnowMaps | snow |
| snow melt | repSnowMeltMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | SnowMeltMaps | smelt |
| actual evaporation | repESActMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | ESActMaps | esact |
| actual transpiration | repTaMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | TaMaps | tact |
| rainfall interception | repInterceptionMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | InterceptionMaps InterceptionForestMaps |
int intF |
| evaporation of intercepted water | repEWIntMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | EWIntMaps | ewint |
| leaf drainage | repLeafDrainageMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | LeafDrainageMaps LeafDrainageForestMaps |
ldra draF |
| infiltration | repInfiltrationMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | InfiltrationMaps InfiltrationForestMaps |
inf infF |
| preferential (bypass) flow | repPrefFlowMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | PrefFlowMaps PrefFlowtherMaps PrefFlowForestMaps PrefFlowIrrigationMaps |
pflowpixel pflow pflowF pflowi |
| percolation upper to lower soil layer | repPercolationMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | Percolation1ato1bOtherMaps Percolation1to1bForestMaps Percolation1ato1bIrrigationMaps Percolation1bto2OtherMaps Percolation1bto2ForestMaps Percolation1bto2IrrigationMaps |
Percolation1ato1bOther Percolation1ato1bForest Percolation1to2Irrigation Percolation1bto2Other Percolation1bto2Forest Percolation1bto2Irrigation |
| percolation lower soil layer to subsoil | repSeepSubToGWMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | SeepSubToGWMaps SeepSubToGWotherMaps SeepSubToGWforestMaps SeepSubToGWirrigationMaps |
sgwPixel sgwOther sgwForest sgwIrrigation |
| surface runoff | repSurfaceRunoffMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | SurfaceRunoffMaps | srun |
| outflow from upper zone | repUZOutflowMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | UZOutflowMaps, UZOutflowForestMaps UZOutflowIrrigationMaps |
quzPixel quz quzF quzi |
| outflow from lower zone | repLZOutflowMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | LZOutflowMaps | qlz |
| total runoff | repTotalRunoffMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | TotalRunoffMaps | trun |
| percolation upper to lower zone | repGwPercUZLZMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | GwPercUZLZMaps GwPercUZLZOtherMaps GwPercUZLZForestMaps GwPercUZLZIrrigationMaps |
uz2lzPixel uz2lz uz2lzF uz2lzi |
| loss from lower zone | repGwLossMaps | $\frac{mm}{timestep}$ | GwLossMaps | loss |
LISFLOOD state maps are the maps can be used to define the initial conditions of another simulation (warm start). These maps are written in output when ‘repStateMaps’ = 1. LISFLOOD writes the results for each computational time step. The complete list of state maps is available here.
The users should be aware that some state maps are generated only if the relevant option has been set to 1. For instance, LakePrevInflowState and LakePrevOutflowState can be generated only when ‘simulateLakes’ = 1.
Note
Some cumulative storages and volumes are computed internally by LISFLOOD. Some relevant example is described below:
- Total Water Storage is the total water volume stored in channels, lakes, reservoirs, snow cover, sealed surfaces depressions, surface runoff, canopy interception, upper and lower groundwater zones.
- Surface runoff is the sum of direct runoff (from sealed and water fractions) and runoff generated by the pervious land cover fractions (forest, irrigation, other).
- Total runoff is the sum of surface runoff and sub-surface runoff. Sub-surface runoff is the outflow from upper and lower groundwater zones.