Abstract
In the United States and around the world, the security of critical water resources is at risk. Too much water, too little water, or water of poor quality endangers life, property, economies, and ecosystems. These threats to water security arise from several factors, including increased water demand from population growth and weather and water-related impacts of climate variability and change. As these complex threats have intensified, so has the Nation’s demand for advanced water prediction capabilities to better inform decisions. The National Weather Service’s Office of Water Prediction and partners are developing the National Water Model as a tool to help serve this need. The National Water Model is a high resolution hydrologic model that provides estimates of existing conditions and forecasts of key components of the water cycle across the continental United States and Hawaii. The model utilizes meteorological inputs, environmental data, and observations from United States Geological Survey stream gages to simulate observed and forecast streamflow for nearly 5 million miles of rivers and streams. The hydrologic guidance provided by the National Water Model significantly expands geographic coverage while offering greater spatial and temporal resolution than other tools. These features make the model a unique and complementary tool to existing services. Information and visuals from the National Water Model, show how impacts of weather cascade across regions and basins in the continental United States. The guidance provided about how much water can be expected, when, and how it will likely flow improves the integrated understanding of U.S. water resources. Further, it enables communities to make more informed decisions about what actions to take, and when, to prepare for and protect their citizens and infrastructure. This session will describe the publicly available aspects of the National Water Model, how to access the information, and the value of the resources.
