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Data selection for environmental simulations—A water temperature example
Author(s) -
Young G. K.,
Tseng M. T.,
Taylor R. S.
Publication year - 1972
Publication title -
water resources research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.863
H-Index - 217
eISSN - 1944-7973
pISSN - 0043-1397
DOI - 10.1029/wr008i005p01226
Subject(s) - thermal pollution , dew point , environmental science , meteorology , wind speed , computer science , series (stratigraphy) , environmental engineering , paleontology , physics , biology
How should data be selected for use in costly environmental simulation models? For a particular problem, namely, thermal pollution, the question becomes, What combination of meteorologic conditions should be used to simulate the thermal stress on an estuary under natural or man‐made heat loadings? Practical and standard approaches are required to select study conditions to support the preparation of expert testimony. A method combining computer simulations with series approximations is proposed. Three important parameters, wind speed, solar radiation, and dew point temperature, that influence the diurnal water temperature variation are considered in using the proposed analysis. Over 15 years of daily records of summer conditions at the weather station at Miami, Florida, are used to demonstrate the methodology. A Taylor series approximation is used to fit simulated responses in order to relate the probability of all days to the average day for the period studied. The technique should provide a tool for incorporating probability analysis into the study of thermal pollution in receiving waters. As a coarse approximation this approach can also be used for direct prediction of ambient water temperatures, very slight computer costs being invoked. The approach is adaptable to other environmental simulations.