EXPERIENCE IN USING GEOINFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES IN FORECASTING FLOOD RUNOFF

V. A. Belchikov, S. V. Borshch, V. Yu. Voznesenskii, V. I. Gavrilov, V. V. Lebedev, V. M. Mukhin, E. I. Kupriyanova, and V. A. Kharitonov

A method of long-term background forecast of small-river runoff for the flood period is offered by the example of the Moskva River basin. The method is based on the consideration of distribution of the main runoff-forming factors such as water equivalent of snow cover, depth of soil freezing, and soil moisture in the fall over the homogeneous landscape areas. The technology of method development includes the complication of synthesized maps of these factors and the satellite images of the basin to identify the homogeneous landscape areas and to determine the extent to which they are forested. The method of forecast was tested for the conditions of spring 1999.