Department of surface water hydrology 

Head of the department: Ing. Dana Halmová, PhD.

Research focus

• basic hydrological processes in the scale of river basin;
• formation and interaction of the basic elements of the hydrological balance;
• spatial and regime characteristics of the hydrological cycle components in the river basin, such as runoff characteristics including extreme discharges;
• temporal and spatial distribution of precipitation and evapotranspiration, including their components, in the river basin;
• hydrological processes in the natural environment, taking into account anthropogenic activities and global changes;
• eco-hydrological problems; particularly the issues of stream water quality;
• assessment of hydraulic structures impact on the groundwater regime;
• large-scale trends and forecasts of changes in groundwater regime;
• vulnerability of groundwater and surface water regimes affected by anthropogenic activities on a regional scale;
• methods of determination of basin hydrological characteristics and hydraulic characteristics of the aquatic environment;
• transport of non-conservative substances of biological and chemical pollution in surface and ground waters;
• physically based numerical modelling of water flow at selected specific locations;
• multidimensional mathematical and numerical modelling of groundwater flow and groundwater- surface water interactions or interactions with hydraulic structures.

Click here to see the current International and Domestic Research projects

Research Base for Mountain Hydrology in Liptovský Mikuláš

Head of the base: Ing. Michal Danko, PhD.

Established in 1986 as the external centre of the Institute of hydrology SAS based on perspective from 1982 for the needs of research task „Monitoring and analysis of the storm runoff regime in mountainous region using mathematical modelling“ in frame of the UNESCO International Hydrological Programme. The research basin location requirement was the Upper Váh river catchment down to the Liptovská Mara hydro-electric plant. Five employees are working at the centre recently.

Main scope of the centre:

• water balance components research in mountain regions
• study of hydrological processes interacting the water sources and runoff formation

Main focus of research activity:

• spatial distribution of the atmospheric precipitation,
• estimation of evapotranspiration at mountain catchment conditions,
• soil moisture spatial variability,
• proportional share of runoff components (isotopic separation - ¹⁸O a ²H)
• generation and development of storm runoff event and catchment response speed,
• snow accumulation and snow-melt, snow-melt runoff,
• climate change and land-use change influence on hydrological regime.

Experimental basin - Jalovecký potok creek

• westernmost catchment of Western Tatra mountains,
• basin area - 22,2 km2
• catchment average altitude - 1500 m (from 800 to 2178 m n.m.)

List of Contacts