Fully coupled atmosphere-hydrology simulations for the central Mediterranean: Impact of enhanced hydrological parameterization for short and long time scales

Since the main rain events in the study area are mostly dependent on the interactions between the atmosphere and the surrounding Mediterranean Sea, changes in precipitation between modeling experiments were modest. However, redistribution and reinfiltration of local infiltration excess produced higher soil moisture content, lower overall surface runoff, and higher drainage in the fully coupled model. Higher soil moisture values in WRF/WRF-Hydro slightly influenced precipitation and also increased latent heat fluxes.

Overall, the fully coupled model tended to show better performance with respect to observed precipitation while allowing more water to circulate in the modeled regional water cycle thus, ultimately, modifying long-term hydrological processes at the land surface.