VICGlobal: A Globally Consistent Setup for the Variable Infiltration Capacity Model

Abstract:

Hydrologic models predict the spatial and temporal distribution of water and energy at the land surface. Currently, parameter availability limits global-scale hydrologic modeling to relatively coarse spatial resolutions, hindering researchers from resolving fine-scale hydrologic variability. With the aim of addressing this problem, we present a set of globally consistent soil and vegetation parameters for the Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) model at 1/16° spatial resolution (approximately 6 km at the equator), with spatial coverage from 60°S to 85°N. Our VIC parameter set is derived from several remote sensing data products incorporating recent measurements from MODIS. Input files and subsetting codes have been created for both the classic and image drivers of the VIC model, version 5. VICGlobal provides all the static parameters needed to run the VIC model at regional to global scale. We used the VICGlobal parameters to run VIC over the Upper Colorado River Basin, and we compared estimated streamflow to estimates made using an existing VIC parameterization available for the continental U.S. and to naturalized streamflow data from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. We show how with calibration, streamflow estimates made using VICGlobal can match or exceed the skill of estimates made using existing VIC inputs. Moreover, VICGlobal has near-global coverage and is easily accessible via the Zenodo online archive.