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River Boundary Conditions

River input data for SHYFEM-MPI consist of time series for the following physical variables:

  • River discharge in \(m^3/s\);
  • Temperature in \(^\circ C\);
  • Salinity in \(psu\);

You can include any number of rivers in your simulation. To correctly generate and load your river data files, please refer to the instructions below.

File Placement

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The input data files must be placed in a subdirectory named river_input/ inside your experiment's Base Directory. The directory structure should look like this:

graph LR
    base[🏠&nbsp Base Directory]:::leaf --> A[📁&nbsp Experiment Directory]:::leaf
    base[🏠&nbsp Base Directory]:::leaf --> A1[📁&nbsp river_input/]:::folder
    A --> B[📁&nbsp .../]:::leaf

    %% Class definitions for coloring
    classDef folder fill:#d0ebff,stroke:#339af0,stroke-width:1px;
    classDef leaf fill:#f8f9fa,stroke:#adb5bd,stroke-width:1px;

File Formatting

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The data files must be saved in .dat and must contain the following columns, in the specified order:

Column Variable Data Type
1 Timestamp str (YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM)
2 River discharge float
3 Temperature float
4 Salinity float

Formatting Guidelines

  • Delimiter: Use semicolon (;) with no spaces to separate the columns.

  • Timestamps: The time series does not need to be uniformly spaced and can extend beyond the start or end of the experiment. However, it must fully cover the entire duration of the simulation.

  • Missing data: Empty slots and/or non-conform entries (caused e.g. by missing sensor measurements) are automatically ignored.

Here is an example of an acceptable data formatting: 

# DateTime ; Discharge [m3/s] ; Temperature [degC] ; Salinity [psu]
2021-05-20T00:00:00;1020.8742;21.1536;41.7083
2021-05-20T08:00:00;1026.9659;21.2888;42.1906
2021-05-20T10:00:00;1024.8235;;42.0103
2021-05-20T13:00:00;1018.8895;25.7494;41.9893
[...]

File Naming

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The files must be named exactly as specified in the River Names field within the JSON configuration section 🔗River Forcing at Domain Boundaries (e.g. River Name: BusaLevante ↔ File Name: BusaLevante.dat).