2008 Volume 52 Pages 1069-1074
In this paper, we proposed a basin-scale distribution model for stream temperature prediction in a river network. The model used geomorphologic laws of river basins in order to connect channel segments from the sources to river mouth. In each segment, a theoretical solution derived from a thermal energy equation with Taylor-series approximation was applied to predict longitudinal variation of river temperature. The present model was able to predict the stream temperature distribution when the geomorphologic characteristics, the topological structure of the river network, and the meteorological and hydrological conditions were given. Comparison of the model prediction with the observation showed good agreement for the whole temperature increase from the source to mouth. However, more consideration, such as land use effects, will be needed for higher accuracy of stream temperature prediction.
