Hydrology practicum

"In September 1970 one of the most disastrous flash floods ever to occur in Arizona killed 23 people and devastated thousands of dollars of personal property in the Tonto Creek watershed. Across the United States, this type of scene is repeated all too often: Big Thompson, Rapid City, Johnstown. And with each disaster comes the realization that the hydrologist and meteorologist need to work closely together. Each needs to know more about each other's discipline. Hydrologists need to understand mesoscale meteorology, while the meteorologist needs to have a knowledge of basic hydrology. Although meteorologists and meteorological technicians are responsible for issuing the flash-flood watches and warnings, it would be to their benefit if they also understood some basic hydrology. As an example, lets take a look at Tonto Creek. How high will Tonto Creek rise with 4 inches of precipitation in 2 hours over the headwaters? How long will it take for Tonto Creek above Gun Creek to crest? If Tonto Creek above Gun Creek crests at 43,000 cfs., what stage (or water surface elevation) does this correspond to? These questions, especially "How long will it take for Tonto Creek above Gun Creek to crest?", are vitally important in flash-flood forecasting. To this end, I have prepared a short, but challenging practice set to help the meteorologist and meteorological technician better understand basic hydrology. The practice set is based on NOAA Technical Memorandum NWS WR-136"--Introduction. Thomas Dietrich. 1980 NWS (National Weather Service) WR (Western Region) Library Public Domain 1931