Alpine scenario: La Fouly Susana Fernandez Vidal EPFL - EFLUM
Rationales and Goals of the monitoring 1. Generation and acquisition of data which describes hazardous scenarios in the Swiss Alps 2. Studying and analyzing environmental processes that might trigger hazardous scenarios, such as floods, debris-flows and landslides 3. Assessing the impact of spatial variability related to meteorological and soil characteristics, on catchment hydrology 4. Characterizing the soil more in detail to improve soil moisture modeling 5. Hydrograph separation: snow and ice melt, rainfall-runoff, groundwater drainage 6. Improve hydrological modeling using a 3D-physically based model 7. Study of the slope winds
La Fouly Catchment area = 20 Km 2 Zmin = 1785 m, Zmax = 3238 m Gd ST-Bernard Italy N
LAYOUT OF THE STATIONS SENSORSCOPE STATIONS Master station MAXBOTIX: Water level
EACH STATION MEASURES: ACCUMULATED RAIN WIND SPEED & WIND DIRECTION INCOMING SHORTWAVE RADIATION SKIN TEMPERATURE AIR TEMPERATURE RELATIVE HUMIDITY SOIL MOISTURE SOIL TEMPERATURE SOIL SUCTION
Water level : Pressure transducer Maxbotix (ultrasound) WATER LEVEL & DISCHARGE Discharge measurements: Salt dilution method (Sommer) STAGE-DISCHARGE RELATION
~ 1 km ~ 10 m Surface energy balance Profiles of turbulent fluxes Atmospheric profiles Sensorscope stations Slope Winds at La Fouly
ISOTOPE APPLICATIONS IN CATCHMENT HYDROLOGY To answer to questions like: - Where water goes when it rains? - What pathways it takes to the stream? - How long water resides in the catchment? Isotope information may be used to calibrate and test distributed rainfall-runoff models (GEOtop, ALpine3D) STABLE ISOTOPE ANALYSER (CAVITY RING DOWN) FOR 18 O/ 16 O & 2 H/ 1 H
Some results of La Fouly 2009
Discharge components: Stream Hydrograph separation Samples -River -Snow melt -Snow/ice from the glacier -Streams -Springs -Rain -Soil Catchment area = 20 Km 2 Zmin = 1785 m, Zmax = 3238 m Baseflow : The glacier
La Fouly – field campaign 2009 Soil Data (18 th June – 29 th October) -20 cm -40 cm -60 cm -20 cm cm
Slope Winds at La Fouly
Day slope winds valley winds Night Katabatic WindsAnabatic Winds