Preprints
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-397
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-397
25 Mar 2024
 | 25 Mar 2024

Modelling of post-monsoon drying in Nepal: implications for landslide hazard

Maximillian Van Wyk de Vries, Sihan Li, Katherine Arrell, Jeevan Baniya, Dipak Basnet, Gopi K. Basyal, Nyima Dorjee Bhotia, Alexander L. Densmore, Tek Bahadur Dong, Alexandre Dunant, Erin L. Harvey, Ganesh K. Jimee, Mark E. Kincey, Katie Oven, Sarmila Paudyal, Dammar Singh Pujara, Anuradha Puri, Ram Shrestha, Nick J. Rosser, and Simon J. Dadson

Abstract. Soil moisture is a key preconditioning factor influencing hillslope stability and the initiation of landslides. Direct measurements of soil moisture on a large scale are logistically complicated, expensive, and therefore sparse, resulting in large data gaps. In this study, we calibrate a numerical land surface model to improve our representation of post-monsoon soil drying in landslide-prone Nepal. We use a parameter perturbation experiment to identify optimal parameter sets at three field monitoring sites and evaluate the performance of those optimal parameter sets at each location. This process enables the calibration of key soil hydraulic parameters, in particular a higher hydraulic conductivity and a lower saturation moisture content relative to the default parameter setting. Runs with the calibrated model parameters provide a substantially more accurate (50 % or greater reduction in root mean squared error) soil moisture record than those with the default model parameters, even when calibrated from sites as much as 250 km apart. This process enables meaningful calculation of post-monsoon soil moisture decay at locations with no in situ monitoring, so as to inform a key component of landslide susceptibility mapping in Nepal and other regions where field measurements of soil moisture are limited.

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Maximillian Van Wyk de Vries, Sihan Li, Katherine Arrell, Jeevan Baniya, Dipak Basnet, Gopi K. Basyal, Nyima Dorjee Bhotia, Alexander L. Densmore, Tek Bahadur Dong, Alexandre Dunant, Erin L. Harvey, Ganesh K. Jimee, Mark E. Kincey, Katie Oven, Sarmila Paudyal, Dammar Singh Pujara, Anuradha Puri, Ram Shrestha, Nick J. Rosser, and Simon J. Dadson

Status: final response (author comments only)

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2024-397', Anonymous Referee #1, 22 Apr 2024
  • RC2: 'Comment on egusphere-2024-397', Anonymous Referee #2, 18 Jul 2024
Maximillian Van Wyk de Vries, Sihan Li, Katherine Arrell, Jeevan Baniya, Dipak Basnet, Gopi K. Basyal, Nyima Dorjee Bhotia, Alexander L. Densmore, Tek Bahadur Dong, Alexandre Dunant, Erin L. Harvey, Ganesh K. Jimee, Mark E. Kincey, Katie Oven, Sarmila Paudyal, Dammar Singh Pujara, Anuradha Puri, Ram Shrestha, Nick J. Rosser, and Simon J. Dadson
Maximillian Van Wyk de Vries, Sihan Li, Katherine Arrell, Jeevan Baniya, Dipak Basnet, Gopi K. Basyal, Nyima Dorjee Bhotia, Alexander L. Densmore, Tek Bahadur Dong, Alexandre Dunant, Erin L. Harvey, Ganesh K. Jimee, Mark E. Kincey, Katie Oven, Sarmila Paudyal, Dammar Singh Pujara, Anuradha Puri, Ram Shrestha, Nick J. Rosser, and Simon J. Dadson

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Short summary
This study focuses on understanding soil moisture, a key factor for evaluating hillslope stability and landsliding. In Nepal, where landslides are common, we used a computer model to better understand how rapidly soil dries out after the monsoon season. We calibrated the model using field data and found that, by adjusting soil properties, we could predict moisture levels more accurately. This helps understand where landslides might occur, even where direct measurements are not possible.