Rainfall-runoff modeling using Artificial Neural Networks

An Artificial Neural Network (ANN) methodology was employed to forecast daily runoff as a function of daily precipitation, temperature, and snowmelt for the Little Patuxent River watershed in Maryland. The sensitivity of the prediction accuracy to the content and length of training data was investigated. The ANN rainfall-runoff model compared favorably with results obtained using existing techniques including statistical regression and a simple conceptual model. The ANN model provides a more systematic approach, reduces the length of calibration data, and shortens the time spent in calibration of the models. At the same time, it represents an improvement upon the prediction accuracy and flexibility of current methods.