Comparison of Flow Routing Algorithms Used in Geographic Information Systems

Comparison of Flow Routing Algorithms Used in Geographic Information Systems Track: Water Resources Author(s): Christine Lam, John Wilson This paper reports the results of a series of experiments to evaluate the performance of five flow routing algorithms that have been implemented inside one or more GIS. A fuzzy classification was used to delineate landscape classes (hilltops, steep slopes, footslopes, etc.) on DEMs drawn from three different locations, and a series of maps and tabular outputs were produced to compare the flow routing predictions in these landscape zones. The results show that the choice of flow routing algorithm has important consequences for the calculation of upslope contributing areas, sediment transport capacity, topographic wetness index, and several other terrain-based indices. Christine Lam University of Southern California Geography KAP 416 Los Angeles , CA 90089-0255 USA Phone: 213 740-8263 Fax: 213 740-9687 E-mail: csl@usc.edu John Wilson University of Southern California Geography KAP 416 Los Angeles 90089-0255 USA Phone: 213 740-1908 Fax: 213 740-9687 E-mail: jpwilson@usc.edu