Table 1 Summary of data sets, and an indication of which were used to calculate the prior probability distribution and likelihood functions, for each of the water balance components including over-lake precipitation (denoted as P), over-lake evaporation (denoted as E), lateral runoff (denoted as R), inflow through main channels from upstream lake (denoted as I), outflow through main channels (denoted as Q), diversion (denoted as D) and lake storage (denoted as H). Note that only data from 1950 to 2019 was used in this study.

From: Seventy-year long record of monthly water balance estimates for Earth’s largest lake system

Data sources

Variables

Temporal coverage

Used in

Data reference

Prior distribution estimate

Likelihood function estimate

NOAA GLERL GLM-HMD

P, E, R

1900–2016(*)

X

X

Hunter, et al.43

USACE AHPS

P, E, R

1900–2019(*)

 

X

Croley53

CCGLBHHD

I, Q, D, H

1900–2019

X

X

Gronewold, et al.31

IGS

I, Q

2008–2019

 

X

Gronewold, et al.31

GLERL FVCOM

E

2018–2019

 

X

Kelley, et al.56

ECCC CaPA

P

2006–2019

 

X

Fortin, et al.40 and Lespinas, et al.55

NWS MPE

P

2016–2019

 

X

Stevenson and Schumacher54

ECCC WCPS

E, R

2016–2019

 

X

Durnford, et al.39

  1. (*): over-lake evaporation is only available starting in 1949.