|
Journal of Environmental Hydrology
ISSN 1058-3912 |
||
|
Electronic Journal of the International Association for
Environmental Hydrology
JEH Volume 13 (2005), Paper 26 Posted November 24, 2005 DISTRIBUTION OF RAINFALL, RUNOFF AND SOIL MOISTURE STORAGE IN THE LOW RAINFALL ZONE OF NORTHERN IRAQ
Mohammad H. Hussein1 2Department of Soil and Water, Faculty of Agriculture, Mosul University, Mosul, Iraq 3Center for Industrial Forests, Ministry of Industry, Baghdad, Iraq ABSTRACT Knowledge of the distribution of rainfall, runoff and soil moisture storage is important in dryland farming and water resources development in semiarid regions. Several natural runoff plots in fallow were established on a 6% uniform slope area to study runoff and soil moisture distribution in the low rainfall zone of northern Iraq. The soil at the site belongs to the Calciorthid suborder, which dominates in this zone. Analysis of 23 years of rainfall records at the experimental site showed that monthly rainfall distribution varied appreciably among seasons, with the monthly rainfall records following a gamma probability distribution. Monthly runoff distribution nearly follows that of rainfall in normal rainfall seasons, but may become erratic in dry rainfall seasons. Mean soil moisture storage during the season was expressed linearly in term of total seasonal rainfall infiltration. Soil moisture storage during the rainfall season follows a normal probability distribution and drops to as low as 30% of the saturation level before the start of the rainfall season in October or November. Reference: Hussein, M.H., M.M. Awad, and A.S. Abdul-Jabbar. 2005. Distribution of Rainfall, Runoff and Soil Moisture Storage in the Low Rainfall Zone of Northern Iraq, Journal of Environmental Hydrology, Vol. 13, Paper 26. CONTACT: Mohammad H. Hussein Department of Soil And Water College of Agriculture University of Babylon Hilla, Iraq E-mail: husseinmohammad@yahoo.com |
||
| Return to HydroWeb Homepage | ||