Application of evapoclimatonomy to monthly surface water balance calculations at the HAPEX-Sahel supersites

Abstract

In this paper a revised version of Lettau's evapoclimatonomy is used to simulate climate in West Africa. The model is applied specifically to the study sites of the HAPEX-Sahel region in Niger, an international regional experiment to study regional-scale hydrological and energy balances of the Sahel. The model uses monthly means of precipitation, potential evapotranspiration, and solar radiation from the HAPEX-Sahel observations, as well as vegetation and soil parameters adequate for the region. Evapotranspiration, runoff, and soil moisture are determined. Differences are observed between the three vegetation types (guiera, grass, and millet) and between the three supersites.