Balance of Small Watersheds from Data on Long-term Experimental Research at the Valdai Affiliation of the State Hydrological Institute (SHI)

Zh. A. Balonishnikova, O. I. Krestovskii†, and V. A. Shutov

Results of detecting water balance components of experimental watersheds from long-term observations at the Valdai Affiliation of the SHI are presented. Methods of measurements, calculations, and corrections of precipitation amount, measurement of evaporation from the land, changes in the soil moisture reserves and ground water reserves are considered. All components of the water balance of watersheds are measured independently which allows estimating quantitatively the residuals and measurement and calculation errors. A preliminary analysis is performed of seasonal values of the water balance components and their changes in the period of most intensive observations (1952–1985) which is of a great value for studying the conditions of the river runoff formation in small watersheds.