Hydro-JULES

The Hydro-JULES research programme is developing a new generation of terrestrial hydrological models linked to, and in collaboration with, the Joint UK Land Environment Simulator (JULES) model. A primary objective of Hydro-JULES is to generate a 3D model of the complete terrestrial water cycle in such a way as to ensure consistency across space and timescales.

Through the development of new models that better simulate the movement of water, both vertically and laterally, advances in land surface–boundary layer science can be made. Two scales are being considered for the application of the modelling approach: the British mainland (England, Scotland and Wales, including major islands) and the global scale.

Questions under consideration at the British mainland scale are:

• How can an integrated approach improve the simulation of major flooding events such as the 2013–14 floods?
• How can a holistic approach be undertaken to assess water resources under drought conditions?

Our role is to deliver the subsurface part of the Hydro-JULES programme by contributing geological and hydrogeological understanding to inform the appropriate parameter-isation that will be encapsulated in the groundwater modelling. The aim is to develop a flow, heat and solute transport modelling approach for the British mainland and to incorporate groundwater flow in the JULES model at the global scale.

The Hydro-JULES research programme is supported by NERC National Capability funding (Grant number: NE/S017380/1) and involves the BGS, the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (CEH) and the National Centre for Atmospheric Science (NCAS). It is a five-year programme, running from April 2019 to March 2024.

Contact

If you want to discover more then please contact Andrew Hughes.