A state‐space model for hydrologic river routing

In this paper a state‐space formulation of the Muskingum‐Cunge routing scheme is proposed. The state‐space formulation utilizes real‐time discharge measurements, accounts for modeling and observation errors, and allows real‐time updating through a Kalman filter estimator. The new model is tested in two different geotechnical conditions to forecast six‐hour discharge values in hypothetical channels. For realism, the geomorphologic characteristics of these case studies are determined on the basis of the regime theory. DWOPER, a field‐tested numerical dynamic routing model, was used to provide ground truth data for the validation of the proposed model.