Abstract
The statistical relation between main channel length (MCL) and basin length (BLENG) was investigated for 96 small watersheds in central Texas. MCL and BLENG were calculated using 10- and 30-meter digital elevation models (DEM). Because of a possible curvilinear relation between MCL and BLENG for watersheds with BLENG greater than about 16 kilometers, linear equations were developed for watersheds with BLENG less than 16 kilometers. The equation for the 10-meter DEM-derived characteristics based on 54 stations is MCL equals 1.21 times BLENG; and the equation for the 30-meter DEM-derived characteristics based on 74 stations is MCL equals 1.16 times BLENG. Therefore, the equation to rapidly estimate MCL from BLENG for small watersheds is MCL equals 1.2 times BLENG. The limited difference between the equations sug- gests that accuracy of some small watershed characteristics is not greatly increased through the use of 10-meter DEMs.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 23–35 |
Journal | The Southwestern Geographer |
State | Published - 2006 |