HexWatershed
A mesh-independent flow direction and watershed delineation model for structured and unstructured grids
HexWatershed is a mesh-independent flow direction and watershed delineation model designed for modern hydrologic and Earth system modeling. It resolves long-standing challenges in hydrologic flow routing by operating across diverse mesh structures, including variable-resolution Centroidal Voronoi Tessellations (MPAS) and hexagonal grids.
Key Resources
- Official Website: hexwatershed.org
- Documentation: HexWatershed on Read the Docs
- Model Repository (CSDMS): CSDMS Model Repository
- GitHub Repository: github.com/changliao1025/hexwatershed
Highlights & Applications
- Resolves river network topological connectivity on unstructured Voronoi meshes and hexagonal meshes.
- Integrated within the DOE Energy Exascale Earth System Model (E3SM) land (ELM) and river (MOSART) components.
- Enables seamless multi-scale flow routing from watershed scales to global domains.
Selected Publications
- Liao, C., et al. (2022). Advances in hexagon mesh based flow direction modeling. Advances in Water Resources, 160, 104099. DOI: 10.1016/j.advwatres.2021.104099
- Liao, C., et al. (2020). HexWatershed: a mesh independent flow direction model for hydrologic models. Environmental Modelling & Software, 130, 104745. DOI: 10.1016/j.envsoft.2020.104745