Application of the Mohid-2D model to a mesotidal temperate coastal lagoon

A mathematical model can be considered as an approximate reconstruction of a real phenomenon. All parameterizations and approximations used in models lead to deviations of the model results from nature. It is an accepted requirement that a numerical model of estuarine hydrodynamics should be verified, calibrated and validated before used in a practical application. However, the procedures to perform these tasks are not widely accepted (Cheng et al., 1991). Calibration and validation methods appear in several forms, depending on data availability, water mass characteristics and researchers’ opinion (Hsu et al., 1999). In this work, the Mohid-2D model implementation for the Ria de Aveiro lagoon is presented, describing its assessment through calibration and validation against several different data sets. Due to the lagoon complex geometry and the large number of calibration stations used, this goal constitutes a very challenging task.